Mhucasey's SPS obsession

[mhucasey]

Constructing a Basso-style coast to coast overflow for the new tank. I had three 1/8" glass pieces cut and sanded, two are 14" X 35", the third is 7" X 35". First, I painted one side of one of the large pieces with blue spray paint, three coats:

Next I bonded the two large glass pieces together with the painted side in the middle. I used RTV-103 black silicone and it was a PITA. Finally, I bonded the smaller glass piece to the two others on the back side:

The back of the tank will get two holes drilled large enough for 1.5" bulkheads. The glass sandwich will then be glued against the back of the tank with the 1/8" gap over the two holes. The bottom 6 inches will therefore be pressed up against the back while the top will form a gap.

The gap will be a little wider than 1/8" when all is said and done, which seems like a very small gap, but with a 35" span, it works out to 4.3 square inches of area. The gap is basically the same width as one of the gaps between the teeth in a traditional overflow. This style of overflow has been used by lots of tanks in Brazil, and Dendai here on RC has also done something similar.

I have several 6" X 6" 1/4" glass pieces that I will drill. One will be big enough for the 1.5" bulkhead, the other will be big enough to go around the collar of the bulkhead. I will set the bulkhead in the smaller hole, then glue the piece with the larger hole over the collar. This will give me a flat glass surface to glue to the back of the tank over the bulkhead holes.

I have an external weir box that will collect the water coming from the bulkheads and then three 1" pipes will route the water to the sump.

 

[reefmutt]

This is a very cool system and from I have seen, totally silent. And super low profile.
Matt, don't you wonder about the long term viability, though? There isn't really even enough space to get something in there to dislodge or clean potential buildup..
I would worry about sponges or tiny tube worms growing inside the layers and restricting flow, over the years.. And the builkhead is rendered inaccessible, if I understand your construction plan.. I guess if you make sure it's perfectly sealed, it's not really an issue..
Looking forward to this new build..

 

[mhucasey]

Matt! Whats going on with you and yours? You have been pretty scarce lately

As for the overflow, it was a bit of a leap of faith to go with this, but I have a backup plan built in. The external weir is a knock-off of the ghost overflow, so it came with an internal overflow box equipped with two 1.5" bulkheads. I'll be drilling the holes as if I'm using that whole system. If the Basso system doesn't work out, ill just cut out the glass, cut off the outside glass/bulkhead pieces, and use the Ghost knock-off.

I looked at a lot of stuff about the Basso designs, and he has some overflows like this in place for over 10 years, so I think it will be fine. He uses a plastic ruler to clean the gap between the sheets, i will either do that or use a piece of 1/8" acrylic. Its a bit nerve wracking for me working with glass but I think the final product will be well worth it

I plan on converting the current tank to the same thing, but I'll use the existing bulkhead holes in the bottom of the tank rather than drilling. There will be nothing on the back of the tank for that one
Like this but the back piece will be coast-to-coast like the one I built:

On a side note, I got solar installed and now can produce up to 5.7KW peak - its only been on two days, which were extremely cloudy, but i still generated 20KWH yesterday, so electrical use has ceased to be a concern for my lighting options!!!!

 

[reefmutt]

Solar! Cool. In Cali that'll come in very handy. Especially since it doesn't rain there anymore!!
Ya, been scarce.. Got tired of posting depressing stats. I'll do an updaet soon- things are relatively good and heading in the right direction.
Anyways the ruler/acrylic strip down the space should keep it clear.
I'll be watching!

 

[Hentz]

I'm excited to see these rocks in action! I was looking at them on eBay as well but didn't know how they were long term. But if V1rotate uses them and has had success, might just have found the rock for my next tank!

Excited to see this build! Looks so beautiful

 

[Wazzel]

That is an interesting overflow design. Where did you dig it up? I have not seen it before.

 

[mhucasey]

I'm excited to see these rocks in action! I was looking at them on eBay as well but didn't know how they were long term. But if V1rotate uses them and has had success, might just have found the rock for my next tank!

Excited to see this build! Looks so beautiful

Thanks, me too! The rocks are actually better looking in person than the stock photos, they are very dense too. I've seen them, or variations on them, in some other great tanks too so I'm not totally alone. I don't mind trying something different and new, it keeps me excited about this hobby

 

[mhucasey]

That is an interesting overflow design. Where did you dig it up? I have not seen it before.

The first place I saw something like this was on Dendai's reef, he has a similar overflow. In explaining his design, there were references to Basso. I did some more searches and found this thread:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2053326
There is a guy named João Basso from Brazil who has come up with all kinds of interesting overflow and return ideas, he is a real wizard with glass. Some searches with his name led to a lot of pics and videos with his designs.
I've been looking for ways to get a truly invisible overflow and this looks like the ticket!

 

[bogg]

Yeah that's a killer looking overflow great find

 

[mhucasey]

I test fit it in the new tank and i have a potential issue. The Overflow edge is 1.5" below the top edge of the tank. In the current tank the waterline is 1.5" below the rim and it works well. With the new tank's overflow already at 1.5" below, the water level should be maybe 1/4" higher than that. I'm a little concerned that the level may be a bit too high. Anyone else with rimless tanks, how high is your waterline compared to the rim?

 

[mhucasey]

Yeah that's a killer looking overflow great find

Thanks The internet can yield some great stuff but finding it can be challenging!

 

[hppo]

Interesting.. can't wait to see your final product! Super nice tank as well!

 

[mhucasey]

I drilled some glass...and I liked it! I didn't want my first time drilling glass to be through the back of the aquarium, so I practiced on the glass squares I will use for the bulkheads. It was pretty easy and only took ~30 seconds per piece.

Dry fit with the bulkhead- Ill need to sand off the outer edge of the bulkhead so its totally flush:

I may drill the tank tomorrow...

 

[markalot]

I'm nervous.

 

[reefmutt]

Thin glass cracks a lot easier than thicker glass when it's drilled.
If you went through the thin stuff with no issues, you'll be golden going through the tank.
Go go go!
And go Habs go.. But that's an entirely different subject..

 

[sahin]

I'm nervous.

Meh, stop being a wuss. :lol2: If Biggles were here he'd say a few words too. Just take your time and dont force it; especially towards the end.

 

[mhucasey]

After successfully drilling the smaller pieces of glass I'm not really concerned with cracking. It's hard to describe but after you run the drill and feel and hear the bit grinding the glass, something clicks and you realize cracking is unlikely. The only concern I have is properly locating the holes. I have a sweet glass drill guide that ensures Ill drill exactly where I measure - I just need to measure twice

 

[mhucasey]

OK, drilling the tank is done and done! I very carefully measured then drilled the holes in the back after removing one of the Eurobraces. FYI the Eurobraces on this tank are only for splash guarding and are not structural. They are Starphire glass and I had planned to remove them(Okd by MFG).
Measured and Marked:

Drilled out:

Test fit the Backup plan overflow device...Fits perfect

Ill Use this if the custom glass wall doesn't work out:

While I was drilling the overflow holes, I thought about where to put the return. I ended up drilling the Eurobrace on the far wall, the return should barely be visible with this approach. Ill leave this one piece of Eurobrace in, it can catch any splashes:

 

[mhucasey]

I used the bandsaw to thin the ends of the bulkheads and glued them together with the two glass pieces. Using Black silicone makes these look really good:

The side that will glue to the aquarium is flush:

And finally, I glued in the overflow wall, using lots and lots of silicone, but I made way less of a mess than I expected, in fact I'm pretty proud of this thing:

Ill glue the Bulkheads on tomorrow then give the whole thing a couple of days to cure before a water test. Hopefully everything works well

 

[markalot]

Whew!