new tank, new to hobby

[colin d]

So far i have gotten my 120g tank, drilled in thr back two top corners. I also got a 60g tank i am going to use for sump. Other than that, i have nothing but dreams. I would love to keep some fish and coral but need help with what to use regarding lights, sump, skimmer design etc. Any advise would help. My first step is to build my overflow box. I have lots of clean leftover 1/2" plastic from a jobsite so i would like to make a box the entire length of the tank. But i am not sure of how deep to make it. Also how big the "teethe" would need to be.

 

[Bogue Chitto]

I don't think you need it but maybe an inch or so lower than the drilled holes. Look at the teeth on factory made over flow boxes to get an idea which one will work for you. Other guys will give you some more suggestions. I wish you well with your new adventure. It can be fun if you go slow and do a lot of reading on what works for others.

 

[stingeragent]

I don't know if plastic will be the best way but that's up to you. What your describing is a coast to coast overflow. I have no experience with them, but if you search for that term I'm sure you'll get some good ideas. How deep you wanna make it depends on your plumbing type/style. You ideally want it to have enough depth (front to back not height), to be able to remove plumbing inside the overflow while its running if you need to.

 

[Shewillbemine]

What a big tank for a reef noobie! Pics.

 

[colin d]

Thank you for the input for the overflow. As for the size of the tank, what i have learned is that a larger volume of water is more forgiving. Guess i will see.

 

[colin d]

I don't know if plastic will be the best way but that's up to you. What your describing is a coast to coast overflow. I have no experience with them, but if you search for that term I'm sure you'll get some good ideas. How deep you wanna make it depends on your plumbing type/style. You ideally want it to have enough depth (front to back not height), to be able to remove plumbing inside the overflow while its running if you need to.

Thanks for the info, if plastic is no good what would you suggest?

 

[thegrun]

Plastic would be fine. I built a coast to coast overflow for my 120 gallon tank from acrylic. It is 4" tall, protrudes into the tank 2" and is 32" long, giving me about 8" from the sides of the tank. I made the slots 3/4" deep, 3/16" wide and are on 1/2" centers. I run about 700 gph through the return and a fair amount of the water still flows over the top of the in tank overflow for good surface skimming. The main overflow box sits behind the tank, is 12" wide, 12" tall and protrudes 4" out from the tank.

 

[Giants13]

Thank you for the input for the overflow. As for the size of the tank, what i have learned is that a larger volume of water is more forgiving. Guess i will see.

you are exactly right, you wanna start out as big as you can go is my experience.