Oh crap to drill or not to drill lol

[Dave VG]

That is the question. Forgot this in my last post. If I do decide to go with the 40 B as a sump/fuge I have been thinking of drilling and using the inside half of a 600 gal over flow Vince gave me with 2 one inch bulk heads. What do you think???????

 

[jacksonpt]

What is the other option aside from drilling?

Now that I've run a drilled tank, it's the only way I'll ever go in the future. It's easy to do, and just requires some thought/planning ahead of time in order to do right.

To me it's a no brainer.

 

[Dave VG]

Hang on back overflow or 2 Emperor 400’s in the post below. I know drilling would be the best way but I’m nervous the tank will break knowing my luck. I have all the stuff to do it but…………

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1861875

 

[jacksonpt]

From my experience, a drilled tank can be a bit more reliable and is easier to make quiet, but it's not such a night and day difference that a HOB overflow is out of the question. I've run both, I like both, but the simplicity and peace of mind that comes with drilling makes it the winner to me.

From my experience, all be in somewhat limited experience, I think drilling is pretty safe. It becomes risky when certain things happen:

• you don't take your time durnig the actual drilling
• you drill your hole(s) too close to the seems/rim of the tank
• you drill too many holes
• your holes are too close together
• your holes are too large

Just think about the integrity of the glass and the weight/pressure the glass has to hold, then plan your holes accordingly.

 

[Dave VG]

Jackson what were the the sizes of your bulk heads and the dimensions of your holes from the top and sides?

 

[jacksonpt]

I believe both holes are 2 3/8" for 1.5" bulkheads/pvc. I'll try to measure where the holes are when I get home, but both are in the right side glass.

 

[Dave VG]

cool thanks

 

[jacksonpt]

One hole is 3" from the seam, 6.5" from the top of the trim. The other is 3.5" from the seam and 4" from the top. This is the one used for the glass holes overflow and was set by the template they included with their kit (for whatever that's worth).

Both measurements are approximate, and both are to the center of the hole.

 

[Dave VG]

Thanks that's a big help. This is one thing that always miffed me and made me apprehensive about drilling. What made you decide to drill the end by the way?

Edit: Looking foward to checking it out in person.

 

[jacksonpt]

Because of where the tank is located, I didn't have much room for plumbing behind the tank (had to keep it as close to the wall as possible. I had a bit more room on the right side, so it made more sense to drill there.

 

[Dave VG]

Ahhh ok got ya

 

[jacksonpt]

A couple of other things... the holes themselves are about 6" apart, center to center.

And I should be able to frag the duncans - you'll get 5 heads... 1 good sized one and 4 smaller ones.

 

[Dave VG]

Thanks jackson sounds good