Overflow and return line help

[Sarah88]

ok so i was thinking of drilling my own overflow box for my tank and was looking at glass-holes.com, its way cheaper than a CPR HOB and would give me a better peace of mind LOL so i was just wanting to know if anyone else has their boxes and how well they work (also how quiet are they) and also if the super nano with teeth would be good enough for my 20g long tank? also i was looking at their return line kits and was wondering how they worked? so it is a hole drilled on the other side with a smaller bulkhead that the water just comes back in through? is there some kind of special nozzle or anything and would i need the 1/2in or the 3/4 in (i am planning on getting a mag2 pump would that be strong enough? it only has to travel like 3 feet at most) also what kind of piping would i use to connect these return line kits to my pump?

[Sarah88]

Also wanted to add: how do i know if my glass is tempered or not as iv read that you cant drill tempered glass?

[wanareef]

That's true, you can't drill tempered glass and it's usually used on the bottom of the tank.

If you drill and use an overflow box, you can use a Durso to keep things quiet

[Sarah88]

oh ok kewl thanks for the advice definitely want to keep things as quiet as possible lol, so tempered glass isn't used on sides?

[wanareef]

I have had several glass tanks, from 10gal up to 100gal and none of them had tempered glass on one side - just on the bottoms.

And if you are going to drill your own tank and just doing one hole, usually you can rent a diamond hole saw from a LFS or you can go the cheap way with diamond bits from Harbor Freight and a dremel. Use the pointed end first then the "barrel" to open up the hole and make it flat.

good luck

[Sarah88]

thanks yeah the only LFS that is left around here is WAY overpriced, one of the guys seemed pretty knowledgeable but God (or TRT lol) help someone if they went in there when only the other guy is in there he knows absolutely nothing! bad enough i will be having to go there to buy RO/DI water (until i can afford to get system of my own) but yeah if i go with the one from glass-holes they actually include a diamond bit in their package so i would just have to borrow drill from the good old dad "store" and ill be set lol (come to think of it he probably has a diamond bit somehwere i should prolly ask about...) lol

[mxracer19]

I've used glass-holes before. I'm not familliar with the return line youre speaking of, but if youre going to drill your tank, you might as well drill two holes, one for the supply and one for the return...buy matching bulkheads and just use the hole instead of an overflow box. the water rises to the level of the hole and drains. If youd like to increase water height, just slip an elbow on the bulkhead facing upwards and rotate it down until the water is at the correct height. Thats the setup Ive got on my 20L and it works quite well. Just dont overtighten your bulkhead and crack your glass like I did...

[Sarah88]

but if you just have open bulhead how do you keep snails and fish and stuff from being sucked into it? (i could see it not being problem with the elbow piece in place but without it wouldnt other things in the tank just get sucked in?

[Jadinop]

You won't get the same amount of surface skimming with just a bulkhead for the drain. Go with the glass holes kit as you planned. Instead of drilling a hole for the return, just go up and over the top. No need for two holes.

[Sarah88]

thanks jadinhop yeah thats what i plan on doing it seems like the best option n comes with drill bit and everything