Filtration for 30 gallon tank?

[IronVikingMC]

Im helping my friend setup his 30 gallon rimless tank up and when he bought it it came with a hob filter.. i wanted to drill the back galss to put a bulkhead and have it go down into the sump, but im worried of braking the galss. i have read with a small tank like this that i can just put a good skimmer and thats it. What recomendations do you guys have. and the tank will have coral mainly softies and maybe a clam. Thank you

[IronVikingMC]

and advice on this?

[rfalvey89]

I just drilled a hole in the back of mine for the bulkhead. make sure it's not tempered glass or it will shatter in a million pieces. I can say that it takes a set of "you know whats" to do it. I had a local reef store owner do it and he took at least 15 minutes for a 1" hole. he viced the glass to a piece of wood with a clay ring around the template for the hole. he continuously sprayed it w/water and had a special bit...all in all ,there would be NO way I would attempt it ...your best bet is to call around to local Glass dealers/specialty shops to get an idea on if they are willing to do it.
my tank is an ALL-GLASS brand with custom arcrylic sump..I can tell you the skimmer is huge & that w/ some live rock it will do fine..a good skimmer IMO is this one:
http://www.marinedepot.com/Precision_Marine_Redline_Protein_Skimmers_In_Sump_Venturi_Needle_Wheel_Protein_Skimmers-Precision_Marine-PM1411-FIPSISNW-vi.html
..my skimmer was built by the same guy who did the tank & has a bigger pump & a slightly bigger chamber & it is skimming the snot out of the water right now...I have had it going a week & my water parameters are almost there..hope this helps

[IronVikingMC]

thank you ill ask around and hopefully find someone i have a mr.aqua glass tank. if i cant find anyone to drill it will just a good protein skimmer be fine for filtration with powerheads and weekly water changes?

[cindre2000]

With your coral selection you can easily get away with hob filtration and water changes. However, sumps are a nice addition, especially when it comes to skimmer selection.

As for drilling. Its really easy. Just make sure it's not tempered and go slow. I drill outside with a hose running. A fresh bit will drill a hole in under 5 minutes; but its better to go slow and let the bit grind away.

[IronVikingMC]

thank you for al the advice ill get hold of mr.aqua and ask if they use tempered glass for the back of the glass.