8ft 350...what type of overflow?

[larryfl1]

hey all,

I am all torn up on what overflow to use for the new tank 8ft long... 96x30x28

the choices as i see them are...

internal normal overflow middle of tank..

external overflow about 30 inches long exterior center back of tank
concern is access since its in the middle and back...

coast to coast internal with smaller external box attached at one end...
easier access since it will be in the back and at the end...but still have coast to coast internal grabbing all the water....


so what way to go? i think the external only will look the nicest ..but the coast to coast with external gives me some easier access to the plumbing...

by the way i will be using bean animal 3 line approach...


Larry

[Haffs09]

On my 94x30x30 I went with an exterior overflow box on one of the short sides. I too, was concerned about access to any type of overflow along the back or in the corners of the tank. I can't comment on how effective it is, because the tank is still dry. Here are a few pics:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=2012&pictureid=13561

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/49249553@N04/4516054157/" title="More prep work by Haffs09, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2742/4516054157_4484a8fa9d.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="More prep work" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/49249553@N04/4516704656/" title="IMG_2259 by Haffs09, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4018/4516704656_ebaf62e7ca.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_2259" /></a>

[larryfl1]

do you feel a coast to coast inside box like 5x5 inches will change the look of the tank at all? if i do that i can then pass to a 30 inch box on the backside but favoring one end...it kind of gives me full surface skimming but corner exterior back box...

[Haffs09]

I didn't want an overflow inside the tank, and due to the tank location, I only had one short end to work with. I plan to have an open aquascape, so I sacrificed surface skimming for a cleaner look.

Coast to coast skimming would be awesome. If you don't mind seeing the interior box, go for it. There are a bunch of tanks around that have overflows like you're proposing (none come to mind right now). Search around and you may find them.

If I had access to the back of the tank, I would have done an external coast to coast overflow.

[kkiel02]

On my 8x3x2 I chose a regular overflow in the middle. It now wont be setup for a couple months though so I cant tell you if I like it or not yet but I dont expect it to be much different than my small tanks. :( Just sitting there empty... If you do this I would strongly recommend you have rear access to the tank as if you dont its hard to get into the overflows. I was going to do a external overflow but read a couple stories about leaks or them falling off so I chickened out. Since I will have a fishroom I could get away with it being in the center of the back.

[scubasteve06]

Coast to Coast exterior with the Bean animal overflow system. It has 4 bulkheads int he overflow box. Two are main drains, one is emergency drain and the other is a bulkhead for your return. They say this overflow is the quietest overflow out there and best to use. I don't know if I'm right about using to main drains but I think I'm right one has a ball valve usually that feeds the fuge. Check it out on a lot of the other larger tanks.