Your preferred method of overflow..

[Fizz71]

I've been following a thread (http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2310059) where people have been discussing HOB vs. Drilled which I know is a long debated topic on this site but something I saw in the discussion brought a question to my mind:

How many people have done BOTH an HOB setup AND a drilled setup and STILL prefer the HOB concept? ...If you do, I'd love to know why!

When a person has only experienced one side of a discussion they tend to defend that side of the discussion sometimes to really passionate ends. But if you've never been on "both sides of the fence" can you really form an accurate opinion?

Example: If you've never had a child to experience the joy of the public tantrum, can you really form an opinion on what the parent of the "obnoxious screaming brat in the cereal aisle" is doing or not doing and whether or not it's right or wrong? It's usually the people who have never HAD kids that have the strongest opinions. And I WAS that opinionated child-free person at one time, but I can honestly now say.....I get it! I just give the parent a "I feel your pain" smile and move on. But I digress...

I can understand how some people might have an opinion based on the fear of the something that could happen if they did whatever is on the other side of the discussion...and they can certainly be valid fears so I have NO issues with a person saying they prefer one thing because they fear the other...but to me that's not an opinion based on experience.

Yes...I've heard/read stories of people cracking their tank when drilling and I've even heard stories of tanks failing AFTER they were drilled so we can say our "experience" is based on what we've read from others (learning from their mistakes). But I personally don't recall ever hearing a story where a tank was running for over a year and just failed SOLELY because of a drill. And even if somebody has, how many millions of drilled tanks are out there? We tend read about failures more than success because we're "rubber necks" by nature, but when you really need to pay attention (and maybe form an opinion without the personal experience) is when the failures go from random incidents to being common! Not just "that one guy I read about six year ago."

I've only ever "flooded" my tank for 3 reasons:
Flooded DT and sump from poorly designed top-off layout...FIXED...I now gravity feed my top-off with multiple redundancies.
Flooded sump from back siphoning on pump failure...ON GOING FIX...I need to make sure I don't move my LocLine return and I'm fine.
Flooded DT from HOB Overflow/Luft Pump Failure...FIXED...My current tank is drilled and I will NEVER go back.

Thanks for playing....

[Timfish]

I stopped messing with HOB years ago because I found them to be more hassle than drilled and an internal overflow.

[greech]

Both sides here and am really indifferent on the subject. Never had a problem with either and ran both for several years at a time. Both require the user to think things through the installation, plumbing and failsafe measures. Both have risks so proper setup is critical to avoid failure/floods.

The only thing I like about my current HOB is that I can take it completely off and clean every inch of it. It also takes up less room in my tank but if one drills the back of tank, those boxes don't typically take up much real estate compared to the full top-to-bottom boxes.

There are many other variables to consider. Example: drilled tanks can be herbie, beananimal, durso, stockman, etc. HOBs have multiple plumbing variations as well. I doubt anyone has tried them all so experiences (good are bad) noted should have those taken into consideration.

[ca1ore]

Drilled overflow is FAR better than HOB in my opinion - both functionally and aesthetically. In terms of preference - drilled bean-animal, drilled herbie, drilled durso, then HOB.

[cloak]

I've only used HOB overflows, and so far they've been flawless. For me, there's really no reason to try anything else. How's that saying go, "If it's not broke, don't fix it?" Well, there you go. :)

[ca1ore]

How many people have done BOTH an HOB setup AND a drilled setup and STILL prefer the HOB concept? ...If you do, I'd love to know why!

I've been in this hobby long enough to have tried just about everything :)

I know there are people who will say some variation of 'I've use an HOB overflow for _____ years, and never had a problem', but it strikes me as inherently more unreliable than a drilled overflow. Even if you use a pump to ensure no air builds up in the HOB overflow tube, pumps can and do fail, and then you are facing an overflow flood. Plus I really hate tubes going over the top rim of my tanks. U..U..Ugly!

Drilled overflows can and do fail, but less so in my experience. Could a tank fail as a result of a drilled overflow - sure but I have never had it happen and haven't know anyone have it happen. higher probability is that the drain pipe will clog, so make sure to design the system with a backup.

[Drae]

Internal horizontal overflows ( like the brs style) are the best imho. Silent with the herbie and they take up the least amount of space.

[jimmysix]

I've only used HOB overflows, and so far they've been flawless. For me, there's really no reason to try anything else. How's that saying go, "If it's not broke, don't fix it?" Well, there you go. :)

Same here but might purchase a drilled when I upgrade!

[bazeball05]

Internal horizontal overflows ( like the brs style) are the best imho. Silent with the herbie and they take up the least amount of space.

+1 this is what I have! Only setup I will use and I only need a 6 inch by 6 inch box in the corner. Easy!!!

[Fizz71]

I've only used HOB overflows, and so far they've been flawless. For me, there's really no reason to try anything else. How's that saying go, "If it's not broke, don't fix it?" Well, there you go. :)

I'm curious how long you've been running it?

One thing I noted in the other thread is that I believe one of the reasons I had the problems I did (air bubble accumulation) was because I wasn't getting the sump return speed I needed for the overflow. You really need to max the things out to keep the air out. I was returning water from a floor away and it was NOT a straight run. So I'm sure I wasn't getting what the CPR wanted.

Drae..."Internal horizontal overflows" are still drilled to me. Whether it's drilled at the bottom or drilled on the back it's still drilled for the sake of my poll.

And I have to say..only a few hours in and 19 votes, but so far the theory is holding water (pun intended). :)

Thanks again everybody.

[Drae]

.

Drae..."Internal horizontal overflows" are still drilled to me. Whether it's drilled at the bottom or drilled on the back it's still drilled for the sake of my poll.
.[/QUOTE]

That's why I voted drilled. I was just being specific.

[cloak]

I'm curious how long you've been running it?




Mine has been running for about 14 years now. (different tanks) I'm not sure which brand it is though. It was just an overflow sitting on the shelf at my LFS. No tags, no stickers, nothing. Here's a picture to give you an idea. This, and then the small black box on the inside of the tank.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w16/jAb83_2007/f9097ede-563d-4262-9edc-256c848bc6ff_zpsdf52f0bb.jpg (http://s172.photobucket.com/user/jAb83_2007/media/f9097ede-563d-4262-9edc-256c848bc6ff_zpsdf52f0bb.jpg.html)

[Fizz71]

Mine has been running for about 14 years now. (different tanks) I'm not sure which brand it is though. It was just an overflow sitting on the shelf at my LFS. No tags, no stickers, nothing. Here's a picture to give you an idea. This, and then the small black box on the inside of the tank.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w16/jAb83_2007/f9097ede-563d-4262-9edc-256c848bc6ff_zpsdf52f0bb.jpg (http://s172.photobucket.com/user/jAb83_2007/media/f9097ede-563d-4262-9edc-256c848bc6ff_zpsdf52f0bb.jpg.html)

[Insert "don't make them like they used to" Here]

[d2mini]

HOB vs. Drilled which I know is a long debated topic

It is??? :confused:
A drilled tank is far superior.
And the best kind of overflow in a drilled tank is coast-to-coast. You decide whether you want internal or external, but nothing surface skims like a toothless c2c.

[Mudbeaver]

It is??? :confused:
A drilled tank is far superior.
And the best kind of overflow in a drilled tank is coast-to-coast. You decide whether you want internal or external, but nothing surface skims like a toothless c2c.

Amen +2

[Fizz71]

It is??? :confused:

Sure...every time somebody brings up the topic either directly (asking about about which overflow to buy) or indirectly (asking about what tank to buy) the "drilled" folks always step in and the overflow users always defend their systems. :) That post I linked in the OP was the latest example.

It seemed to me that anybody that's ever had a drilled system always says drilled is the best and just about everybody defending the overflow system says they've never owned a drilled one. That's why I started this poll.

If you notice, not a single person said they preferred the overflow except cloak who used the "if it ain't broke" defense. :) And 20 people have used both (including me).

[ca1ore]

If you have never owned a drilled tank I do think it is easy to be nervous and not go that route. When I bought my first reef ready tank in 1990, some years before the mass tank manufacturers even offered it as an option, I got lots of opinions that it would compromise the tank,would leak, etc., non of which was true of course. Funny thing is, that tank, now 23 years old is still fully functional.

To me, the HOB overflow is a major compromise, and should only be used if it is just not practical to use a drilled overflow. Not surprising that of the folks who have used both, nobody prefers the HOB.

[Mudbeaver]

Sure...every time somebody brings up the topic either directly (asking about about which overflow to buy) or indirectly (asking about what tank to buy) the "drilled" folks always step in and the overflow users always defend their systems. :) That post I linked in the OP was the latest example.

It seemed to me that anybody that's ever had a drilled system always says drilled is the best and just about everybody defending the overflow system says they've never owned a drilled one. That's why I started this poll.

If you notice, not a single person said they preferred the overflow except cloak who used the "if it ain't broke" defense. :) And 20 people have used both (including me).

Their's nothing wrong by prefering something that is not popular, if you like your system enjoy it and forget the rest its your system. You don't need anybodies approval for that. If you want a consensus that different, you have one , just not the one you hoped for; thats all. Sorry but their's nothing you can do about that, the majority rules. The majority interested in your topic anyway, beleive me i know. Not all topic polarizes people interest.

[Hodge1995]

I like the last choice!

[MrClam]

It is??? :confused:
A drilled tank is far superior.
And the best kind of overflow in a drilled tank is coast-to-coast. You decide whether you want internal or external, but nothing surface skims like a toothless c2c.

Just curious why?

[d2mini]

Just curious why?
Nitrogen gas along with other elements/nutrients rise to the top of the water. Surface skimming removes this. The more you can skim the surface, the more you can feed your skimmer and have it removed permanently. A toothless c2c overflow maximizes surface skimming and gas exchange making it the best option for optimal tank health.