50 gallon breeder external overflow
 

well i have been working on this for sometime now & the tank is finally done now i just have to finish the stand, the tank will be viewed from 3 sides so i made the hole on 1 side & had glass panels cut for the external overflow, the hole is 12 inch long & 1.5 inch tall, i drilled to 1 inch holes for drains this should be enough for the pump that im going to use, my friend bob has been cutting tanks with a roto zip tile bit so he cut my tank but after watching him go to town i coulnt believe how fast this bit went through this tank has 1/2 inch glass & he cut the slot in less then 10 minutes,now i use this bit on everything & it works great.
here is the tank
http://www.steve68.com/DSC05505.jpg

bob driiling the tank
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06023.jpg

cooling down the bit
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06024.jpg

done
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06025.jpg

http://www.steve68.com/DSC06027.jpg

here is the overflow box
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06046.jpg

i used 100% GE silicone from HD i have used this for last couple of years & it works great.
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06054.jpg

beed of silicone
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06059.jpg

nice & ready
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06062.jpg

it came out just like i wanted it 2 :)
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06130.jpg

silicone in place & drying
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06138.jpg

side shot
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06155.jpg

this is 1/8 black acrylic that i used to cut teeth in i did the best i could on them.
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06157.jpg

they came out ok dont u think?
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06160.jpg

on there for life :)
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06162.jpg

so this is what it looks like from inside
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06164.jpg

another shot
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06167.jpg

Done
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06169.jpg

just a quick question, is your overflow bix big enough that you can fit your arm to the bottom of it? if yoo drop something or have to redo something it looks like youd have a problem. other than that, the acrylic is a good idea, looks nice.

i can reach all the way down it's 3.5 inch wide.

Question
 

Steve,

What model rotozip bit did you use? The one inch slot I cut in my 125 took at least 30 minutes. I am ready to cut with the rotozip blade however my tank is vertical so I am concerned about getting enough water on the bit.

Thanks
Immo

immo when u buy the rotozip bits just ask for the one that cuts tile they only have one it's 7 bucks, if u look at the pictures we made a dam out off tape & it help the water real well.

More Questions
 

Where did you get those bulkheads and the 1/8" black plexiglass?

Good job! Very nice.

If it were me doing it, I woulda cracked the glass...LOL

I dont know why anyone would butcher their tank like this. ;) muhahah. Seems like the tile bit works as good if not better than the diamond coated dremel bits eh? You should be able to really pump some water through there, what size pump are you going to use? Oh ya, turned out looking great! Awesome.:thumbsup:

Tunjee

Is the rotozip just a bit I can use on my existing dremel. Or do I need to by the entire Rototool? Also how much?
Oh, and why did you make the overflow box the height of the tank? Why not smaller?

thank's everyone.
immo if are talking about the white bulkheads they are male & female threded 1 inch PVC & a toilet gasket cost 2.10 but i ran in to a problem while cutting the 1 inch hole i made them to big so i ended up with regular 1 inch bulk heads,i bought the black Acrylic on ebay cheap 3 pieces for 16 bucks shiped.
Tunjee u got me going on this project seen ur tank there was no turning back :) & the tile bit does work well, i think it's got to do cuz u are using a power tool with more Rpm's i had no problem cutting my 55 with the dremel it's just that 1/2 inch thick glass would have taken to long.
qwuintus u need more RPM's to use the tile bit so i dont know how well it will work on a dremel it was 7 bucks at H/D,i have no idea why i made the box so long i think to me it's just that it would hold more water volume.

this is the bit i used
http://www.steve68.com/DSC06241.jpg

http://www.steve68.com/DSC06240.jpg

Can I get that at Home Depot or Sears?
My dremel spins at 20k and 30k rpm. Is that enough? Its not one of those puny little girly-man hand dremels. This is Arnold Schwartzeneggerr type stuff were talking here.

Also how did you initially punch the hole for the bulkhead holes? Did you have to use a pointed bit?

yes u can get them at H/D & sears,u can try it out on ur dremel & see how it does,we made a dam out off duct tape & filled with water once its wet the tile bit shaves the glass right off so it goes right through just make a pater & keep it get then cut ur hole out

Hmmm i cant seem to post pictures !!!!!!!

Nice DIY man!
How are those white valves (in the background of your pics) with orange handles holding up? I have seen them at Lowes and wondered about them. The seem pretty smooth.
Thx
Chris

steve remember never give up on pics keep trying !

thanks Chris & john.
Chris if u are talking about the true union valves that u see on my sump they are awesome work great & look nice only thing bad is that they are expensive thats 1.5 true union 25 bucks a pop or 21 online.
i'll try to upload more pictures later.

Glass thickness?
 

Steve68,

What thickness glass did you use for your overflow box?
Did you get that glass from HD or cut yourself?
Did you cut the bulkhead holes before or after your glued the box up?

I just cut a 12 inch slot with the rotozip ceramic bit on my 125 AGA. It cut through it like butter in 10 minutes. I had my daughter spray the bit as I was cutting as my tank is upright.

hint: Put a little dish soap in with the cooling water as it makes and excellent lubricant when cutting.

I will figure out how to host pictures :)

Immo

Immo the overflow box is made out of 1/4 inch glass, i cut the bulkead holes before i glued the pieces togeter just make sure u center with enough room to move the pipe inside the box.
the bit works great but carefull when using soap around u'r tank it can wipe out ur tank ( u did say ur tank was vertical right ) so im guessing it has life in it?
there is this glass cutting place by my house i gave him the dimension's & he cut the glass right there, i think HD cuts glass to but i wanted the ends nice & flat so i paid xtra.

Thanks
 

Steve68,

It is a brand new tank so no life. The tank is built into the wall so that is why I cut it in place as it would be to heavy and akward to move. I will also get the glass cut at a shop. I ordered the black plexiglass today off of ebay. Thanks.

Looks Great I'm in the process of doing a rear overflow on a 29Gallon. Took a while to cut out the back with my dremel. But it got it done :)