"inbox" overflow

[txaggies07]

Sweet.

[Noobalicious]

glad that this thread was resurrected, I have been trying to figure out something to use as an overflow box

[Mountaineer]

I saw this in action this weekend and it is very cool and innovative. Thought I would bring it back to the surface for those like me that never saw this thread.

[ArtFully Acrylic (Adam B)]

Hey David, that's a cool overflow. Looks to be the darker material? I wonder how well these would work in an acrylic tank by simply using some solvent...

 

I know I'm replying to a very old post, but since it was resurrected and I personally actually like the idea quite honestly (may even look into offering it as a cheap option for overflow in my fabs ) I will at least answer this part for those still wondering...yes it should be no problem solvent welding to an acrylic tank. Without prepping the surface to be welded it will likely be a fairly ugly weld, but should hold without issue. Black acrylic is annoying to work with sometimes since it's hard to see how well the materials are bonding since it isn't clear, which is why I recommend following up any use of Weld-On 3 or 4 with a bead of Weld-On 16 or 40 (even better) if you desire it to be completely water tight.

[Coral Hind]

What I like about this design is that the angle of the overflow narrowing down at the bottom doesn't block any light and it seems to take up less tank space while still doing a great job of surface skimming. The angle also helps to keep the bottom of the overflow box clean and there is no waterfall sound at high flow rates because of the angle.

[TrueTricia]

_{This is great! I was just looking at overflow boxes to use on that 90g. I'm definitely going with this idea!}

[MBVette]

wow talk about digging up an old post.  lol

[s2nhle]

Wow, good diy. I may try it myself. Thanks for bring it up.

[matt]

Question is, where does one find a black acrylic inbox if you aren't day dreaming in his old office?

 

Btw - I think this is great, especially if it reduces any noise

[Coral Hind]

The one I had was made by Rubbermaid. They are made to be stackable or can be used as a single inbox. A Staples or Office Depot type store should have them.

 

Here is a link to some on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Rubbermaid-48721ROS-Stak-A-File-Single-Smoke-RUB48721ROS/dp/B0017YP14I/ref=pd_sim_op_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1TGR45BXSZH0RSVKDRTB

[treesprite]

This is the post I was looking for.  The search function gave no result for it, and I thought it would be near the last pages of threads, so I looked through about 38 pages of threads (going backwards) to find it.

 

Just looking or cheap overflow ideas. I remembered this thing and am kind of wondering if putting several in a row would work (would have to cut the connecting sides). I like how the box is angled; my last couple glass C2Cs had waterfall effect unless I kept valves adjusted to keep the water high enough in the OF (I had to re-adjust them quite frequently, which was annoying).

 

Edited September 12, 2019 by treesprite

[monkiboy]

6 hours ago, treesprite said:

This is the post I was looking for.  The search function gave no result for it, and I thought it would be near the last pages of threads, so I looked through about 38 pages of threads (going backwards) to find it.

 

Just looking or cheap overflow ideas. I remembered this thing and am kind of wondering if putting several in a row would work (would have to cut the connecting sides). I like how the box is angled; my last couple glass C2Cs had waterfall effect unless I kept valves adjusted to keep the water high enough in the OF (I had to re-adjust them quite frequently, which was annoying).

 

what size are you looking for, forrest?

[treesprite]

4 hours ago, monkiboy said:

what size are you looking for, forrest?

It's for a 48" long tank. I suddenly have expenses I didn't have a week ago, taking up the money I had in my budget to set up this tank. I'm thinking I may need to do some temporary thing that isn't too hard to remove. Im going to use an external box, so I don't need to worry about the added complication of plumbing parts inside of the internal one.

[YHSublime]

This is a blast from the past. 

 

Pretty sure Glass Holes has some really cheap solutions as well. 

 

I've used threaded 90 degree elbows into bulkheads covered with gutter wrap. It's not the prettiest, but it gets the job done. 

[Origami]

Cut your own glass for a C2C, Forrest. You can do it. And, if you can't, have a glass shop cut some long lengths of glass longer than you need and trim them to size. Use aquarium sealant to stack up the box and install bulkheads with tilted elbows inside to set the water level inside. You'll have decent control of the water level and, therefore, the waterfall effect inside.

 

Or, better yet, Google "DIY Coast to Coast Overflow" and you'll find some really interesting ideas.

[Origami]

This for example is in the Images area of the above search:

 

 

[treesprite]

I am terrible at cutting glass. The prices for custom cut glass I'm seeing online are like shockingly 3x what I remember paying the last 2 times did the C2Cs for 75g tanks. I think using the external box will alleviate the waterfall issue to some extent, but if I end up doing the glass, I might tilt it slightly. Would also drill holes so I can put my return plumbing through the OF, otherwise such an OF would block them.

[AlanM]

Call Laurel Glass. They were reasonable and fast when I needed some glass cut.

[DFR]

Action Glass in Beltsville, MD was also reasonably priced and one that I always recommend.

[treesprite]

I did some calling around. Quotes ranged from $78 to over $100. That is for the main piece, base piece, and a piece for above the OF to keep critters out, 1/4" glass. I'm seriously not going to spend that much money to do a DIY overflow. The last two me I did it, the glass total was only like $40 and that is the place that quoted the lowest.

 

I really like the idea of there being a slight slant to the overflow like the inbox has to it, though the inbox slant is more than I would want. I'd like to see more conversation about slanting of long OF boxes.

[ImGoingCoastal]

This is a blast from the past. 
 
Pretty sure Glass Holes has some really cheap solutions as well. 
 
I've used threaded 90 degree elbows into bulkheads covered with gutter wrap. It's not the prettiest, but it gets the job done. 

I believe glass-holes went under...

That's a shame too, I was thinking of upgrading my 700gph overflow that I had on my 40.

[YHSublime]

18 hours ago, ImGoingCoastal said:

I believe glass-holes went under...

That's a shame too, I was thinking of upgrading my 700gph overflow that I had on my 40.

 

Oh, bummer. Shows how connected I am! It's tough, especially with just about everybody offering overflow solutions. I have been super happy with my Eshopps overflow, which ran $100, but included the template, drill bit, and bulkheads. 

[ImGoingCoastal]

Yeah think my GH one was similar priced. And came with candy!!