Drilling and installing overflows on ADA tanks

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orchidsnfish

I bought a couple of ADA tanks and would like to drill them and install overflows. I have drilled quite a few tanks and feel OK about that, but the thing is, these are small tanks. One is a 12" cube. The other is right around 10 gallon. It's 18" by 10.5" by 12". Making an overflow look good on the 18" one probably wont be too bad, but the 12" cube...

I was thinking a 3/4" drain and 1/2" return???

Do you guys think I should build them from acrylic? If so what color? Black? Clear? Or should I build them out of glass? Do you think a square/rectangle type overflow would work better or would you prefer just a triangle shaped (one pane) in a corner? These are the two types of overflows I'm considering. This would be from the top looking down.

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I think glass would look better, but you couldn't baffle it like acrylic. The drilled ADA tanks don't have baffles either, but could be a hazard for fish.

Anyway, open to ideas. Let me know what you think.

Thanks
Angela
 
You could hang the return over the edge, which would let you make the overflow smaller. Depending on whether or not you plan on painting the back of the tank, black / blue acrylic to match that color could be cool.
 
Yeah. I thought about painting the backs black, but Jeff thinks it would ruin the point of having an ADA tank. I am thinking of using a lily pipe for the return. I'm leaning toward just a simple glass overflow with no standipe (just a clear bulkhead).
 
I think the back of mirrors is silver plated and silver is a great antimicrobial so it may kill off beneficial bacteria and such. Seems like a better idea to put it on the back of a tank if you want that look.

What number tank will this be? Maybe you should get a patch or something for your addiction :D
 
Maybe you should get a patch or something for your addiction said:
How dare you. :D I tend to maintain a constant number of tanks. I have a thing for nice clean new tanks and am apparently addicted to the setup process. I just break one down and set another up. I really just want to see if I can do this thing with the ADA more than anything. I only have 4 tanks FYI and the clam tank shouldn't even count since it's part of the 265...so 3. :D If I can drill the ADA without busting it it will be a replacement for my 20H.
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I agree, setting up new tanks is fun. Old ones just get boring to look at. Whats going to happen to those anemones? Did you put them back in the 265?
 
I have been trying to avoid looking like a tard but I have to ask.

Is ADA a manufacturer or a style of tank? I looked up "ADA Tank" and found a lot of planted tanks so is that what this is all about?

EDIT: And you can sell your anemones as "Paris Rose Anemone". That's way classier than "Sherman Rose" anyway. :)
 
I wondered how long it would take for someone to compare my ADA anemones to SRBTA's. Actually mine are Sherman/ADA so they should be worth some serious $$$.

Is ADA a manufacturer or a style of tank? I looked up "ADA Tank" and found a lot of planted tanks so is that what this is all about? said:
ADA- Aqua Design Amano. Takashi Amano is regarded as a God by the freshwater planted people. ADA tanks are pretty much perfection in every way. They have flawless seams and they are rimless. They aren't really very popular for saltwater. IMO mainly because they aren't drilled. ADA does make a few bigger tanks that are drilled however.

When you googled it you only got freshwater planted tanks because there are only a handful of people who use them for saltwater right now.

Mine will definitely be salty for the record. I would like to use some Amano scaping techniques though. He's pretty awesome.

Check out adgshop.com. Some of the ADA stuff is pricey, but IMO they aren't that bad compared to ELOS or any other "perfect" tank.

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Are these going to be plumbed into the 265? Id assume it would be easier to keep everything stable since the tanks are smaller volumes.

Have you thought about doing an external overflow?
 
Just another idea for the cube. How about a center overflow (pipe) and drill your rock to hide everything. Someone of RC did something like this in a nano.
 
IS THAT SECOND PIC YOURS! THAT LOOKS AWESOME!

I would love to have a bedside tank like that.

One thing i didnt really think of when you first posted this is trying to drill and put your overflow more centered using only the pvc pipe and use rock to hide it. there is a thread on RC that i have seen a cube done like this and its sweet. if that pic is yours, build that left spire up a little more and make the drilled hole directly under it and feed the pipe up through the rock. then, drill the second hole for the return under the smaller pile and have it hidden by that.

here is the RC thread.
 
Not my pics. :D Sorry. Those two aren't drilled which is the only problem with them IMO. That second one is run "naked" with no filtration at all. Triton, I dont know if I will plumb with the 265 or not. Have thought about it, but I already have PLENTY of tanks in there. I have thought about drilling the middle and using rock work to hide it and may do that.
 
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