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opinions on deep blue 65reef ready for new octo tank.

gpx1200

GPO
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Sep 1, 2012
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i allmost orderd this tank today to use as an octo tank but i'm not shure about the quality of deep blue tanks and also not shure about useing a corner overflow or driling seperate drain/return bulkeds in the back and building my own octo proof overflow box, i think if an octo ever found it's way into the corner overflow i'd never be able to keep it out again no matter what i do and the cutouts for the lockline style returns would be hard to block off soo...
any opinions, experiences with deep blue or corner overflow tanks in general???
thanks
chris
 
LOL, I was going to suggest checking the reef forums for brand quality as that never seems to be a topic here ... but I see you already have made the circuit. It would be a good idea to post a link to the specific tank you are considering to encourage comments or thoughts (TONMO permits on topic links).

As far as octoproofing an overflow (corner or any other) so far, I have found that placing a snug, very course sponge just below the gun turrets (weirs :wink:) and cleaning it during my weekly maintenance works well for octo-proofing the overflow. you will need to use something that will keep the drain/standpipe away from the outlet hole and the sponge near the top (IME friction does not work, regardless of how snug you cut it). There is a slight balancing act to be sure the sponge is course enough to allow enough water to to flow out even when dirty but I have yet to have this cause an overflow (knock on wood). The rougher and more plasticky feeling the better, it is not for filtration but to discourage further investigation when touched.

Personally, I would never have another large tank with a single overflow (I have 3 this way now and two we drilled with a pair, each capable of handling the initial pump output). We even put two in the 40 gallon because of past experiences with snails and debris causing the single overflow to not keep up with the pump. Obviously you will need to easily access the top of any overflow you set up this way for maintenance but many have separate covers just for overflow access and you can do just about anything with acrylic as long as you have the opening to cover.

I also prefer a wall vs bottom drain with a relatively shallow overflow box (I might change my mind on the shallow part if my DSB in a deep overflow box with side drain works out for nitrate export though. It will take some time before I can report back on that experiment). Wall (back or side depending on aesthetics) holes can be placed to guarantee you will never have an overflow event because of a faulty check valve during a power outage but a stand pipe in a bottom drill is almost as safe and also eliminates the need for a check valve as long as you allow for the drainage in your sump. Wall drills are easier to inspect but entail a lot of plumbing that has to be hidden. It hides well in the back but requires extra space behind the tank. I also think this promotes better overall water flow.
 
i am leaning twards drilling my own overflows, i prefer back drilled tanks myself i just don't like drilling them but my house has baseboard heating wich forces me to keep all my tanks 4 inches off the wall anyway so i might as well use this space for plumbing instead of having it in the tank.
i like your idea for the sandbed in the overflow, i was thinking of seting up my 40 breeder with a coast to coast overflow with a planter box built into the middle for mangroves
for the overflows i'm thinking acrylic with widly spaced teeth 1/4in tall to suport the cover wich will have a corse foam block glued to it inside so it will cover the wier from inside when the cover is on but will be easly removed for cleaning, the cover will have a few 1inch holes drilled in the top and screened off as a backup in case the weir slot gets cloged
 
Place the top of the sponge material up to inch below the bottom of the slots in the overflow, even with the "turrets" (my word) will block too much flow and prevent all waste from leaving the tank. The octo will feel inside (guaranteed) with its arms, encounter the sponge, and should decide he is not interested. You could still mount it in the cover (good idea!) but it would need to be suspended in some way (maybe an open cage or post with a plate) so that it sits below the teeth.

I would also recommend longer teeth for the weir. I've used this on a couple of tanks but on others I have nothing in the overflow. it depends a lot on the octo size, octo temprement and how tempting the overflow is. My shorter overflow boxes don't seem to attract them nearly as much as the deeper ones and it may be that just finding the acrylic "floor" is enough to dissuade them. I have had them go into the sump with the deeper overflow boxes though (one recently because I forgot to put the sponge in place when she arrived and the prior animal was large enough not to be a concern).

I can't give a report on the effectiveness of my DSP experiement yet so experiment at will :biggrin2:. I have a 65 gallon tank that was originally designed to be an all in one with the filtration at one end. We removed the filtration set up and drilled that side so it has a fairly large open compartment that was just filling with water and gave no benefit to the tank. I put a baffle just after the weir to force water below the bulkhead in hopes that it will run though the sand bed and used miracle mud topped with sand as the base. It has only been set up a month or so and I won't have an idea if it is helping for quite some time yet.
 

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