Drilled aquarium, back vs bottom

[Greef_in_the_Reef]

Im looking at a used 55 gallon acrylic aquarium this weekend and it’s drilled on the bottom. What are the benefits / drawbacks to this? TIA.

 

[Crabs McJones]

Im looking at a used 55 gallon acrylic aquarium this weekend and it’s drilled on the bottom. What are the benefits / drawbacks to this? TIA.

Both are good setups, the benefit to bottom drilled is you don't have boxes and plumbing sticking out the back of the tank so you can push it flush up against the wall. The benefit of drilling the back glass is that you can purchase pretty much any tank and drill it and add a box in the back wall, whereas finding a weir and drilling the tank on the bottom is a little harder to find.

 

[Greef_in_the_Reef]

here is a picture of the tank. 3 holes drilled.

 

[Greef_in_the_Reef]

Both are good setups, the benefit to bottom drilled is you don't have boxes and plumbing sticking out the back of the tank so you can push it flush up against the wall. The benefit of drilling the back glass is that you can purchase pretty much any tank and drill it and add a box in the back wall, whereas finding a weir and drilling the tank on the bottom is a little harder to find.

Thanks for your input!

 

[Smo]

here is a picture of the tank. 3 holes drilled.

Those holes in the bottom don’t look to be very useful. Maybe intended for an old style closed-loop recirculating system. Just me but I would patch those holes and drill new holes on the back for a ghost type over-flow. Ideally a good time to buff the scratches out too.

 

[Greef_in_the_Reef]

Those holes in the bottom don’t look to be very useful. Maybe intended for an old style closed-loop recirculating system. Just me but I would patch those holes and drill new holes on the back for a ghost type over-flow. Ideally a good time to buff the scratches out too.

I am concerned about those too. I was thinking how am I going to scape around those.

 

[Greef_in_the_Reef]

Anyone know of a good tutorial on patching those holes? Or is it just glue acrylic to the inside and out?

 

[Smo]

Best thing to do is read the DIY thread on Acrylic Fabrication Q & A. There is a wealth of good information on building as well as repair of acrylic tanks.

 

[Fudsey]

No offense but I would pass on that tank. I would bet those holes are going to cause you issues somewhere down the road.

 

[siggy]

might be more trouble than you want......have you checked craigslist for a complete system

 

[Greef_in_the_Reef]

might be more trouble than you want......have you checked craigslist for a complete system

Yea it’s only 50$ for this 55 gallon. The price point is great, but I don’t want to half butt this hobby. From what I’ve seen that gets you in trouble real fast.

 

[Greef_in_the_Reef]

I really enjoy rimless and acrylic tanks. I have a 55 gallon standard glass tank and a 40 gallon I’ll be using as my sump, but really don’t like the black frame around the top of what’s going to be my DT...

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

Man I would never have a tank with holes in the bottom. If you get a leak or have a major issue with one of them and don't know it then you lose your whole tank. The benefit to upper back holes is if you have a leak you only lose so much water.

 

[Vahanyos]

Here's a crazy idea...

You can plumb some pipes to stick out all the way to where the water line will be, and use them for little mini overflows.. and pile/fasten rocks around the pipes to make tall island style aquascape... you can use 2 of them as overflows, and one can be an emergency drain...

Idk - just trying to think of some wacko ideas lol

 

[Greef_in_the_Reef]

Man I would never have a tank with holes in the bottom. If you get a leak or have a major issue with one of them and don't know it then you lose your whole tank. The benefit to upper back holes is if you have a leak you only lose so much water.

That is a great point. Thanks!

 

[Im_Just_Will_]

Although there is a lot of DIY to be done in this hobby, I would steer away from buying a drilled bottom tank just to patch the holes. There are so many issues that come up in this hobby that I wouldn’t want to one day have to deal with those issues and a potentially leaky bottom. Get a drilled back and worry about the fun stuff like how to get your corals to grow

 

[Greef_in_the_Reef]

Thanks for all the input guys! I passed on the tank, as much as I’d like to have it, it’s not worth the risk.

 

[Matthew Frost]

Tanks with holes in the bottom are just ticking time bombs. Be patient, if you are a Craigslist/Offer up shopper something will come available. If you are a bid DIYer that tank might be worth picking up to cut apart for the acrylic material.

 

[Matthew Frost]

Thanks for all the input guys! I passed on the tank, as much as I’d like to have it, it’s not worth the risk.

PS I live in the Phoenix area myself and am always scouring the adds for stuff.

 

[lagatbezan]

I drilled the bottom of my tank and used it for closed loop. If thats what you want to do, then it should be no problem if done properly. It looks like that tank was drilled for one drain and two returns. you can use Sch80 heavy duty bulkheads and put good quality union valves and you are good to go. you can hide the returns and drain by surrounding them with rocks for a clean look.
If you want to close them up permanently, you can get a piece of acrylic (1/2" or 3/4") and bind it to the bottom of the tank from inside using weldon16.