New 125G build - Plumbing Questions - Return Drilling

[Bear Necessities]

Hello all -

I am new to the salt water side of fish keeping. I am in the process of putting my tank together. I recently purchased this overflow box: Eclipse -L . I am not the most handy person but I installed it without any issue. My issue is the return, I want to drill two holes - preferably on each side of the tank. My pump is rated for 1800 gph. Overflowbox is 1000 gph. My tank is 125G 74 W x 18 D x 22 H.

What would be the appropriate size hole, drill bit, bulkhead and fittings I need for my set up? The top of the tank does have holes in the top suitable for return pipes but I would rather drill them in. I am just not sure what I need and have had a hard time finding adequate resources to figure this out.

I greatly appreciate any and all help. I will be glad to share my progress as I work on everything. I am doing a video series on the build.

Thank you!
-Bear

 

[Big G]

Welcome to R2R! Hey Bear! I have the Eclipse L on my 90. The outlet on the overflow is 1" and I use 1" schedule 80 pvc for all my lines, including my return line. Bulk Reef Supply has everything you need. Here's a pic of my setup before I filled it with water. My best advice: USE threaded unions everywhere possible.
Bulk Reef Supply has a video on connecting your plumbing on the 52 Weeks of Reefing series. Here's the link: https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/video/video-category/52-weeks-of-reefing
Hope this helps. Cheers!
you h

.

 

[Bear Necessities]

@Big G This is super helpful actually thank you! I am curious though what are the specific sizes of the pipe/bulkheads/fittings you used? is it 3/4? and for the hole you drilled for the return, did you do a 3/4 bulkhead and drill something like a 1'in hole for it? The measurements are the big thing I am having trouble with.

Also your tank and plumbing job looks fantastic, I just hope mine looks as good when I am done with it!

 

[Bear Necessities]

edited: posted twice.

 

[Bear Necessities]

@Big G This is super helpful actually thank you! I am curious though what are the specific sizes of the pipe/bulkheads/fittings you used? is it 3/4? and for the hole you drilled for the return, did you do a 3/4 bulkhead and drill something like a 1'in hole for it? The measurements are the big thing I am having trouble with.

Also your tank and plumbing job looks fantastic, I just hope mine looks as good when I am done with it!

This was before my morning coffee it totally didn't click with me you actually gave me the sizes lol. My bad. Time to look like an idiot bear.

Again thank you this was very very helpful.

 

[flsalty]

@Big G This is super helpful actually thank you! I am curious though what are the specific sizes of the pipe/bulkheads/fittings you used? is it 3/4? and for the hole you drilled for the return, did you do a 3/4 bulkhead and drill something like a 1'in hole for it? The measurements are the big thing I am having trouble with.

Also your tank and plumbing job looks fantastic, I just hope mine looks as good when I am done with it!

A 3/4" bulkhead needs an 1 1/2" hole. A 1" needs 1 3/4" hole.

 

[fordthomas11]

Do you have a safety valve on your return? To prevent your tank from emptying

 

[Bear Necessities]

I planned on having them yes. I went ahead and mocked this up and added a parts list. I would love input on it before I went ahead and bought everything.

 

[Big G]

Hey Bear! When you order from Bulk Reef Supply, their webpage tells you what size drill bit to order for that particular bulkhead. Amazingly, the size of the hole and the drill bit varies with each particular brand/style of bulkhead. If not buying from BRS, just wait until you get your bulkhead and measure the diameter then.
Check valves are unreliable on aquariums for a variety of reasons: get clogged, salt build up, lack of pressure to close the valve when you need it the most. Better to have a sump big enough to handle any water running backward down into the sump when you shut down or lose power (like where I live, happens a lot). The key to that is locating your Loc-Line nozzle as high up to the surface height of your tank water level. Mine is set just under the water level so that when the power goes off, only about 5 gallons of water (at the most) runs back down into the sump. Hope this helps. Enjoy the build. Cheers!
Almost forgot. Start a "Build thread" so you can post pictures ask questions as you progress. Here's the link to "Members Tanks" https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/member-tanks.52/

 

[Bear Necessities]

Hey Bear! When you order from Bulk Reef Supply, their webpage tells you what size drill bit to order for that particular bulkhead. Amazingly, the size of the hole and the drill bit varies with each particular brand/style of bulkhead. If not buying from BRS, just wait until you get your bulkhead and measure the diameter then.
Check valves are unreliable on aquariums for a variety of reasons: get clogged, salt build up, lack of pressure to close the valve when you need it the most. Better to have a sump big enough to handle any water running backward down into the sump when you shut down or lose power (like where I live, happens a lot). The key to that is locating your Loc-Line nozzle as high up to the surface height of your tank water level. Mine is set just under the water level so that when the power goes off, only about 5 gallons of water (at the most) runs back down into the sump. Hope this helps. Enjoy the build. Cheers!
Almost forgot. Start a "Build thread" so you can post pictures ask questions as you progress. Here's the link to "Members Tanks" https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/member-tanks.52/

I will do that, thank you greatly for your help.