Newbie, tank questions

[jf]

I am in the process of setting up a 75 gal with fish and live rock. Have a couple questions:
The bottom piece of glass has a sticker that says "tempered glass do not drill", is it okay to drill the side glass or is tempered also?
How big of a stand pipe should I use for the overflow? Would also like to keep it as quiet as possible as it will be pretty close to my tv viewing area, really don't want to hear a waterfall.
How big of a return pump will I need?
Will a 55 gal tank be alright to use for a sump? How should I divide it?
Thanks in advance,
Jeff

 

[mikeyfishy]

I can answer the glass question. The whole thing is tempered, not just the bottom. I know because I had an old 20 gallon tank break on the side during a move to another home years ago and that one only had the sticker on the bottom. I believe there are ways to drill tempered glass if you know what you are doing, but I certainly would never attempt it with your usual DIY tools. Maybe someone else has more info on that.
Mike

 

[dragonzim]

Usually just the bottom glass of a tank is tempered. If you know the manufacturer of the tank you should check with them though.

 

[useskaforevil]

you cant drill tempered glass, even professionals won't do it. i doubt that 20gallon was really tempered on the sides as tempered glass is slightly more expensive and no one would bother with just a 20gal. i just had a 80gallon bowfront AGA drilled and i called up both perfecto and AGA, one tempered the bottom and that was it, the other tempers the bow and the bottom (i think both bows are tempered, they just figured no one would ever drill the front) the 55 gallon wil be more than enough, so its pretty much up to you how you want to divide it. as for drilling the glass unless you have diamond drill bits already you might want to look into just having the work done for you. my local glass shop will do anyhole up to 3inch in diameter for $20 and i trust their hand more than mine.

 

[chuckcac]

i can help with the overflow noise...

google 'durso standpipe' - that type of standpipe is extreeeeemly quiet

as far as size of standpipe... how much flow do you want? there is a thread in the archives about plumbing 101... somewhere on there is a list of sizes vs. flow rate... check it out...

https://www.saltwaterfish.com/vb/showthread.php?t=172634
it's in the first one titled 'plumbing textbook' or something... :notsure:
Also....i agree with DragonZim - check with the manuf. to see if the sides are tempered as well....

 

[f14peter]

Originally Posted by mikeyfishy
I can answer the glass question. The whole thing is tempered, not just the bottom. I know because I had an old 20 gallon tank break on the side during a move to another home years ago and that one only had the sticker on the bottom. I believe there are ways to drill tempered glass if you know what you are doing, but I certainly would never attempt it with your usual DIY tools. Maybe someone else has more info on that.
Mike
In what manner did it break? Standard, untempered glass will break into shards and uneven pieces while tempered glass crumbles into gravel-like pieces.
Tempered glass, while stronger than untreated glass (4x, I believe), isn't unbreakable . . . although I'd agree that it would have to qualify as "Undrillable". I'll also agree that most often, it's only the bottom sheet that's tempered.