Overflow - drill or hang on?

[heyoo]

I took my new 46 bow front to the LFS to get drilled & an overflow installed in the corner. This afternoon I got a call saying that the bottom was tempered. Therefore, my only choice is using a hang-on overflow (which I have on my other tanks), or to drill the back of the tank.
I would like to finally have a reef-ready type tank rather than depending on siphons, but I'm not quite sure how do retro-fit this tank with a hole in the back. Would I just cement in an acrylic box with slots across the top, like the inside component of a hang-on overflow?
I'd appreciate any advice from anyone who's ran pipes out the back of their tanks.
Tanks (ha!)
Heyoo

 

[reefersx2]

Drill the back and put a wier in I hate my over flow box in my 75 but love the fack that my 240 is drilled. Maybe when I move I will drill the back of the 75.
Joey

 

[maryc137]

Definitely drill the back. I used an overflow box for several months until I got tired of looking at that big black box in the tank. It looks much nicer now with just the 2 drain holes up in the corner. Anybody need a perfectly good overflow box??

 

[heyoo]

Originally posted by maryc137
Definitely drill the back. I used an overflow box for several months until I got tired of looking at that big black box in the tank. It looks much nicer now with just the 2 drain holes up in the corner. Anybody need a perfectly good overflow box??
So you just put two drains in the top edge of the back? What have you done to guarantee it can't get clogged? Is it noisy? This will be in my bedroom. I know all about the durso and stockman standpipes, but I don't know how I could fit one of those designs on a bulkhead in the back wall.
If you have pics, I'd love to see it.
Thanks
Heyoo

 

[heyoo]

Originally posted by lilbuddy
is the bottom temperd? drill the bottom if you can. my old 55 was drilled in the back and i got a gargeling noise my 90 is drilled on the bottom and i can hear a pin drop. Also hangon over flows have problems
Yes - the bottom is tempered... so drilling that is definately out. That was my first choice.
I'm very familiar with the use - and headaches of hang-on overflows. I've got three of them.
How was your 55 set up? Were the back-holes in the top or bottom? Did you use a slotted prefilter over the holes so it would work like a normal reef-ready tank?
Thanks
Heyoo.