Drilled Tank And Have a Question!

[Reeceblse]

So, I got a bit impatient (I know, terrible habit to get into with reefkeeping) and decided to drill my tank this evening... The good new is, I didn't shatter the glass! The bad news is, I did not expect the drill bit to bounce around as much as it did. I left some pretty serious scratches around the hole and my two bulkheads for the return aren't as even as I'd like. I know I cant do anything about the holes being uneven and even though it will drive me insane, I'm going to roll with it. My question is, since I left some pretty deep scratches in the glass, will the rubber gasket on the bulkhead still be able to make a seal? I'll go ahead and leave a few pictures for... entertainment/comedic purposes

 

[PerplexyHexy]

So, I got a bit impatient (I know, terrible habit to get into with reefkeeping) and decided to drill my tank this evening... The good new is, I didn't shatter the glass! The bad news is, I did not expect the drill bit to bounce around as much as it did. I left some pretty serious scratches around the hole and my two bulkheads for the return aren't as even as I'd like. I know I cant do anything about the holes being uneven and even though it will drive me insane, I'm going to roll with it. My question is, since I left some pretty deep scratches in the glass, will the rubber gasket on the bulkhead still be able to make a seal? I'll go ahead and leave a few pictures for... entertainment/comedic purposes

Good lord! Lol... you should be fine... use a wood or plxiglass guide nextime... hahahaha... fill it with water and see if it leaks... you could silicone around the rubber seal to be safe... I did that on my first build cause I wasnt too confident in my work...

 

[Reeceblse]

Yeah, had I thought about it before I finished, I would have just built a jig real quick and it would have been done right. But I guess all I can do is leak test and if it doesn’t hold, try using silicon to seal it up..

 

[Crabs McJones]

If you drilled it from the outside in, the rubber gasket seals against the inside glass so you should he ok.

 

[Bayareareefer18]

Hopefully it holds. Another issue you will have is that eclipse overflow is mounted very low. Your water level is going to be significantly lower than the rim. Probably just barely covering those return bulkheads

 

[Crabs McJones]

Hopefully it holds. Another issue you will have is that eclipse overflow is mounted very low. Your water level is going to be significantly lower than the rim. Probably just barely covering those return bulkheads

Oh yeah.....very low....

 

[Reeceblse]

Well, the eclipse overflow came with an acrylic guide and I drilled where it lined up..

 

[Crabs McJones]

Well, the eclipse overflow came with an acrylic guide and I drilled where it lined up..

Problem is though, when you put it on the outside of the tank, the rim gets in the way. So you're actually lower than the top of the tank. Your water line will most likely be 2 inches below the bottom of your trim

 

[Reeceblse]

Well, that makes an awful lot of sense.. looks like I’ll be waiting for petro to do another $1 per gallon sell!

 

[Crabs McJones]

Well, that makes an awful lot of sense.. looks like I’ll be waiting for petro to do another $1 per gallon sell!

Yeah unfortunately. Best advice I can give you, as I drilled my 40 breeder with the eclipse kit as well, is drill from the inside out, put the template all the way to the top, as far up as itll let you go. Take it slow, scortch the glass with the bit to get a groove going so the bit doesnt jump around on you. Drill through the template, that'll help. Good luck to you

 

[Ratherbeflyen]

A piece of glass makes a great guide and is a really cheap practice piece. I blew out my first try pushing too hard, but it made a great guide to do the rest.

 

[Ratherbeflyen]

It's hard to see in the picture, but the holes were not in a straight line. They are on the second try with the first piece as a guide.

 

[Bayareareefer18]

I run an eclipse L. I knew of the alignment issue and I ended up with mine still about a 1/4" low. The 1/4" does not bother me so much but a couple inches would be tough to look at. I agree top of template needs to go to the top. What I did was just place on the outside then use another 1/4" piece of acrylic under it to support it then tape it down. I didn't realize it should go all the way to the top..

The water level will go half way up the weir teeth at most