Homemade overflow box11/21/2023 Fill water on both sides, stick a piece of airline tubing on the rigid piece, and suck the air out. To do the other side is a little more complicated, because you'll have to trace both parts onto that plastic, run two beads of glue and assemble it quickly. After taking the "U" out of the way, I ran a bead of glue, and quickly put that piece in place. Then I put my "U" piece in place visually, and traced the outline with a pen. I glued the big "w" piece to one side, holding it firmly in place for about 30 seconds. I used Weld-On #16 to assemble the pieces. The guide comes on the better-made (more expensive) bits, and will roll along the edge of the overflow box as the excess material is trimmed off. It was a 3/8" straight bit with a ball-bearing guide. I glued them on, and then used a router to cut them to shape. Btw, gluing on this piece is the last thing you do, after everything else is done. Remember, it only goes in a tiny amount, as close to the inner surface area as possible so you don't have air collecting around this tube. I drilled a small hole in top (at what I considered to be the highest point where air might collect) and inserted a 1" piece of rigid tubing that I glued in place. That is a piece that is 7" x 9.5" The folds are: 3", 2.5", 4". I didn't sweat this small stuff, but sanding can help take some of that off as well.Īfter you've made this piece, you need to make the inverted "U". If you can prevent this, it will make glueing the sides on easier. As you make your folds, you might notice the very edge on the 90 degree angles flaring out a tad. I kept the piece moving over the heat - back and forth - as the plastic became pliable. It can make bubbles appear in the plastic, but it isn't a disastrous thing. One thing to watch out for is too much heat. This is the one that fits over the side of your tank, so you want that to be right. The first fold you have to make is the 1" fold, or center. After each fold, I put the piece on its side, to make sure things were still square. I used a straight piece of wood as my surface to bend the plastic. I marked these with a Sharpie, but as I heated the plastic, the marks faded. This is the breakdown, where the folds would go: 2", 2.5", 3", 1", 4", 5", 5" The main piece is built with 4 pieces of plastic. I think going larger would be detrimental to keeping the weir primed. To assure there was enough flow, I made the overflow chamber (the upside down "u" area) 1/2" gap at all times. Mine works fine, but I'm guessing that extra fall only could help matters. I'm recommending you put the outer portion lower than the inner one, by maybe an extra inch. So 2" is underwater, with water pouring into the chamber. Then I added the additional height to get it up over the plastic trim. I like my water to be right at the brim, just below the plastic frame that caps my tank that the glass lids used to sit in. You want the inner portion to hang down inside the tank below the water level. I'll try to be specific, but ask more questions if you have any trouble understanding them. You can pull it away from the flame and let the plastic cool down for half a minute or so. Just take your time, and use your judgement when you think it is getting too hot. Don't overheat it too much or the plastic will get a bunch of bubbles. As it begins to give, keep applying heat and fold the plastic gently. The plastic is bent by heating it over a propane torch. I don't remove it to clean it, I simply bend a flexible brush to fit, and work it back and forth. I have a couple of pieces of black acrylic, and I've been thinking about making a shield to lay over it to help reduce the algae thing, only because it is a pain. If you could somehow build some type of shade to keep your lights off of it, it might help. Ideally, you'd want to build it out of black acrylic, which costs a little bit more (a few dollars at most), but if it is black, you can't tell if something is in it, if it is losing suction, or anything. I clean it about once a month, and pull out some thick matted hair algae that definitely restricts the flow. The BAD thing is that it loves to grow algae in it, and it is rather annoying to clean out. Being clear, I see when a fish or a crab or a snail climbs in (all three have), and I've seen copepods walking around in there (which was cool). I built mine out of clear acrylic, and I can see if any problems develop and make sure all is well. Acrylic is harder, and you can buy various thicknesses.įor an overflow box, 1/8" is ideal. Plexiglas ages, turns yellow, gets brittle, and cracks. You want acrylic, not plexiglas - the stuff Home Depot sells. call one up that seems near you, and ask if they sell AcryLite to the public. You need to break out the Yellow Pages and look up "plastics".
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