What's wrong with HOB boxes? Provided they are guarded well they are as low maintenance as any other type. Or am I missing some nuance of marine tanks?
Your current Fish tank Setups!
- Thread starter Malt_Vinegar
- Start date
Soldato
- Joined
- 13 Jun 2011
- Posts
- 6,014
Its not a hob filter like you would normally find its Hob overflow.
These rely on a pump to restart the syphon (movment of water from display to sump) rather than a traditional drilled tank where the syphon restarts on its own.
Danger of the hob type is that if for any reason the pump fails to restart the syphon, or the spyhon breaks for any reason the return pump will continue to fill the display causing a wet floor.
This cant happen on a normsl drilled tank
Soldato
Talking of overflows, I'm looking at getting one for my new build. I think I have narrowed it down to the Elite or ghost overflow.
Elite.
Ghost.

Elite.
Ghost.

Soldato
- Joined
- 13 Jun 2011
- Posts
- 6,014
Both look the same to me!
Quite a good idea to get most of the overflow outta the tank like that.
Quite a good idea to get most of the overflow outta the tank like that.
Soldato
Yes both the same, I think the Elite is slightly better made but I'm not sure. It's hard to find UK stockists of the Ghost but a few shops sell the Elite. Hopefully I'll be able to take a look at both before choosing.
Yeah they're a good way of doing the Herbie method, and apparently they run silent, which is very important as it may be going in the bedroom.
Soldato
- Joined
- 13 Jun 2011
- Posts
- 6,014
They are very quiet once tuned. Make sure you
Buy yourself some decent ball valves to be able to tune them tho.
Some people like gate valves and to be fair they give a finer adjustment but they are much more prone to siezing whereas a good ball valve will last forever
Buy yourself some decent ball valves to be able to tune them tho.
Some people like gate valves and to be fair they give a finer adjustment but they are much more prone to siezing whereas a good ball valve will last forever
Soldato
- Joined
- 13 Jun 2011
- Posts
- 6,014
Make sure you got a nem guard on whatever powerhead you have.
And understand that a nem goes where it wants to. Usually where you dont want it to go!
Soldato
They are very quiet once tuned. Make sure you
Buy yourself some decent ball valves to be able to tune them tho.
Some people like gate valves and to be fair they give a finer adjustment but they are much more prone to siezing whereas a good ball valve will last forever
Gonna have both valve types, gate for fine tuning, and the ball for when I need to maintenance. I have had to read up on a lot of stuff lately... Didn't fancy an aio aquarium so I'm designing and building an acrylic one myself. Basically have it all planned out (in my head) except how I'm gonna do the inline uv and reactor.
Soldato
Anemones are something I've never been confident of homing, read too many stories of it going wrong. Research as much as possible, and consider how stable and settled your aquarium is, they don't like change at all.
Soldato
- Joined
- 13 Jun 2011
- Posts
- 6,014
Make sure to post in here as you go. Id suggest looking up the meaning of "KISS" it will save you a lot of grief along the way!
Soldato
Keeping it simple went out the window ages ago! Once I finalise the bulkhead sizes I can start drilling and welding the acrylic. At the moment it's just taped together.
I still don't get it. I made and ran my own syphon overflow's. I don't understand how they can make a wet floor? When the rank level gets too low, they stop.
Get your levels right and there is no risk.
I only got rid of mine as I bought another branded under tank pump.
Get your levels right and there is no risk.
I only got rid of mine as I bought another branded under tank pump.
Soldato
- Joined
- 13 Jun 2011
- Posts
- 6,014
http://www.mrsaltwatertank.com/3-pieces-of-equipment-you-should-never-use/
http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/f6/overflow-box-risks-126509.html#/topics/126509?page=2
Can always google yourself "risks of hob overflow"
That's just wrong.
You need only 1 pump and it's impossible to overflow a tank if the sump is the correct size. Sure if you set it up like a nut with a huge sump it can overflow if the drain gets plugged up somehow (unlikely!). But failure to set up correctly is not the fault of the system equipment.
Have you ever set up an overflow yourself. When done correctly it's self priming, and no different (other than more piping) in function to a drilled tank.
Either I am getting the wrong end of the stick here or this is a wind up
*edit wait...wait..wait* Are you telling me people set up a basic gravity fed syphon with a return pump?? If so, I think I get what you are on about, but you would have to be mental to rely on that sort of system?!
I always used a double loop with the second loop open to air above the waterlevel. That way it self primes and self regulates flow.
You need only 1 pump and it's impossible to overflow a tank if the sump is the correct size. Sure if you set it up like a nut with a huge sump it can overflow if the drain gets plugged up somehow (unlikely!). But failure to set up correctly is not the fault of the system equipment.
Have you ever set up an overflow yourself. When done correctly it's self priming, and no different (other than more piping) in function to a drilled tank.
Either I am getting the wrong end of the stick here or this is a wind up
*edit wait...wait..wait* Are you telling me people set up a basic gravity fed syphon with a return pump?? If so, I think I get what you are on about, but you would have to be mental to rely on that sort of system?!
I always used a double loop with the second loop open to air above the waterlevel. That way it self primes and self regulates flow.
Last edited:
Soldato
Yeah some people set them up and rely on one loop, if the syphon breaks the return pump in the sump carries on pumping water into the display and overflowing.
Hang on back overflow.
Soldato
- Joined
- 13 Jun 2011
- Posts
- 6,014
That's just wrong.
You need only 1 pump and it's impossible to overflow a tank if the sump is the correct size. Sure if you set it up like a nut with a huge sump it can overflow if the drain gets plugged up somehow (unlikely!). But failure to set up correctly is not the fault of the system equipment.
Have you ever set up an overflow yourself. When done correctly it's self priming, and no different (other than more piping) in function to a drilled tank.
Either I am getting the wrong end of the stick here or this is a wind up
*edit wait...wait..wait* Are you telling me people set up a basic gravity fed syphon with a return pump?? If so, I think I get what you are on about, but you would have to be mental to rely on that sort of system?!
I always used a double loop with the second loop open to air above the waterlevel. That way it self primes and self regulates flow.
Be interested to see a few pics of your setup.
Havent seen one that id be happy to leave on its own yet!
Caporegime
Got given a 35L tank from a guy in work today, it's only 50cm (length) x 25cm (depth) x 30cm (height), any suggestions on what fish?
Mine looked near identical to this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DFk4bnIxEg
Worked perfectly, and no way it can overflow/flood the room. Even if the entry got blocked, it would just cease when the waterlevel in the sump got too low (pump with auto cut-off), and even if it didnt stop the pump would not pump water once the level was too low. I just had a 90 degree on the inlet, and some mesh in front of it.
It was failsafe, cheap, and easy to do.
Soldato
- Joined
- 13 Jun 2011
- Posts
- 6,014
Thats not a hob overflow. Joey even says its not
A hob overflow, he calls it a pvc overflow but ive seen it called otherthings (eludes me right now) With that setup your running a full syphon below the waterline so it pretty much cant be broken unless blocked. Still wouldnt use this setup unless there was an emergency extra drain incase of said blockage tho
Rebel rebels image above shows the pony hob overflows that people like to use which cannot restart if the syphon is broken hence the liability to flood if the power goes out or the syphon is lost for any other reason (snail in pipe for ex)
Honestly cant belive manufactures are providing tanks with this setup
A hob overflow, he calls it a pvc overflow but ive seen it called otherthings (eludes me right now) With that setup your running a full syphon below the waterline so it pretty much cant be broken unless blocked. Still wouldnt use this setup unless there was an emergency extra drain incase of said blockage tho
Rebel rebels image above shows the pony hob overflows that people like to use which cannot restart if the syphon is broken hence the liability to flood if the power goes out or the syphon is lost for any other reason (snail in pipe for ex)
Honestly cant belive manufactures are providing tanks with this setup