quick advice on bulkhead

[nunzilla]

Hi,

I'm sure this is in the history someplace but I need some quick advice. I'm going to be home for thanksgiving and I will have access to my old drill press. I want to drill a (or 2) bulkhead in my 29 gallon I'm going to setup. I was thinking 2 1" bulkheads (1 3/4 hole for the bulkhead). What do you think? I was thinking 2 so I have a backup in case of a clog. 1" because it's a small tank. Also how far down to I drill the holes? I plan to use the playdoh/oil method I caught in a seperate thread, and use the drill press to go very slow.

I need to order the bulkheads on monday and I just want confirmation of my thoughts.

Should I drill a return?

Thanks in advance!

 

[JennM]

I'm assuming you are going to drill the side, yes? We only drill one hole, and have the return come back up over the back of the tank.

You need a diamond drill bit, and yes go very very very slowly. We use water to cool the glass as we drill.

Did I mention drill slowly? Steady hand...

We've only cracked a couple, and the were small tanks, 10 and 20 gallon with thin glass. A 29 isn't hard to drill.

You can guesstimate the placement of the hole, you can get a bulkhead kit from Pentair that has an elbow on it and intake screen, that you can adjust the water level inside the tank, and keeps your fish and inverts from going down the drain pipe.

HTH

Jenn

 

[LFS42]

I have a 37 set-up with (2) 1" bulk head drains
both are about 2" away from the edge and 4" down from the top

and I have a 3/4" bulk head return drilled in the center of the back pain
just above the water line.

(my water line is 3" below the top of the tank)

 

[Anonymous]

Is it glass or acrylic?????????

Glass is tough.

Acrylic is easier, but you have to be careful. Use a hole saw with very small teeth, use high RPM and low pressure when pushing down (it kind of melts the plastic rather than cutting it). I would practice on a scratch piece of plastic to get the feel of it. There is a tendency when you push through for the bit to twist the acrylic, and it's very easy to crack it. DON'T use oil. I was told by some acrylic manufacturers that it chemically attacks the acrylic--not a good thing.