what to do with built in overflow?

[Gobrian44]

Hello all am considering getting a coral frag tank and using it for my bichir an make a really nice planted/eco tank. But as u can see in the picture there is the overflow part in the back right corner i have never hand an overflow before. So what do i put in the box? i was thinking prefilter like 20 or 30 ppi foam and then plum it to a canister? Does that sound good?

What would u do woth the over flow?

Thanks

 

[Pharaoh]

I would just plump it to a canister or plug it.

 

[Miguel4u2]

its looks little from the picture, how big is it?

 

[JakeH]

I say canister fo sho! Wierd tank, btw... You're not planning to put the bichir IN that tank are you? I always heard they were escape artists... Thats gonna be a killer planted tank bro!

 

[marauders30]

i would use the overflow with a sump. u could probly find a cheap tank on craigslist or something and get it set up as ur sump tank. depending on the size u could get way more surface area in that kind of setup than in a canister.

 

[Toby_H]

I would use the overflow with a sump... or plug the drilled hole and use a canister... I see no benefit to using a canister with a drilled hole, but I do see how it could limit filter placement. There's just not enough pro to balance the con...

Like Jake mentioned, be cautious with escapees...

I would not put prefilter material in an overflow box. If that material became clogged and prevented water from sufficiently flowing down the drilled hole you could overflow the tank (if using a sump) or burn out the pump (if using a sump or canister).

 

[chu.christopher]

I say use it with a canister if its just for fargging coral. Make sure you keep the water level up though or you will damage your canister

 

[Gobrian44]

I'm going to get a good top on it and use it for sens. maybe even some other bichirs. I just really like the foot print of the tank