My story is a 4 fish death story.....
Being the Cheap-a** that I am I decided to DIY my own overflow instead of buying a CPR or eshopps...and I know most of you have done this without any problems....
But, I built my overflow with plans that I found on the net but decided to make some changes to it so that 1) it would fit my tank and 2) that it would give me the flow that I wanted (about 1,000g per hour but would've liked 1,200g/hr. you know whats going to happen already but to be absolutely clear I stuffed the intake pipes with sponges so that fish would not get sucked into this PVC contraption.
After I built this thing (I've since called it my death trap), I had it running for a couple hours that night with no problem, I went to bed. The next morning, on my first count, I was missing two fish. I looked around...there were no jumpers. So, I figured, they could only have gone up the overflow. When, I dismantled the first intake pipe, one fish (which is bigger than the opening of the PVC pipe had basically been sucked up the pipe bent in two (i.e. the fish was folded over itself, which is really the only way the fish would have fit in the pipe). - Adult Boseman Rainbows.
So, because I was still one fish short, I dismantled the other intake pipe, and out flopped another 3 fish, died basically the same way.....
I felt so guilty, I dismantled the whole thing that day and then put in an order for an eshoppes overflow the next day.
Kz