Got around to making a mockup of the external box.
Anthony warned me that with such thin glass there was a chance of breaking it so I decided to go for a design that only requires 1 hole per pane.

http://imgur.com/aCPSWyO.jpg

I did make 2 bottom pieces in case something goes wrong but hope this will work. Decided to try a BeanAnimal's overflow cause at this point why not...

It's not that thin. Anthony will be fine. :) I'd drill all three in the bottom. Well technically, I'd just do two and go for Herbie because, why not? :p

If you put a 45 degree elbow at the top of the first emergency drain, and use 45s on the rest of that line instead of 90s, the drain will be quieter. There will probably always be a trickle going down the emergency line.

I've heard mixed opinions about having a wet emergency line.
People who are running the bean animal all told me they are happy with it and wouldn't ever go back haha I just thought after all this work why not implement the best method possible.
I think I will try to tinker with the design a bit more and see what's possible.

Another big shoutout to Anthony for helping me out big time!

http://imgur.com/kKZbqKl.jpg

Anthony's "They don't teach you this in school" technique for keeping the drill in the right place using a cloth hanger.

http://imgur.com/b9AGp2h.jpg

This is the final product of the external box and my take at the BeanAnimal's overflow.
Hacked together fittings and strainers I had around and I think it will work, I hope... Cutting tiny parts in a straight line is hard... :redface:
We were working with a bit that was starting to get dull and the first hole took much longer than when we drilled the tank so I decided to go with my original design so that not all 3 holes would be on the same panel.

http://imgur.com/fdFPclZ.jpg

Tank prepared to have the external box siliconed on.

http://imgur.com/kDPcBJb.jpg

Now I just need to clean everything and plumb the tank once more and I'll be done with the build! I hope... haha

Good luck. Looking forward to seeing this tank when it's finally completed.

That's an interesting overflow setup. I can't say I've seen one quite like it. It should work well.

I bet it really helped to keep a steady hand resting your wrists the box of frozen chicken strips, :sorry: bud couldn't resist :lol:

I don't think I have either, it was just something I came up with as I went.
Deciding to drill the tank after completing everything wasn't the most ideal thing and a lot of my plumbing just had to be modified and improvised to fit what I already had haha
Tomorrow will be the final leak test so hope everything works *cross fingers*

I think Anthony was using it as a knee rest. Can't resist them chicken strips :razz:

Thank god it's the weekend! I think I'm finally nearing completion of the tank portion of the build.

Lots of work in the last couple days.
Overflow and external box put into place with silicone on all the bulk heads and in every nook and cranny to avoid any leaks.
Waiting for more things to dry, my favorite... :turn-l:

http://imgur.com/bcGsVVI.jpg

With the use of many couplings, I was actually able to reuse all of the previous plumbing I had and minimize cost which was nice.
One new line put in for the emergency line.

http://imgur.com/0SoBCG0.jpg

Inside plumbing, really starting to get crowded down here.
Can't imagine how crammed it's going to be after all the electrical components are installed too.

http://imgur.com/wvmxsbp.jpg

Tomorrow will be leak testing and I'll be able to call the build done if nothing goes wrong!! :mrgreen:

Looks good!