The Tiniest Overflow

[memorywrangler]

I'm trying to build the smallest overflow possible.

I have a 5-gallon shrimp tank with some very tannic drift wood in it which water tea-colored in a week.  I don't like the way it looks but:

1. I don't want to tear it down to replace the wood
2. Every time I do a big water change, some shrimp die.

So I'm going to build the tiniest overflow possible and add a pint or two of fresh water every day.   Since the tank is so small, it doesn't make much water to raise level 1/4 in or so, which should be enough to run the overflow.

Hopefully, this will keep the shrimp happy and my water clear(er).

Here was my first attempt built from rigid airline tubing:

But it was too narrow -- the surface tension on the water was strong enough to hold back the flow.

Here's the second try:

it's made of 1/4 acrylic tubing with a small hole drilled at the top of the loop to break the siphon.  The tube runs to 5-gal bucket under my desk. 

It's working fine, but it could be tidier.

 

[xXInkedPhoenixX]

Very nice DIY there, keep us updated, hope it helps the shrimp!