Build Thread, help me get started!

All solid advice up there. You'll be thankful in the long run for not taking shortcuts.

 

My thing is, I can drill it, but I'd rather not ruin the tank.
Do you know where I can one of those overflow boxes?

Thank you! I looked them up online and found them.

 

Question, is there anything wrong with using something like this instead of my 10 gallon?
http://www.eshopps.com/products/filters/reefsumps/rs75/

 

Not at all. A purpose built sump works great. Just make sure you have room for the skimmer you chose and the return pump.

 

Eshopps is a sponsor here. I'm sure they'd be happy to direct you. I believe there are some great retailers that are sponsors here that carry their products.

 

A sump seems expensive... Is there any alternative?

 

I bought a 29 gallon tank for the sump in my 75, then built glass walls inside of it to keep everything organized. For your 40g a 10 or 20 gallon tank would work great and if you get one during petco's $1 a gallon sale it's actually really cheap and a great option!

 

Yeah, I have two ten gallon tanks at my house. I just don't understand where to put all this stuff.

 

Go check out this link, it's for a build thread from awhile back but it's only 3 pages long so it's a quick read and seems to be what your looking to do
http://www.3reef.com/threads/anpgps-40b-w-20-sump-build-thread-pic-update-10-6.117056/

 

Let's look at this from a different direction. What is your budget for your reef tank? How much time do you want to devote to it?