d2mini's "Essential Focus" Mixed Reef Build
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Diesel
ME=1, CANCER=0.
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- Texas Republic Grand Ranch.
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And the tank is on the stand!
Hung the light fixture yesterday, too.
Pics of the tank coming soon.
If you look good you can see the tank between these handsome reefers.
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My Tank Thread
My Aquarium Showcase
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Oh yea!
OP
OP
d2mini
5000 Club Member
UPDATE 4-11-16
When I first spoke with Scott at Aquarium Specialty about the Elos, I expressed concern that there was no bottom in the stand. It was explained to both of us by Elos Italy that it's designed this way to keep sound/vibrations from transferring through the stand. This is understandable and a great thought, but I wasn't fond of putting my sump directly on my wood floors. If I had tile or concrete, it would have been fine. So Nick at Elos graciously offered to make me a false floor that could be inset into the stand. It arrived and was very nice. Made out of the same thick materials as the rest of the stand, and they had large, heavy duty feet to keep it raised off the floor. But being that I've made idiot mistakes in the past and I'm not always that careful when removing reactors and doing other maintenance, I was still worried about saltwater spills damaging the floor. So I decide to have my local acrylic smith (www.buildinganobsession.com) build me an acrylic tray. It fits perfectly and I added a dozen or so felt pads to the bottom just to make sure it has airflow underneath in case any moisture was to make its way under there. And now any spills will be contained inside the tray.
Once that was done, it was time to finish unpacking the tank and move it inside and on to the stand!
I have to say, the clarity of the glass is AMAZE-BALLS.
The build quality of the entire tank is top notch.
Subtle beveled and highly polished edges, really clean silicone work... very nicely done.
Lets start with some pics of the overflow that we are all curious about.
I am still unsure of exactly how it works, but I'll let you at least see what I'm seeing.
(and mind you, I hadn't cleaned the dust and fingerprints off everything)
Here is the complete overflow.
As you can see, the water enters from all levels of the aquarium.
It goes through the vents, up a channel to the top, where it overflows into the rest of the overflow.
There is a cap that sits on top.
Notice that there is also an optional return spout at the bottom. It's currently capped off.
This seems quite low to me, if you have substrate on the bottom of your tank.
I'm also not sure what would happen in the event of a power failure? Back siphon??? I would think Elos has thought of this. Maybe they can offer some insight.
This is what you see when you lift the cap off.
The large adjustment dial is for dialing in drain flow, and the small dial is for dialing in the return flow.
An acrylic "key" is included to make turning both dials nice and easy.
Removing two small hex bolts will let you remove the trim around the dials to reveal the interior of the overflow.
And the front wall with the all the drain vents lifts straight up and out.
The standpipe (the outer portion) is removable for maintenance. It lifts right out.
So now you can see the 1.25" drain standpipe and the 3/4" return behind it.
There actually seems to be two of the smaller pipes but I do not know what the second one does.
Under the tank, there is only one drain hole and one return hole.
And as far as I can tell, that square box over the return is completely sealed and not removable.
The Elos mystery continues!
Here's some more detailed shots of the tank.
The side and back of the overflow are covered in a vinyl with a mesh print.
There is a viewing window on the side so you can see the water level inside.
Ultra clear "Diamond" glass!
Hopefully not to easily scratched... time will tell, but you can be sure I'll be extra careful.
This is the base of the overflow and rear top corner of the stand.
At the very right you can see there is a vent that runs all the way across directly under the rear of the tank.
There is also a larger vent that runs across the very bottom of the stand.
Look at that gorgeous edge.
Since we had our donuts laying around, I grabbed one of the napkins with the the Shipley's logo on it and place it behind the glass, about 12" behind the front pane.
Notice that there is basically zero color cast on the napkin from the glass.
And finally, the first full tank shot!
I don't have any T5 bulbs yet, but turned on the center row of LEDs.
So that is all for now!
Next we are working on the sump.
While I wait for that, I have some other random things I need to do.
Stay tuned...
When I first spoke with Scott at Aquarium Specialty about the Elos, I expressed concern that there was no bottom in the stand. It was explained to both of us by Elos Italy that it's designed this way to keep sound/vibrations from transferring through the stand. This is understandable and a great thought, but I wasn't fond of putting my sump directly on my wood floors. If I had tile or concrete, it would have been fine. So Nick at Elos graciously offered to make me a false floor that could be inset into the stand. It arrived and was very nice. Made out of the same thick materials as the rest of the stand, and they had large, heavy duty feet to keep it raised off the floor. But being that I've made idiot mistakes in the past and I'm not always that careful when removing reactors and doing other maintenance, I was still worried about saltwater spills damaging the floor. So I decide to have my local acrylic smith (www.buildinganobsession.com) build me an acrylic tray. It fits perfectly and I added a dozen or so felt pads to the bottom just to make sure it has airflow underneath in case any moisture was to make its way under there. And now any spills will be contained inside the tray.
Once that was done, it was time to finish unpacking the tank and move it inside and on to the stand!
I have to say, the clarity of the glass is AMAZE-BALLS.
The build quality of the entire tank is top notch.
Subtle beveled and highly polished edges, really clean silicone work... very nicely done.
Lets start with some pics of the overflow that we are all curious about.
I am still unsure of exactly how it works, but I'll let you at least see what I'm seeing.
(and mind you, I hadn't cleaned the dust and fingerprints off everything)
Here is the complete overflow.
As you can see, the water enters from all levels of the aquarium.
It goes through the vents, up a channel to the top, where it overflows into the rest of the overflow.
There is a cap that sits on top.
Notice that there is also an optional return spout at the bottom. It's currently capped off.
This seems quite low to me, if you have substrate on the bottom of your tank.
I'm also not sure what would happen in the event of a power failure? Back siphon??? I would think Elos has thought of this. Maybe they can offer some insight.
This is what you see when you lift the cap off.
The large adjustment dial is for dialing in drain flow, and the small dial is for dialing in the return flow.
An acrylic "key" is included to make turning both dials nice and easy.
Removing two small hex bolts will let you remove the trim around the dials to reveal the interior of the overflow.
And the front wall with the all the drain vents lifts straight up and out.
The standpipe (the outer portion) is removable for maintenance. It lifts right out.
So now you can see the 1.25" drain standpipe and the 3/4" return behind it.
There actually seems to be two of the smaller pipes but I do not know what the second one does.
Under the tank, there is only one drain hole and one return hole.
And as far as I can tell, that square box over the return is completely sealed and not removable.
The Elos mystery continues!
Here's some more detailed shots of the tank.
The side and back of the overflow are covered in a vinyl with a mesh print.
There is a viewing window on the side so you can see the water level inside.
Ultra clear "Diamond" glass!
Hopefully not to easily scratched... time will tell, but you can be sure I'll be extra careful.
This is the base of the overflow and rear top corner of the stand.
At the very right you can see there is a vent that runs all the way across directly under the rear of the tank.
There is also a larger vent that runs across the very bottom of the stand.
Look at that gorgeous edge.
Since we had our donuts laying around, I grabbed one of the napkins with the the Shipley's logo on it and place it behind the glass, about 12" behind the front pane.
Notice that there is basically zero color cast on the napkin from the glass.
And finally, the first full tank shot!
I don't have any T5 bulbs yet, but turned on the center row of LEDs.
So that is all for now!
Next we are working on the sump.
While I wait for that, I have some other random things I need to do.
Stay tuned...
OP
OP
d2mini
5000 Club Member
Not sure, but probably the same as my 120Xl which is around 34".
Thanks! And yeah... I love tank builds. haha
Txdragonslayer
Well-Known Member
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- Jul 1, 2015
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- What state or country do you live in
- Texas
Very nice! thanks for breaking down the Overflow!
And the tank is on the stand!
Hung the light fixture yesterday, too.
Pics of the tank coming soon.
ATI!!!!!!!!!!!!
UPDATE 4-11-16
When I first spoke with Scott at Aquarium Specialty about the Elos, I expressed concern that there was no bottom in the stand. It was explained to both of us by Elos Italy that it's designed this way to keep sound/vibrations from transferring through the stand. This is understandable and a great thought, but I wasn't fond of putting my sump directly on my wood floors. If I had tile or concrete, it would have been fine. So Nick at Elos graciously offered to make me a false floor that could be inset into the stand. It arrived and was very nice. Made out of the same thick materials as the rest of the stand, and they had large, heavy duty feet to keep it raised off the floor. But being that I've made idiot mistakes in the past and I'm not always that careful when removing reactors and doing other maintenance, I was still worried about saltwater spills damaging the floor. So I decide to have my local acrylic smith (www.buildinganobsession.com) build me an acrylic tray. It fits perfectly and I added a dozen or so felt pads to the bottom just to make sure it has airflow underneath in case any moisture was to make its way under there. And now any spills will be contained inside the tray.
Once that was done, it was time to finish unpacking the tank and move it inside and on to the stand!
I have to say, the clarity of the glass is AMAZE-BALLS.
The build quality of the entire tank is top notch.
Subtle beveled and highly polished edges, really clean silicone work... very nicely done.
Lets start with some pics of the overflow that we are all curious about.
I am still unsure of exactly how it works, but I'll let you at least see what I'm seeing.
(and mind you, I hadn't cleaned the dust and fingerprints off everything)
Here is the complete overflow.
As you can see, the water enters from all levels of the aquarium.
It goes through the vents, up a channel to the top, where it overflows into the rest of the overflow.
There is a cap that sits on top.
Notice that there is also an optional return spout at the bottom. It's currently capped off.
This seems quite low to me, if you have substrate on the bottom of your tank.
I'm also not sure what would happen in the event of a power failure? Back siphon??? I would think Elos has thought of this. Maybe they can offer some insight.
This is what you see when you lift the cap off.
The large adjustment dial is for dialing in drain flow, and the small dial is for dialing in the return flow.
An acrylic "key" is included to make turning both dials nice and easy.
Removing two small hex bolts will let you remove the trim around the dials to reveal the interior of the overflow.
And the front wall with the all the drain vents lifts straight up and out.
The standpipe (the outer portion) is removable for maintenance. It lifts right out.
So now you can see the 1.25" drain standpipe and the 3/4" return behind it.
There actually seems to be two of the smaller pipes but I do not know what the second one does.
Under the tank, there is only one drain hole and one return hole.
And as far as I can tell, that square box over the return is completely sealed and not removable.
The Elos mystery continues!
Here's some more detailed shots of the tank.
The side and back of the overflow are covered in a vinyl with a mesh print.
There is a viewing window on the side so you can see the water level inside.
Ultra clear "Diamond" glass!
Hopefully not to easily scratched... time will tell, but you can be sure I'll be extra careful.
This is the base of the overflow and rear top corner of the stand.
At the very right you can see there is a vent that runs all the way across directly under the rear of the tank.
There is also a larger vent that runs across the very bottom of the stand.
Look at that gorgeous edge.
Since we had our donuts laying around, I grabbed one of the napkins with the the Shipley's logo on it and place it behind the glass, about 12" behind the front pane.
Notice that there is basically zero color cast on the napkin from the glass.
And finally, the first full tank shot!
I don't have any T5 bulbs yet, but turned on the center row of LEDs.
So that is all for now!
Next we are working on the sump.
While I wait for that, I have some other random things I need to do.
Stay tuned...
Man that tank is slick! I've always wanted a white high gloss stand with flush doors. Looks amazing!
OP
OP
d2mini
5000 Club Member
Yeah, no problem.
Sorry i couldn't break it down further.
Still somewhat of a mystery to me.
haha
Sometimes the beauty is in the mystery.........................................................................Yeah, no problem.
Sorry i couldn't break it down further.
Still somewhat of a mystery to me.
Until something goes wrong and you have to fix it.[emoji13]
OP
OP
d2mini
5000 Club Member
UPDATE 4-14-16
More goodies arrived from Aquarium Specialty.
MP40 QD
And Giesemann PowerChrome T5 bulbs.
The order you see from top to bottom is how I'm starting off in the fixture from front to back.
This may change and I might even end up swapping a bulb or two for something else.
But this should be a good starting point. I've always preferred more of a crisp white look.
The LEDs should help me tweak in more blue if I need it.
More goodies arrived from Aquarium Specialty.
MP40 QD
And Giesemann PowerChrome T5 bulbs.
The order you see from top to bottom is how I'm starting off in the fixture from front to back.
This may change and I might even end up swapping a bulb or two for something else.
But this should be a good starting point. I've always preferred more of a crisp white look.
The LEDs should help me tweak in more blue if I need it.
I see you threw in a planted tank bulb? Isn't that what the tropic is? Is that for your preferred white look?UPDATE 4-14-16
More goodies arrived from Aquarium Specialty.
MP40 QD
And Giesemann PowerChrome T5 bulbs.
The order you see from top to bottom is how I'm starting off in the fixture from front to back.
This may change and I might even end up swapping a bulb or two for something else.
But this should be a good starting point. I've always preferred more of a crisp white look.
The LEDs should help me tweak in more blue if I need it.
OP
OP
d2mini
5000 Club Member
Yes, that's basically the equivalent of a GE 6500k.
I put that in for a daylight growth power boost.
This is one that may eventually be replaced with a blue, but for now it should give me a nice kickstart.
