Elos aquariums

[Nomadic1]

I have been in the hobby a long time now. A few years ago, Elos aquariums were the end-all-be-all for "luxury" aquariums. I have never seen one in person, but, I do know that they are very expensive. I have seen Reef Savvy tanks in person, and was impressed with the build quality. However, I do not feel like waiting the 6 months it takes to have one built to the same dimensions as the Elos 160XL. I would expect a RS to be just as spendy as the Elos.

Is the Elos still as excellent as the RS is reputed to be? Please only respond if you have personal experience with either, or better yet, both.

Thanks!

 

[ChristopherKriens]

I own an ELOS and have worked with Reef Savvy tanks (I also have a Reef Savvy on order, so I know where you're coming from). You can't go wrong with either, but nothing beats an ELOS You are correct in that the cost difference will be pretty small between the 160XL and the Reef Savvy quote with the same specs.

 

[Steelersfan]

Personally, I have the Elos 120XL (4+ years) and the Elos 100 (1 year). I only bought the tanks and the stands. In my opinion, Elos tanks look fantastic in person, and more importantly, they are extremely clean and well built. If you have the space for the 160XL, the dimensions allow you to do a lot of different things as far as livestock. You can request the overflow in either the left or the right side, if that is important to you. Overall, I am extremely happy with Elos, and if I plan on picking up another tank, it will be an Elos. Let me know if you have any specific questions.

 

[Nomadic1]

What is the Elos stand made from? Please tell me it's not MDF or some other similar chicken**** material with Formica laminate on it.

 

[DipG]

i had Elos Midi until May of this year. I had it for almost 2 years and it was a great experience. The tank was well build and easy to setup. It was plug and play and I absolutely loved the tank. We got a custom stand built from ELOS and it was really well built. here is the picture of the tank and the stand. It wasn't MDF but even if it was they did a really good job with it.

 

[Steelersfan]

What is the Elos stand made from? Please tell me it's not MDF or some other similar chicken**** material with Formica laminate on it.

Marine grade MDF, but I believe now Elos offers different aluminum stands. I am not sure if it is available in the US yet or if it is a custom order.

I looked at purchasing a custom stand before picking up my 120XL, but after seeing the stand in person with custom color doors, I decided to go with the Elos stand. During the past 4+ years, the stand has stood up perfectly with no issues. You can always go with your own custom stand, but personally, I have nothing negative to say about them.

 

[Nomadic1]

Does the stand for the 160xl still have the divider in the middle?

 

[Steelersfan]

Yes. Fortunately, the 120XL does not have the divider. I am not a big fan of the divider.

 

[Steelersfan]

 

[jcdeng]

New alumium stand is the Absolute Line and will be available in summer 2015 to US market according to elos studio nj. Hopefully with the metal frame structure there will be no divider needed in the middle of the 160XL.

 

[Bandomo]

I actually have both tanks, an Elos 160xl at the store and a 100g ReefSavvy tank at home. I'm local to miami, so I know Felix fairly well. In my opinion each tank has its pro's and con's...

ReefSavvy
Pro's: The main thing that I like about a ReefSavvy tank is the hybrid overflow or the Ghost overflow if you choose to go that route. The main focus being surface skimming. The larger Elos aquariums (120, 120xl, 160, 160xl) have a much smaller overflow in comparison to the size of the tank with very little surface skimming. Felix tends to apply more focus on this issue.
Another pro would be Felix's customer service. Anyone who's dealt with him knowns exactly what I'm talking about, top notch.

Con's: 6-7 months lead time.

Elos
Pro's: Elos tanks are all floating bottom in design. Although ReefSavvy tanks come with what is called a phantom bottom, there's still a piece of acrylic sheet glued to the bottom of the tank, which in my opinion kinda defeats the purpose. However, Felix is now using red acrylic as the base sheet and I must admit that it looks pretty sexy! Next, Elos only uses one bead of silicone between the actual panes of glass. They don't do the seconded layer which is called a "wet seal." Although ReefSavvy does precise and extremely clean silicone work, it has a much wider spread of silicone around the boarders of the aquarium giving it that picture frame look.

Cons: I was expecting more from the stand. Although it looks very nice visually and I'm sure its quite durable and will stand the test of time, it kinda has that Ikea feel to it. Even more so when you have to build it yourself. Secondly, Elos equipment (skimmers, lights, controllers, etc.) are overly priced and usually fall short in comparison to their fantastic and well exectuted glass aquariums. lastly, you'll definitely won't get the same customer service from an Italian base company vs dealing with Felix one-on-one.

If it was me, I would first try to bribe Felix with a four month proposal. If that's a no go, I would simply order an Elos tank, have it delivered the following week and call it a day

 

[Mike_J]

I have an Elos 120XL (126 gallons) and absolutely love it. I did reach out to RS to get a quote on a 90 gallon build while I was researching prior to committing to the Elos. I felt the customer service in terms of the initial email correspondence was atrocious, which in turn, drew me towards the Elos. I could not be happier though. Well, the only complaint I would have is that the sump could be larger and more accommodating for the amount of space within the cabinet. I bought my Elos through a third party e-retailer and got a huge discount. I ended up paying far less for the 120XL than what RS was quoting me for their 90 gallon. The quality is exceptional while being very modern and sleek as well.

 

[Nomadic1]

Can those of you with the 160XL tell me what the sump dimensions are (especially that of the skimmer compartment)? I have a Vertex Alpha 200 on my current tank, which I would want to use with a new tank. It has a huge footprint, and, the photos of the Elos sump lead me to believe it to be very small, especially since the cabinet is divided in half. That would make the sump less than 2.5 feet wide.