Elos Diamond 120 (90g) Build

[Spanky05]

Hello!
Figured this would be a good opportunity to start a build thread after reefing off and on for several years.

I did the fairly typical route of reefing. Started while in college with a 10gal freshwater. Then up to a 37 gal salt, 55 gal salt. Burned out and was out of reefing until 3.5 years ago when I got the itch again.

At that time I started up a 29gal biocube and I've happily kept it for the past 3.5 years. Started it up with Tampa Bay LR and it has been doing well. Personally, I think it's a success in itself that I've been able to keep from upgrading for that long.


Butttttt, we all know that we can never resist the lure of an upgrade so here we are.

At the beginning of the year I decided to get an Elos Diamond 120. It's actually a 90 gallon tank but 120 is the name Elos gives it. I wanted to get something that would be able to fend off the resist to upgrade for a while and I think this will do the trick.

Dimensions on the tank are: 47.24" long x 22.44" wide x 19.7" tall.
I like the extra width compared to the normal 90g footprint.

Got the stand up (after figuring out some less than comprehensive assembly instructions) and I'm very happy with the look!


Had a good friend help me get the tank on the stand.


Glass and silicone work look quite nice in my opinion.

Equipment list will be:
Return pump: Eheim 1262
Powerheads: 2 MP40's
Lighting: 2 Hydra 26 HD's with either 4 or 6 T5's. Unsure on which bulbs I will use just yet.
Skimmer: Vertex Omega 150
ATO: AutoAqua AWC
Sump: RS-100
Heater: 2 x Ehiem Jager TruTemp 125w
Live rock: 40 lbs Tampa Bay LR from my Biocube + 40 lbs Caribsea Shapes
Sand: 80 lbs Caribsea Arag Special Grade
Filtration: Filter pad and 5L Siporax in sump

This is going to likely be a slow build. Trying to not rush anything and put myself in a bind.
Thanks for following along!

 

[Big G]

I've got a 90. I put in the RS-200 sump. Really like it. Plenty of room. Enjoy the build. Keep posting pics

 

[fergusk]

Looks great. Keen to see more updates. What are you intending to stock it with?

 

[Spanky05]

I've got a 90. I put in the RS-200 sump. Really like it. Plenty of room. Enjoy the build. Keep posting pics

Nice! I lucked out and a friend gave me the rs-100. He won it in a raffle then realized he had no use for it.

I would have chosen a bigger one like the 200.

What all do you keep in it?

 

[Spanky05]

Looks great. Keen to see more updates. What are you intending to stock it with?

Thanks!

To answer your question, I don't really know. Only have 2 clowns and a yellow watchman goby in my 29. I'm excited about the possibility of more fish but honestly don't have any "must haves".
Maybe a royal gramma, yellow or tomini tang and a pretty flasher wrasse.

It will be a mixed reef focusing more on lps/zoas.

What do you have?

 

[Big G]

Nice! I lucked out and a friend gave me the rs-100. He won it in a raffle then realized he had no use for it.

I would have chosen a bigger one like the 200.

What all do you keep in it?

Chaeto, and for my QT when needed: foam bubble filter pad, HOB foam filter pad, and a mesh bag of BioMax.

 

[dragon99]

I feel bad now giving you that crummy little sump for such an amazing tank.

Must have fish: wrasses, then a couple more wrasses...

ps: now I'm stalking you on R2R

 

[fergusk]

Thanks!

To answer your question, I don't really know. Only have 2 clowns and a yellow watchman goby in my 29. I'm excited about the possibility of more fish but honestly don't have any "must haves".
Maybe a royal gramma, yellow or tomini tang and a pretty flasher wrasse.

It will be a mixed reef focusing more on lps/zoas.

What do you have?

Awesome! The watchman is definitely one I’ve been thinking about getting. The lps/zoa tank sounds pretty good - you can get so much more colour and movement in them.

I’ve got a small sps grow out tank running atm and have just set up a new 4x2x2 Cade SPS tank. I’ve got a build thread on my profile for it. Planning on mainly having fish with jobs (tangs, wrasses etc) rather than just for the sake of having fish.

 

[Spanky05]

Chaeto, and for my QT when needed: foam bubble filter pad, HOB foam filter pad, and a mesh bag of BioMax.

I've always thought I would run a fuge but I'm not sure I'll have room for that. Hoping all the siporax I have will help in that regard.

 

[Spanky05]

I feel bad now giving you that crummy little sump for such an amazing tank.

Must have fish: wrasses, then a couple more wrasses...

ps: now I'm stalking you on R2R

Hey man!

Haha shush. It's great and I'm thankful for it!

I want wrasses for sure, just don't want any who will snack on my cuc. Will have to reference your handy dandy chart

 

[Spanky05]

Awesome! The watchman is definitely one I’ve been thinking about getting. The lps/zoa tank sounds pretty good - you can get so much more colour and movement in them.

I’ve got a small sps grow out tank running atm and have just set up a new 4x2x2 Cade SPS tank. I’ve got a build thread on my profile for it. Planning on mainly having fish with jobs (tangs, wrasses etc) rather than just for the sake of having fish.

Nice, I'll check out the build!

Looks like I have some research to do bc I'm not familiar with a CadenSPS tank.

Watchman gobies have a special place in my heart. Had one in my first tank. Named him Maximus bc he always set up shop in the front middle of the tank like he was the ruler. And the perma frown always made me laugh. Also, I have some hitchhiker pistol shrimp from my Tampa LR and I'm hoping they'll pair up!

 

[fergusk]

Nice, I'll check out the build!

Looks like I have some research to do bc I'm not familiar with a CadenSPS tank.

Watchman gobies have a special place in my heart. Had one in my first tank. Named him Maximus bc he always set up shop in the front middle of the tank like he was the ruler. And the perma frown always made me laugh. Also, I have some hitchhiker pistol shrimp from my Tampa LR and I'm hoping they'll pair up!

Awesome!! I had a pistol in my first tank which was next to my bed. I eventually got over the whole “click click” thing but my partner didn’t lol. Maybe I’ll have to get a pair and say they came in on the live rock haha.
The brand of tank is Cade (Australian based aquarium company) but I’m doing an sps tank in it (will be mostly elevated on 2 large pillars).

 

[Mattres]

The Elos looks great mate! Will follow along.

 

[Spanky05]

Awesome!! I had a pistol in my first tank which was next to my bed. I eventually got over the whole “click click” thing but my partner didn’t lol. Maybe I’ll have to get a pair and say they came in on the live rock haha.
The brand of tank is Cade (Australian based aquarium company) but I’m doing an sps tank in it (will be mostly elevated on 2 large pillars).

Ha yeah I'm the same way with the clicking. Doesn't bother me at all. My wife on the other hand.... she wouldn't shed a tear if one day it stopped.

Are you from Australia? I dream of one day being able to see the Great Barrier Reef. Now I just need to work on getting rich so I can afford a plane ticket!

 

[Spanky05]

The Elos looks great mate! Will follow along.

Thanks Mattres!

Your 120xl is top notch. I refer to that thread often!

 

[Spanky05]

Feeling lazy today after a long week so not much was done.
Got my skimmer put together, return pump and sump unboxed.



As the bottom of the Elos stand doesn't have a bottom (weird sentence) I'm going to try to put some rubber pavers cut to the shape of the exposed bottom. Pic of the unfinished business.


Box of the rest of my fun that came in!


Had thought I had ordered some plumbing fixtures but apparently I didn't. Off to Lowe's tomorrow so I can start some of the minimal plumbing I'll end up doing.

Hope everyone had a good week! Maybe I'll get more done tomorrow~

 

[Spanky05]

Wellllll, I didn't get much done this weekend.

There are a couple of factors:

1. General Laziness

2. I may havechanged my mind about plumbing my drain pipe. I was originally going to use the flex tubing that Elos provides for the drain but I feel as though I would benefit from hard plumbing this in.
Still on the fence about this but it seems easy enough. Famous last words, I'm sure...
Artistic sketch below...

3. My lighting situation: My current biocube is using a hydra 26HD. I ordered another one. I'm fortunate that the company I work for does work with a lighting company. I've talked to them and they're going to make a canopy for my lights with some t5's housed in it. The issue is I haven't given exact specifications for what I want just yet because I'm not really sure exactly what I want.
I know I will want it roughly the size of the tank: 47"x22" and probably about 6" deep. I know I want parabolic reflectors with the t5's. I believe I want 6 t5's, 3 on each side.
I'm trying to figure out the wiring and how I will be able to (hopefully) be able to plug my hydras into the fixture instead of having to run the wires out and to the wall.

To complicate things, I don't have (and won't be purchasing anytime soon) a controller. I'm trying to figure out how this fixture can provide power to my hydras full time (to use their built in controller) and give me the option to have the t5's on a timer. Ultimate goal is to have the power come down through the ceiling but I'm not sure if that's realistic or not.

So basically, that is one of the reasons I'm not in a huge hurry for everything to happen. I know that until I get this figured out, I don't need to be in a huge rush.

Something I *did* do this weekend was a water change on my biocube. Took some top-down shots for your viewing pleasure.


Sorry they're so blue. Forgot to adjust lighting as it was going down to night mode.

Have a happy Monday!

 

[Spanky05]

Slow and steady....

Did some tedious siporax stacking recently. It's absolutely shocking how much of this stuff you can fit in a small area by stacking it.

I'll have 7 liters total in my sump.

I currently have a bag of the small rings (15mm) in the back of my biocube.

It's been there for at least 6 months so it's probably chock full of goodness.

After I get all of this stacked and in cages, I'll toss them in a bin of saltwater, biocube siporax, heater and powerhead and let them start doing their thing.

Since I'm so slow getting everything set up, this might be full of good bacteria by the time I get this tank wet

 

[Spanky05]

Been a while but I haven't gotten much done so there isn't a ton to update!
Talked to the lighting company and they are working on my light. Told them I'm not in a huge hurry since they're doing me a favor so I'm trying not to nag too much.

Did get 40 lbs of Caribsea LifeRock Shapes in! Only 1 was broken and I think I may be glad that it broke.

It was an arch piece and it broke in half almost perfectly. Instead of another arch, I'll just use them both as shelves.

I have some reef cement and plan on getting some of this put together over the weekend.

Slow and steady wins the race....I hope!

 

[Bpb]

Well looky what we have here