I kept reef tanks for many years and some good advise was just given to you. I also worked in a retail store and built/maintained other peoples tanks on the side. Advice is a good thing exp. is another. The store that I worked in was one of the better known in my area on reefcentral the owner sponsors a forum. Out of the five people who worked in the store 3 had marine biology degrees. Every person in the store had a different idea of how a tank should be set up and maintained. Every person that worked their had a very successful tank at their home and we had several nice tanks at the store. Every employee was given a tank that they set up and maintained all had different styles. When a customer asked how to set up a tank we told them how we did it and sent them to talk to one of the other guys. We also told them that their is no set in stone method of keeping tanks. I had lyretail anthias that lived and bred in my tank. I had a gigas clam that was purchased at 3 inches and was over 14 when I gave him to the store. What worked in my setup may of not worked in yours. What I will offer is keep this in mind when buying a fish, they come from the ocean. They have all the swimming room they want even if they dont use it. A single dominant female clown will claim a spot bigger than most peoples closet in the wild. Some host anemones will grow to larger than my computer desk and will host a single female with her males. I had a tank that was 8 ft long and 30 inches wide, and this is probably the reason my anthias lived so well that and the fact that I fed them 4 times a day, skimmed the water with a custom built precision marine skimmer and had a water change machine that changed the water for me constantly. Reef tank costs can add up fast even at the wholesale cost I was paying I stopped counting equipment costs at 10k. Small tanks are a lot less forgiving than large tanks. My answer to how big of a tank do I need is the biggest you can afford. Again this is just my 2 pennies worth.

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