Making my own tank: what is a 'perfect' design

[Daniel1979]

Hi Everybody,

I have the oppurtunity to build my own marine tank. I have always loved mariend but never been able toa fford them until now. I figure that by building the tank etc myself i will be able to save a heap of money as i have come across some 20mm thick shopfronts that are 10ft long by about 12ft high for absolutely nothing. I'm just wondering what would be considered the 'perfect' design? I want to keep things such as corals, anenomes, sea horses, clown fish, tangs etc. Can anyone assist? I'm after a tank size of between 6-8 ft long, 2-3ft high and 2-3ft deep. Also, what filtration methods would you suggest? I was hoping to keep the mechanicals in the tank to a minimum if possible so was thinking about using a pad heater and external canister or something similar.

Thanks for your help

Kind regards

Daniel

[OrionGirl]

Well, you'll be better off building several tanks--the list of fish won't mix well.

I like tanks that are fairly square, and have lots of surface area. I would go with 8 foot long, 2 foot tall, and 3 foot front to back.

Live rock and sand are the best filtration you can find.