Chuck Reese' 20 gallon:

1)Size of tank?
20 Gallons

2)Was this your first reef tank?
Yes (but began as F/O --> Psuedo reef --> Reef)

3)Do you have any traditionally sized reef aquariums? If so, of what size?
No, but do have 55Gal FW Discus tank

4)How long has this tank been setup?
18 months (10 months as reef)

5)What hardware are you using, including lighting? If you're using a sump, include it here. Also if you're experimenting with any of the "new" systems, such as mangroves, ATS, or mud filtration, list it here.

2x18" NO flourescents (Powerglo 15W)
CPR Bakpak (biobale removed)
Skilter 250 (stripped) used as hang-on sump only
RIO 750 PH (outputs through UV into Skilter sump)
Angstrom 8W UV (left off last 6+ months)

6)How much live rock are you using?
~25 lbs, mostly Fiji

7)Are you using live sand?
No - but do have ~2" arogonite(? it's black) substrate which is pretty "alive"
If so, how much? If not, are you using any other substrate?
See above
Are you using a plenum?
no

8)Do you perform water changes? If so, how much and how often?
Yes - 2 Gallons (10%) every 2 weeks or so

9)Do you add trace elements? If so, what?
Yes - Boyd Vita-Chem and Kent Tectra-I, both according to directions

10)Do you experience problems with overheating? If so, how have you solved them?

No

11)What corals are you keeping? Indicate how long you've had them, how large they are, and wether you've observed growth in them.

Various mushrooms - 3 months - increased in size ~25%
Bubble Coral - 1 month - too early to say, but appears to be opening much larger
Gold Star polyps - just added - seem good so far

12)What other invertebrates are you keeping? Again, indicate how long you've had them, how large they are and wether you've observed growth in them.

Purple tipped carpet anenome - 10 months - has grown from 3" diameter to ~12-15"
2x Emerald Mithrax crabs - 3 months (no dramatic growth)
8x Blue-legged hermits 10 months (have grown)
~10x turbo snails 10 months (who knows?)
did keep an Arrow crab for about 6 months - got too large for the tank! (returned to LFS)

1x Pencil Urchin - 10 months - just returned to LFS due to Coralline grazing.

Also kept some cleaner shrimp in the early going. They did well, but grew too large and were too active for this size tank

13)Are you keeping any fish? If so, what?

2x Oscellaris clowns (10 months, have doubled in size)
1x Bicolor blenny - 3 months, no obvious growth
1x Diadema Basslet - 3 months, grown a little longer and much fatter

14)Would you say you have a large population of other micro fauna, such as copepods and similiar?

Yes, I think so

15)Are there any species (vertebrate or invertebrate) you seem to fail with regularly in this tank?

Not since I installed the Bakpak (10 months). Before that, had problems with ich. I installed the Bakpak and the UV at the same time, not sure which solved the problem, but I don't run the UV anymore.

16)Likewise, are there any species you'd describe as remarkably successful in this tank?

The anenome has exceeded expectations dramatically. I would not have purchased it if I knew then what I know now, but I'm glad I did!

17)Do you feed your tank? If so, how often and with what?

Yes - I feed live blackworms to the clowns and basslet daily, frozen krill to the anenome 2 or 3x a week, and fed a piece of krill to the bubble once. The blenny seems to like the krill. I also feed spirulina flakes several times a week to the clowns.

18)On a scale of 1 to 5, with one being completely unsuccessful and 5 being very successful, how would you rate your experiences with this tank?

In the early going, a "-1". Lately, a "5" (thanks mostly to the reefkeeping lists)

19)Is there anything about your tank you wish you could change? Something you could have done differently?

If I were to start over, I would use Live Sand. I would definitely start out with the Bakpak instead of adding it later. I will be upgrading the lighting soon, haven't decided what to go to yet (but leaning toward PC or single MH) I would also like to try mangroves, but I don't want to add a sump and lights for them.

20)Would you recommend a Nano to another reef keeping hobbyist?
To an *experienced* hobbyist, yes. I think Nanos are too unforgiving for the uninitiated.

21)Would you recommend one to a non-reef keeping hobbyist?
No.

22)Would you recommend one to a NON hobbyist?
ABSOLUTELY NOT!

23)Are there any pieces of equipment you've used on this tank you would never use again? If so, what, and why not?

Skilter, Penguin Biowheel. They don't work in my system (too high of a bioload).

24)Are there any pieces of equipment you'd recommend reservation-free to another hobbyist?

CPR BakPak (within appropriate parameters).

25)Do you test your water parameters? If so, what do you test for? And how often?

Yes - pH, Alk, Nitrite, Nitrate, PO4, Calcium. (weekly)

26)Are there any mistakes you've made you think others might be able to learn from? If so, feel free to include them here.

Start out with a good skimmer and plenty of live rock. Maintain chemistry through water changes (as opposed to use of additives).

27)If you have any additional comments you'd like to make, by all means, include them here.

I tried using Kent calcium and Seachem marine buffer to regulate alk/pH/calcium for a long time. I don't think this is easy to get right in a small tank - frequent small water changes work better and are easier, IME.