Nps tank

[filefishfinatic]

i am starting to plan for a 20 gallon high nps tank. i am still deciding on lighting but i might make it sunlit and try to keep halimeda with it. if not, i will likely keep it in total darkness. i want dendro cauliflower coral, chilli coral, sponges, nps gorgonians, and other mesophotic species. for fish, i plan on doing either cardinals and benthic species or predators like scorpion or angler fish. currently i am trying to decide the best system for the tank but i am considering doing an automatic brine shrimp upflow undergravel feeder which releases brine shrimp into thetank naturally along with a phyto feeder. i would make it an open system where the phyto and brine tanks flow freely with the reef but the phyto and brine would be un able to actually enter the reef because i would keep filter socks or something and get a dosing pump for the brine and the phyto. this may not work though so possibly i will just have the phyto and i will culture it in rodi. i want to do a open system so i dont have to get 2 atos. i did consider a ato with nanochloropsis growing in it so whenever the water evaporates, the coral will get fed. if i took that approach, i would not run any filtration. for substrate i am going to do a mixture of crushed coral, sand, and mineral mud. i want miracle mud to feed my benthic microfauna to sustain tubastrea and i want the mixed grain sizes of sand and crushed coral to create an ideal substrate for microfauna and bacteria to live. my theroy is that if i set the substrate up correctly, the crushed coral will grow the anerobic bacterias but its so prous the sulfides can freely be released and gased off. a new lfs i found has some incredible sponges and gorgonians and i am going to source some of my livestock from them 

[filefishfinatic]

my puffer in my 20 long is nibbling my coral like crazy, any way to prevent this? he wont touch my xenia or pavona (thankfully) but he basicalaly killed the other lps i got and the kenya tree i had is a goner. my mystery softy isnt doing well either. i try banging the glass and ive been feeding him shrimp but he still does it 

[filefishfinatic]

bump 

[filefishfinatic]

anyone have ideas for fish. i am going to try to spend less than 500 on the tank 

[filefishfinatic]

i want a long fin blue gill fish. they look like coelethaleach 

[filefishfinatic]

anyone?