You can get away with no sump. For my 130g when it was a mixed reef I used a protein skimmer (Aqua C Remora Pro) and no other filters. Canister filters and HOB filters will get dirty quickly and add nitrates to your tank unless they are cleaned often. The biological filtration was done by about 200 lbs of live rock. For powerheads I used 2 VorTech powerheads but they are expensive. I now use 2 Hydor Koralia 4 powerheads on the 130g moray eel/lionfish tank and they work really well (and are much cheaper). I have upgraded to a 200g reef that now uses the VorTech powerheads.
And oh yeah, I used a 25 gallon refugium as well. If you use a sump, you can always divide it into two parts, refugium/sump. On my 200g, I use 2 25g aquariums that I had hanging around. I drilled a hole in the side of one and attached an overflow pipe to drain from the refugium (fed by the main tank) into the sump and then pumped back to the main tank. The heaters, protein skimmer and phosphate/carbon reactors are in the sump.
Using a sump is probably best as it offers more options and a much less cluttered look (as others have said).
And oh yeah, I used a 25 gallon refugium as well. If you use a sump, you can always divide it into two parts, refugium/sump. On my 200g, I use 2 25g aquariums that I had hanging around. I drilled a hole in the side of one and attached an overflow pipe to drain from the refugium (fed by the main tank) into the sump and then pumped back to the main tank. The heaters, protein skimmer and phosphate/carbon reactors are in the sump.
Using a sump is probably best as it offers more options and a much less cluttered look (as others have said).
