I am currently running a 55g tank, here is what I have done.
When I started I had the following -
HOB power filter, heater, powerhead. Worked fine, but water never cleaner up like id like. After a month I added the remora C skimmer. It worked nicely, but I had way too much (for my wifes visual taste) hanging from the back of the tank. No stability issues, just looked like hell. I added an overflow box, mag 7 pump and a 10
gal sump. After plumbing it all out and testing it I was very happy with the operation. Problem is, you got no room for error during a power outage with the 10
gal. After about 1 week went to a 20
gal rubbermaid container for a sump and the 10
gal tank became
qt. Now the power filter is on the
qt tank and all I have in my display is a power head and the overflow (and 80 lbs.
lr). In my sump is a skimmer, return pump and heater. Changed the lights to 10k also, is much more appealing.
I am very happy with my setup as it is right now, the addition of a backdrop (dark blue, no pattern) was a nice touch (my wife is very big into appearances). Now I just have to wait one more week to get my fish out of
qt. They are gonna think they were in an episode of Trading Spaces".