Questions about Cubes

[BlackburnD]

I really like the aesthetics and footprint of cube aquariums, and I am really thinking of doing a largish cube as my next tank. I have some questions and concerns though. Keep in mind I am speaking about a cube of at least 100 gallons that has sides of 30 inches. How do fish who need large tanks for swimming room (tangs etc) do in cubes? How difficult/feasible is it to have the overflow in the middle of the tank with live rock covering it? What are some specific challenges with larger cubes that I should be aware of.

 

[lapin]

Cube. While mine is not tech a CUBE, It is 5'x5'x3' tall. Because of the square shape it does not allow for the escape, hide and swim opportunities that a long tank does.
The taller the tank the harder it is do get to the bottom. Access from 4 sides is ideal. The plus side. If you have 4 viewing sides you can create different looks for each side.

 

[biecacka]

48/48/24 tank here. I have a few tangs in mine but some of the larger ones I don’t recommend since there is limited swimming space.
Great for different views of the tank for sure.
Another thing is flow, depending on where your tank is will dictate some flow. Mine is a walk around basically but only 3 real sides for viewing. I was struggling with some flow to the front of the tank so, added 2 additional MP40’s one to each side pane. For a total of 4 pumps. Now on the two sides that I like to view there is a smallish pump in my sight. Not a huge deal but not my favorite thing in the world either. I had a gyre to provide flow to the front of the tank, but it constantly stops working.

Corey

 

[BlackburnD]

Thanks for the replies. I need to take the time to get a look at some "cube" builds to see how many have done it.