How many fish are too many?

How big of a tank, how big of a skimmer, & how big of a fuge & sump?

 

Alot of people will say you are crazy but I love a ton of fish. I say go for it, & be ready to add a second skimmer or ramp up the water changes.

I would be worried about the trigger with the smaller fish but if you buy one when it is very small & keep it fed well it should be ok.

The tangs might take offense to the butterfly, might watch him & be ready to add some mirrors or tape pics of the fish to the outside of the tank (trick I learned on last tank tour from Bhoward)

 

Do you test for nitrates? That is usually a pretty good indicator of how many fish should be kept in your tank. Considering you have a nitrate reactor, I assume it is pretty close to zero if not zero. The only other consideration is swimming room for the fish.

 

Make sure you quarantine! You're going to have to get a few tanks running just for that. Good luck, I also like a ton of fish to watch.

 

place a mirror outside of the aquarium so the established aggressive fish can see itself. This fish will then be preoccupied with its own reflection, giving the new fish time to establish its territory without excessive hassle and hostility.

Since aggressive fish need their own territories to "guard," be sure that your aquarium contains many hiding places that can serve as individual territories. If space permits, you can add large amounts of live rock to your aquarium, then carefully arrange it to create lots of caves and hiding spaces. If you already have live rock in your aquarium, rearrange it. This will effectively eliminate established territories and give all fish an equal opportunity to establish new territories.

Aggressive fish will also fight for dominance over food. Because of this, it's a good idea to provide more than one food source in your aquarium. Tangs, for example, will benefit from a vegi clip with dried seaweed at both ends of the aquarium.