New Planted Tank

[JackedGeorge]

I'm currently in the process of cycling a 35L (~8gal) tropical tank, and I was looking for advice on a couple of things.

Firstly, is it ok to put plants in before I finish cycling? I'm currently around halfway through the nitrite peak. The plants i'm looking at are a collection from Java-Plants.com, which are:

Echinodorus Tennellus
Hygrophilia Polysperma
Red Ludwigia
Ambulia Aquatica
Bacopa Monniera
and Dwarf Hairgrass, I don't know what the scientific name is for that one.

The other thing is, do I need CO2 injection? My tank is pretty low-light (14W in 35L, roughly 1.8WPG, but with smaller tanks I understand that the rule is limited).

I'd prefer not to spend any more money if I could, I am a poor, poor student already!

Hi, by the way. My name is Jack.

So... thanks,

Jack

 

[montyII]

Welcome to the forum, Jack.

Firstly, is it ok to put plants in before I finish cycling?

I'm pretty sure that's OK.

The other thing is, do I need CO2 injection? My tank is pretty low-light

You don't necessarily need it, but your plants may not grow that well witout a carbon source. You could use Flourish Excel for carbon, it's fine for low light tanks. It is a little pricey but probably not too bad for a 35L tank. I use it and it costs me AU$11 per month for a 160L tank.

Or you could build a DIY CO2 kit. Doesn't cost much to build, nor maintain.