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Plant beginner issues...

Hi there! I also have a teeny weeny tank! I bought it because the cost of messing up & killing all my plants wouldn't be so bad! And I like the 'white ground' you have but as other members have said - I think plants may find it harder to root. Some people cap their substrate with a light colour sand ... This might work - though as a tank matures the white is more likely to look 'dirty' and harder to maintain I think!

Stocking options are tricky but you could try 8/10 chilli rasbora (chilly raspberries my daughter calls them)
Or if you wanted a single fish you could try a pygmy dwarf puffer, sometimes called a 'pea' puffer. Or a scarlet badis - shy but apparently a great fish if kept alone or sparkling gourami....

Nice options to consider! I love puffers... Chilli Raspberries :lol: look nice as well!
 
So, here is a status update...

EI regime:
- Ordered Seachem Excel for CO2
- Ordered APFUK's Ei Starter Kit

Lighting:
About the tank's original LEDs... what most people say is that it's ok for very low light plants...

I'm trying to find some kind of LED lights that I can somehow attach to the tank's lid to upgrade the tank up to low-moderate light levels... I came across rebel's DIY project with LED strips, but I probably need the LEDs to be submersible/waterproof, as my lid is not completely transparent and I would like to keep the outside of the tank simple clean looking...

Plants:
I'll probably be able to recover at least some of the Java Fern. The Moss Balls are ok... Everything else will be hard to revive.

I'm now looking for low light plants that can sort of replicate my initial set up:
- 1 carpeting plant to eventually cover all the substrate.
- 1 extra plant to go with the Java Fern on the background (but it needs to be short... up to 20cm high)
 
I meant for you to take out that large white pebble and add more tetra complete sub.

So, I did this yesterday... I still have a little bit of water in the tank, as I have no way to remove it completely... the water turned completely brown! I knew there would be a bit of cloudiness, but never expected it to not allow me to see the substrate just ~1cm bellow the surface...

I will have to cover it something... Probably Tetra Active Substrate, which is what they recommend.
 
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Well done for cycling the tank without fish and using ammonia instead. It's the best way to ensure that no new inhabitants suffer from ammonia poisoning when you eventually add them to the tank.

Unfortunately though, your tank is really too small for fish. Your idea of shrimp though is a good one and I would definitely recommend you keep this as a shrimp only tank.
 
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