Planting an already established 10 gallon

[wendamus]

I would like to start planting a 10 gallon. I don't know if I want to go high or low tech -- probably low, sounds less expensive, but I'd love to see pros/cons. I already have two plants, I dunno what they are, one has long, light green leaves, a bit like a spider plant, the other is more fern-looking, with small oval dark green leaves all up and down the stems. Is there a good place to look at pics to identify them? Both of them seem to be struggling. I have a bubbler and a carbon based filter, but no substrate, they're just kinda shoved down into the gravel.

I have several questions.

* How could I add a sandy substrate without emptying the whole tank, and possibly causing a big cycle?
* I have read some things about C02, but I'm not sure I totally get it, why can't they just get CO2 out of the water since I'm just bubbling regular air through?
* If I have to add yeast or something, will that muck up my water, or hurt my fish?
* Same thing with fertilizers -- how do I add them without mucking up the tank?

If I have to empty my tank to add substrates, is there anything I can do to minimize the impact to my fish?

Thanks so much!

 

[inkyjenn]

1) its easier to empty the tank of inhabitants, then add the sand. you might still see the tank do a mini cycle, but if your tank is fully cycled, the filters should be able to handle the load. in all honesty, if you dont have to, dont do it. you can grow plants just fine in regular gravel. you may not be able to rival takashi amano, but you can get good growth going pretty low tech
2) in a 10 gallon, CO2 is overkill. i have a 10 gallon planted. just recently started adding flourish excel for carbon. plants are growing like weeds. lighting is key though. you need about 2 watts of light per gallon. ive had great luck using compact flourescent bulbs from walmart. they are in the fish section and they dont need a fancy hood. they fit right into an incandescent socket.
3) you dont add yeast to your water. the yeast goes into a diy CO2 system. while the yeast grow and break down their food, they produce CO2
4) the fertilizers you want are not solid. there are solid tabs you can use, which might not be a bad idea, but they push right into your substrate. depending on the plants you want to grow, liquid ferts arent a bad idea either, especially if you arent using a good substrate like laterite or fluorite. seachem makes great liquid ferts you can use in a planted tank. they smell awful, but work amazingly well. im dosing tiny amounts in my ten (i have cherry shrimp) and the plants are still thriving

your fish wont be bothered by an hour or two in a tub. if it really bugs you, add an airstone

 

[Ozymandias]

may i ask what size is you gravel most of the time plants will be fine with it as long as isn't not to big. so there is a good chance you wont need to replace it.

Basically CO2 is added (more than thay can get normally or with a bubbleer) to promote plant growth usually along with higher light. it also helps with preventing algae in high light tanks. but with high light there is a defiant need to keep up on firtalizing you're tank.

low tech is much easier and does not require CO2 because there isn't the issue with lighting and algae. basically if you new to this go low tech. and yess with the bubbler on it will promote atmospherics CO2 exchange.

 

[RockysDad]

Start with lighting. What do you have now? CF screw in will work or upgrade to CF or a 20" NO bulb.

The other issue is your substrate, ie. gravel. Actually, most gravel will work as long as its not too big. Adding plain aquarium gravel now won't cause problems as long as you wash it first.

Start off with some Java ferns, Java moss and Anubias along with some big drift wood and rocks. Tie them to these with some thread and enjoy.

Don't worry about ferts and CO2 etc. These can come later once you get yourself familiar with planted tanks.