Red Flags - what to watch for?

You mentioned you wanted plants. You will have to decide what kind of planted tank you want - how much care and maintenance you want to do on the plants themselves, what kind of plants, etc. etc. Even in a low-light setup where growth is slower therefore tending to the plants is minimal - the standard fluorescent hoods that come with the tank usually have an inadequate amount of light (watts per gallon).
 
I think will hold off on plants while I'm starting. I want to do them too eventually, but only once I really know what I am doing with my fish. From the suggested articles, I gathered it's much better to do one thing at a time when starting. I already have the fish, so they have to be my priority. thank you so much for the advice though!
 
If you are insterested in plants, it is good to start out with them as a means to cycle your tank. Plants have a hefty nitrogen intake (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates) when they are balanced with good lighting, fertilization, and CO2. There are some great, rather easy DIY things that can cut costs for a planted aquarium, and the plants will make the cycling so much smoother. Maintenance on my 55G planted aquarium involves all of 5 minutes a day to do a 6 gallon water change (old school, with a bucket), 1 minute a day to fertilize with 2cc of Flourish, and about 10 minutes every week when I recharge my CO2 generator (old school 2L booze mix). I just think that a lush planted aquarium adds so much more depth to understanding of chemistry and biological processes, along with adding increased cover and O2 for the fish, that it is unfortunate that it is not as popular as it could be.
 
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