Noob to planted tank, need advice

[Tapenoon]

Hey all, I've been keeping freshwater CA/SA tanks for 10+ years now. I've always been interested in planted tanks, some aquascaping i've seen is amazing. However, i've never attempted it and want to, I just moved my stock from a 20g to a 40gb. So in this 20g i want to try a small planted setup mayb with some cardinal tetra or something to start. Basically, i'm looking for a list of everything i'll need to get started, for example: what lighting i need, what substrate, etc. Any help would be much appreciated.
P.S. My longterm goal would be to have this 20g as a starter for some experience. I'd like to have a planted discus tank in the future, maybe a year or 2 from now. Thanks!

 

[Fat Homer]

I would say for lighting T5 is a good starting point, around 6500K - 10,000K bulbs

Co2 is very useful and something which can be required depending on the types of plants you choose

Soil i would just look for anything that is good quality and looks good for your needs, i personally use ADA soil, but there are other cheaper alternatives out there

Last would come ferts, which i recommend seachems flourish excel and flourish complete supplement

Oh, as a side note, if you go the Co2 route, i would also recommend adding a drop checker as well


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