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Eco-Complete and Flourite are inert substrates, and offer no nutrients for plants to use. They have very low cation exchange capacities and instead, trap a lot of detritus that rots away in the substrate. If your degassed pH is around 7.4 that's fine, what is your pH when you are injecting...

Looking like a good start. Are you planning on running a sump (I see the overflow in the picture). Any plans on CO2 and fertilizing? That's a decent amount of light energy and would likely require CO2 and a decent fertilizing regime to make use of the increased plant growth potential.

I would look into the concentration of CO2 they guarantee in each and make the call if the extra money is worth it or not.

Any substrate can work well for a planted tank. If you want you can still use the plain gravel you have if you like the look of it. If not, you can swap it or you can mix substrates without any issues. For cheap substrate, pool filter sand, black diamond blasting sand, normal aquarium gravel...

Which plant substrate do you currently have?

It should come with directions, I personally front load all my macros (my weekly total amounts) after a water change and then dose my micros 3 x per week to achieve my weekly totals. For an all-in-one like Thrive, I would break it into 3 or 4 doses per week, 1 after a water change and then 2...

50% is preferred, if possible larger 60-70% changes are miles ahead of a 50%. But, again, performing water changes that large isn't always convenient. 50% is a much better option than a 25%, and you'll be more flexible with fertilizer dosing (large water changes can easily "reset" the nutrient...

You're probably fine at 6 hours for now, just keep an eye on how algae progresses (or lack there of) once you get your fertilizing regime in check. I would leave the lighting as is (possible reduce the 24/7 unit's intensity) and then focus on tank maintenance / CO2 levels / getting some macro...

6 hours is a good start, if you are having trouble with algae, drop it down to 5 hours. Consider running the Planted Plus 24/7 at 50% + the Ray 2 until you are ahead of the algae. You are correct, high end of medium light, not quite into the high range just yet. but you've got enough for...

Perfectly fine to run them for 4 hours x 2 photoperiods per day. One claim is that CO2 is quickly depleted in a low tech tank, so having the lights shut off after the first short photoperiod lets CO2 build back up and supply the plants for the next short photoperiod. Another claim is algae...

Optimizing water quality for any size tank is not crazy.... I do it for little 5 gallons...

Depends on the style and materials of the stand. Do you happen to have a picture of it?

Not that I know of as far as I'm aware. What you can do is use a drop checker, they are a ballpark reference tool as well, but if you get it to a lime green, almost yellow, that will be 30-40ppm of CO2 in the water. In tanks without active substrates, we use pH drop to determine CO2 levels. A...

No, KH does not determine how much CO2 is in the water, atmospheric CO2 concentrations or the rate and efficiency of pressurized CO2 system determine how much CO2 is in the water. The KH/pH/CO2 chart you are referring too is not accurate, and is best used as a ballpark reference point only. It...

Clean glass with reflex about 10% of the light on average, I would assume that plastic would reflex a little bit more.

Yep,. bury the roots, and leave the crown where all the leaves come out just at the substrate surface. For the stem plants, you can shove them in as deep as you want and they will sprout new roots.

Just reach in and plant them with your hands or with tools. No science or magic to it. Certain plants are easier to plant than other, and some are not to be planted at all.

I would just go ahead and use black diamond blasting sand, or pool filter sand, or any other inert sand. Fertilize for the plants.

I'm not a breeding expert when it comes to fish, but tetras cannot become pregnant, they are egg laying species. I would first rule out any soft of bloat diseases first.

Cut the tops and replant Leave the healthy bottoms in place Toss the ratty bottoms in the garbage (not outside / down the drain, many hygro's are bad invasive species)

I would go with a larger sized diffuser for 60 gallons, doesn't matter the brand so long as it's quality.

Bigger the diffuer, the more they cost and the more CO2 you can pump through them (typically). For finding a source to fill canisters, post a question or a help wanted ad on social media / local groups for a more localized answer. Dual stage is not required, but they cut down on the risk of...

Probably, but I would skip the chili rasbora and go with ember tetra or rummynose tetra instead (chili's are very tiny and are quite shy). I would also skip the shrimp if going with the loaches, they will likely eat the shrimp.

option 1 can fit in a 10 gallon, but I would recommend a 20 gallon high. Lighting is within the same budget ranges between a 10 gallon and a 20 gallon high, but your plant and fish selection is larger, not to mention more water volume. I would go for CPD's and chili's and shrimp, I've done...

kH or gH?