This is what I have from my previous setup:

10 Gallon Tank
50 Watt Tronic Heater
36 Watt JKS (looks just like coralife) PC Fluorescent Lighting
Hagen Natural Plant System CO2
2-3" bed with mixed eco-complete and fine natural gravel
Whisper Power 10 Filter
1 Drift Wood Center Piece
Seachem Flourish (could be excel)

15 Gallon Tall Tank (Not really thinkin of anything fancy for plant wise but let me know if i can grow anything at all! Thanks)
100 (or could be a 150) Watt Ebo Jager Heater
Aqua Clear Mini (used for tanks up to 30 gal)
Aqua Clear surface skimmer (got it free with the filter)
2-3" bed with mixed eco-complete and fine natural gravel
Seachem flourish (could be excel)
15 Watt 18" Fluorescent bulb (Think basically the eclipse system hood but with the filter cut out so I can add in my own filter. I don't like their filtration)

I have all the equipment and I just want to make sure to do it right the first time because before i rushed into things and didnt think things through but I dont research and and now just want your opinions please! I also have a ph regulator to 7.0 by seachem too. I was told not to use it so what do u think?
ill take water tests of my tap water and maybe you can tell me what to do about water. also...does anyone know how to make a DIY auto water top off aas well as a good DIY mixture for CO2 for the hagen system?

Yes, don't use any pH regulator. Test your water first (pH, GH and KH). I prefer using 2L soda bottle instead of hagen canister. I use it with a Hagen ladder in my 10gl and get about 35ppm of CO2. Another good thing is that you can prepare a new batch in another bottle before the other one ran out so you'd get a consistent CO2 level. If you only have 1 Hagen canister, you may sacrifice one day without CO2 every time you change the solution.

The 10-gallon that you have listed there would be easier to start out with. This is due to the dimensions of the tank and the lighting. You have all the equipment to get it going and all that it needs is some water and plants.

As for the 15-gallon, I really don't like the fact that it's tall. It makes it more difficult to light and plant. Also, the lighting that you currently have is really only fit for the lowest light requiring plants.

As for the pH regulator, it's a definitely no. It's easier to find plants/fish that will live in your water rather than alter it to match theirs (unless you want to invest in an RO system).

Great thanks for the info guys! Yeah I used the 10 gallon tank before for a planted tank but I encountered way too many problems with my urge to rush in everything. This time im taking it slow so thanks a lot!

What kind of mixture do you use in your 2 L bottles because I might just use the hagen latter and hook it up to a bottle like you.

Also...I dont want nothing fancy with the 15 and I got the setup (except filter and surface skimmer) for free from my neighbor before he moved. Can you tell me some good really low light plants that would be ok to use under those conditions?

and also...should I use that surface skimmer in the 10 or the 15 gallon tank?

With such low lighting, you might want to give either java moss or java fern a try, since both of them are more forgiving when it comes to lighting.

You can use the surface skimmer with either tanks, but there's really no need for it. Your tanks should be clear on the surface. I'd only use it if you have oily residues or other floating matter on the surface that you're trying to get rid of.

any ideas on a co2 recipe?

My water parameters are:

ph: 7.8
NO2: less than .3
GH: 9
KH: 5

I dont think they look very good to me...this is my house tap water
..any knowledge on this?

I could result to buying water from my lfs (aquatic warehouse in san diego)..they charge 40cents per gallon

please let me know thanks!

Water looks fine and will work, other than the fact that there's nitrite in the tank. I take it the tank is still cycling? Shouldn't be a problem for the plants either, since they'll just use it up.

I've read were plants really dont use nitrites, but do use ammonia and nitrates. Any thoughts?

The only difference between nitrite and nitrate is an extra oxygen, which results in the extra negative charge (from -1 to -2). They're both just composed of nitrogen and oxygen. If a plant uses nitrates, why wouldn't it use nitrite? They're still gonna pull the nitrogen and oxygen apart and use those.

good point, I was just asking since I've read that they dont use nitrites from someone on here.