[flight50]

I would recommend doing a fishless cycle and spare the neon first off. Secondly there really is no such thing a nutrient rich gravel. All gravel is inert. I would visit the Substrate section for there is a great sticky that will give you the run down on substrates. Choose the best fit for your budget.

The driftwood can be iffy. Locally found will definitely have to be cured, cleaned, possibly soaked for weeks to water log it. For a 10g, you can visit a lfs or shop online to get a decent piece. You can probably skip alot of the prep type work to make it tank ready when found at a fish related place.

Be careful with upgrading your lights. If the lights are too strong, its highly advised to run co2. Whether your up for it or not, high or even sometimes medium lighting without co2 will be inviting algae issues.

 

[flight50]

The uniform color tells you that it has finished drying. That usually means all tannin is gone. A simple overnight soak in bleach water will sanitize it to kill any oil, pesticide, fungus or bugs. Let it dry and it is good to go.

Depending on the wood, all tannins may not completely leech out. If the water is more on the acidic side, things will always remain in a state of being dissolving things. I have some driftwood that I purchased from an online aquarium place that is now 13 years old and I still get a slight yellow tint to my water. It has lessened over the years but its still there. I actually like it and its more natural.

As far as the bleaching, the wood would need to be thoroughly dried for sure. To be on the safe side, most people do the bleach soak for 24hr, change the water with fresh water and do a soak in prime for 24 hrs or longer. Prime will neutralize any remaining bleach if you plan to use the driftwood right away. Then you will be good to go.