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What a relief those red wines are ok as they are truly gorgeous, I am sooooo jealous! Sorry you lost the BB and golden bee but just look on the bright side that you spotted the problem quick enough to save the best ones, and the crystals are doing well.Hopefully the new equipment will arrive promptly. I feel your pain about cooking the shrimps, its not good? It is usually a bit hit and miss when setting up a new tank as to what plants survive and what don't, I find anyway, but I am no horticultural expert by any stretch of the imagination. My newly re-setup shrimp tank had a large bunch of Java fern in it but that was dying off (I removed it this morning) and usually that stuff is really tough to kill? The floating weed as well has lots of yellow dying bits but after a bit more time it will all settle/establish I am sure/hoping! Just give it a bit more time. At least you are getting the tank ready in plenty of time if you don't plan to get the shrimp until October. I would have thought you would be fine with the moss as well as you are using soil substrate, unless the water is getting too warm for it. I don't know about the substrate but that must be causing the TDS to rocket as there isn't anything else I cab see that would do that? The substrate I used for the Betta had to be water changed every 2 or 3 days for 2 weeks to clear the mineral build up when first used. Simon

Just want update you on my setup. My new tank isn't going well, my tds has gone up over 380, so I will have to do more water change, my Christmas tree moss died in a few days, so it will to spend more work on this. On my present tank, my water cooler broke, so now i'm waiting for delivery for a new power supply, my blue bolt and golden shrimp died due to the hot weather, right now I using a temporary power that I got from work. My 3 crs are doing well, the other 9 or more babies are also doing well, the mother is still carrying the third batch eggs. Here is a photo of my wine red

The two most used tools I use in this hobby is the TDS meter and the pH meter. If you don't already have a pH meter, i highly suggest getting one. I have done away with the vials and reagents. Now it's as easy as dipping the pH meter into the tank for an accurate pH reading.

Eh, it's not too bad. pH will drop naturally as the tank matures and the driftwood keep releasing humic acid. Drop in a few more IAL/Cattapa leaves. The tannins released will give the tank a natural Betta biotope look, as well as being antibacterial for any injuries.

Test Kit wise i use JBL test kit that tests PH, NH4, N03, N02, dKH, i got it from maidenhead aquatics and it cost about £40 per kit and they also do a bigger one that includes things like Iron (FE) and P04 among others but its about £25 more and i thought why bother spending the money on that when i dont need it. the Kit lasts me at 2 tests a week about 5 months. Also available on amazon for a few pence more:- https://www.amazon.co.uk/JBL-Aquarium-Water-Analysis-Combi/dp/B00CPULHDM/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=JBL+test+kit&qid=1559755900&s=computers&sr=8-1 i use the TDS pen from the zero water jug and P04 and dGH test kits i again got from amazon for about £8.50 per set. P04 kit is 100ml & hasn't run out yest so i cant tell you how long it lasts but its been about 6 months and just under half full. dGH kit is 10ml and really depends on your conditions how long it lasts because its not a set amount each time its 1 drop per degree, but only lasted me about 3 months per bottle. i haven't had to deal with medicines yet so i cant comment on those

to be honest I've had cold water tanks before and with the small tank when i got it in October, i just set up i only waited a day to add fish even with brand new everything and ALL the fish survived. I could add Tyrone my original male to the tank as he has now done his job creating my first offspring that some actually are redder than their parents and im pretty sure their mostly female so he could technically be seen as a 'sacrificial' fish. i could then add any of his children that i dont want to the tank as the tank develops. Then when im ready to add shrimp I'll switch the fish over and move the small tank to its desired destination. its just about timing when to do that... i could do it now i suppose being as the tank has been going for 3 days at full capacity. new (large) tank wise im thinking of taking out maybe 2 liters of water because the floating plants are going yellow so i think there is a light problem? the plants are about 50mm (2 inches) away from the LED's