For most all shrimp (plural, one S) keeping, you'll definitely need to understand the hardness of your water. Both kH and gH. API can work for that and it's often fine for beginners. But if you stick around the hobby for long, you'll eventually graduate to a better quality kit. Since you'll be keeping Neocaridina and you just want to determine your tap water parameters, API will be fine. Then you'll have an idea of what your hardness is all the time.
Any TDS meter from $5-$15 will be fine. Just get some calibration solution to go with it. It's really not necessary for Neos but it's nice to have in general in the aquarium hobby overall.
Just stick to a water change schedule no matter your water parameters. Once weekly at 10-15% is usually good. After several months, you might drop that to once every two weeks or so. Just really depends on the tank. But stability is key. I recommend every week, same day, roughly the same time. Make it a habit. Don't rush through it - spread it out over the course of 30min or so. That way you have time to watch everything and enjoy your tank. It almost becomes a cathartic practice.
Any TDS meter from $5-$15 will be fine. Just get some calibration solution to go with it. It's really not necessary for Neos but it's nice to have in general in the aquarium hobby overall.
Just stick to a water change schedule no matter your water parameters. Once weekly at 10-15% is usually good. After several months, you might drop that to once every two weeks or so. Just really depends on the tank. But stability is key. I recommend every week, same day, roughly the same time. Make it a habit. Don't rush through it - spread it out over the course of 30min or so. That way you have time to watch everything and enjoy your tank. It almost becomes a cathartic practice.
