The Town of Greece Library is located Northwest of the City of Rochester along the shores of Lake Ontario. We are part of the Monroe County Library System and receive more than 450,000 visits annually. One of our many attractions is a 1,200 gallon freshwater aquarium which is inhabited by South American community fish.
The Greece Public Library's aquarium is 20 feet long, 4 feet high and 2 feet wide. The aquarium consists of 1,200 gallons of heated freshwater, which is inhabited mainly by South American community fish. The fish range from non-aggressive to semi-aggressive dispositions.
The livestock is added gradually, which is very important in the first four to six weeks of operation. A small number of hearty fish are added in the beginning to initiate the beneficial bacteria growth in the filters. When the fish are added, food and waste are added to the aquarium creating an increase in ammonia levels in the water. Bacteria grows combating the ammonia until the level is zero. Once the ammonia is removed, nitrite levels increase. A different beneficial bacteria grows to combat nitrites. Once the nitrites are reduced, levels of nitrates increase. And the same cycle of beneficial bacteria growth occurs until the levels of ammonia, nitrites and nitrates are reduced to zero. It is very important to add the livestock gradually in order to reduce the chances of harmful levels of ammonia, nitrites and nitrates rising too quickly. There will be numerous species of fish which will add color and variety to the aquarium.
The vast majority of the fish will originate from the rivers and lakes of South America. The majority of decorations will also resemble natural aquascapes of South America. The results will be a community aquarium with fish living and interacting very closely as they would in the South American water systems.
