Your hands and your reef tank.

[Gumbies R Us]

So if you are like me your hands are probably cut up or dirty often (mine are usually cut up because of climbing haha). I am wondering what do you do to get around this? Do I just need those big rubber gloves, or just wash my hands and barehand my tank haha? Just want to hear what everyone says!

 

[MoshJosh]

EVERYONE (except me) should wear those big rubber (or other material) gloves when working in marine/reef aquariums. Gloves should be long enough so that you can fully reach into the tank without water coming over the top. Failure to do so can lead to all kinds of things like being stung (with possible allergic reactions), being bitten, and getting an infection (likely bacterial). Also, chemicals and oils from your hands may be harmful to your inhabitants. . . Not saying that's what I do but still. . .

 

[Jesse Sunday]

So if you are like me your hands are probably cut up or dirty often (mine are usually cut up because of climbing haha). I am wondering what do you do to get around this? Do I just need those big rubber gloves, or just wash my hands and barehand my tank haha? Just want to hear what everyone says!

Ha! I thought this was gonna be a picture challenge or something! ;)

I typically just rinse (no soap) my hands and arms before I go into my tank.

After, I wash with soap if I'm done in the tank for a while.

I do like nitrile gloves for when I'm moving corals around though.

 

[GoAskAlice]

EVERYONE (except me) should wear those big rubber (or other material) gloves when working in marine/reef aquariums. Gloves should be long enough so that you can fully reach into the tank without water coming over the top. Failure to do so can lead to all kinds of things like being stung (with possible allergic reactions), being bitten, and getting an infection (likely bacterial). Also, chemicals and oils from your hands may be harmful to your inhabitants. . . Not saying that's what I do but still. . .

You're right, but I can't do anything with those big waterproof gloves designed for working in an aquarium. I'm like a giant lobster trying to manually remove hair algae. But since my hands are sensitive to the saltwater I wear disposable gloves and wrap self adhesive medical bandage around the wrists to keep water out long enough to do what I need to do.

 

[Thalasstronaut]

You're right, but I can't do anything with those big waterproof gloves designed for working in an aquarium. I'm like a giant lobster trying to manually remove hair algae. But since my hands are sensitive to the saltwater I wear disposable gloves and wrap self adhesive medical bandage around the wrists to keep water out long enough to do what I need to do.

They make disposable versions that are much thinner than the thick pvc ones. I haven’t tried them, but that might be your huckleberry. Usually sold by farm suppliers for reaching into a cow’s cookie jar, for whatever you might need to do in there, I guess.

 

[19Mateo83]

I use these high cuff gloves.
https://a.co/d/dQSuza4

 

[Dragen Fiend]

Honestly I still do bare hands. Sometimes I regret it because I do have some open cuts that sting when I put my hands in the tank. Anytime I'm dealing with specific corals I choose gloves or not. I have the rubber long ones that go up to my forearm.

 

[BryanM]

So if you are like me your hands are probably cut up or dirty often (mine are usually cut up because of climbing haha). I am wondering what do you do to get around this? Do I just need those big rubber gloves, or just wash my hands and barehand my tank haha? Just want to hear what everyone says!

wash and bare arms here.

 

[exnisstech]

The long thick gloves usually if I'm picking up rocks because those dang vermatid shells are pointy. Mostly bare handed. I never use lotion but sometimes I wash before depending on what I've been doing. I wash with dawn dish soap afterwards.

 

[Jesse Sunday]

I use these high cuff gloves.
https://a.co/d/dQSuza4

Ohhhh, sweet! My friends have made fun of me for wearing the black nitrile gloves... (saying I'm Dexter, etc.) Maybe the pink ones will keep them from poking fun at me. ;)

 

[shakacuz]

i personally do bare hands, but nitrile gloves with a rubber band to stop or reduce water from going inside has worked well for me. the larger, arm-length rubber gloves although very protecting, make it difficult to maneuver or be precise once inside the tank.

i'm also a climber, so i tend to wait until my cuts/scratches at least scab up before doing anything inside the tank- or just use the nitrile gloves w/ rubber bands.

 

[Hans-Werner]

If your skin is reacting to the saltwater of your reef tank the root cause may actually be in and on your skin and not in the water.

The cause of your reaction may not be some toxins in the water but bacteria of your skin microbiome reacting to the alkalinic and salty saltwater of the tank. My suspect goes to Staphyloccoccus aureus which also is involved in atopic dermatitis which may be similar.

Claude Schuhmacher recommended washing with vinegar after contact with saltwater. I myself used a homegrown kefir that I grow vegan on 1/2 liter soja drink with a table spoon of oat flakes for 48 hours before drinking or skin application and starting a new batch with material from sieving of the old batch. I tried to strengthen the skin microbiome in this way and got completely rid of problems. Improvement developed gradually for 1/2 to 1 year. Mild acidic washing brings some immediate relief.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

If your skin is reacting to the saltwater of your reef tank the root cause may actually be in and on your skin and not in the water.

The cause of your reaction may not be some toxins in the water but bacteria of your skin microbiome reacting to the alkalinic and salty saltwater of the tank. My suspect goes to Staphyloccoccus aureus which also is involved in atopic dermatitis which may be similar.

Claude Schuhmacher recommended washing with vinegar after contact with saltwater. I myself used a homegrown kefir that I grow vegan on 1/2 liter soja drink with a table spoon of oat flakes for 48 hours before drinking or skin application and starting a new batch with material from sieving of the old batch. I tried to strengthen the skin microbiome in this way and got completely rid of problems. Improvement developed gradually for 1/2 to 1 year. Mild acidic washing brings some immediate relief.

Thanks for providing this information! I haven't had a reaction yet to my tank water, it was more so me being cautious since my hands have a lot of cuts on them

 

[Gumbies R Us]

i personally do bare hands, but nitrile gloves with a rubber band to stop or reduce water from going inside has worked well for me. the larger, arm-length rubber gloves although very protecting, make it difficult to maneuver or be precise once inside the tank.

i'm also a climber, so i tend to wait until my cuts/scratches at least scab up before doing anything inside the tank- or just use the nitrile gloves w/ rubber bands.

We have gloves, its just the latex gloves that get the powdery stuff everywhere. I'll have to look into some nitrile gloves! Normally when my cuts start to scab I feel fine, but problem is I can't go a week without cutting my hand or getting some form of a scrape, haha

 

[ColorMeGone]

Bare hands for me.

 

[Hans-Werner]

Thanks for providing this information! I haven't had a reaction yet to my tank water, it was more so me being cautious since my hands have a lot of cuts on them

Sometimes problems occur after decades. It may be a very slow development in skin microbiome to worse conditions and a slightly faster development to better conditions after application of the right cure.

 

[shakacuz]

We have gloves, its just the latex gloves that get the powdery stuff everywhere. I'll have to look into some nitrile gloves! Normally when my cuts start to scab I feel fine, but problem is I can't go a week without cutting my hand or getting some form of a scrape, haha

yeah definitely look for non-powdered/treated gloves. nitrile gloves have worked well whenever i don't go barehanded.

 

[Reign1]

+1 on the rinse my hands/arms prior to going in to get some oils off of me. When glueing/moving rocks I use nitrile gloves ... I have been thinking about the long gloves but if i dont like using nitriles to do things I think I would hate those aquarium gloves although they may not be long enough in a 30" tank as I sometimes get almost to my armpits getting in there.

 

[JayM]

I once saw a guy at the LFS put on nitrile gloves paired with those armpit length plastic gloves that you'd see a veterinarian wear when they put their arm in a cow's nether region.

 

[Dburr1014]

I swim in the ocean with just a bathing suit on, no gloves. :)

I do have gloves that go to my arm pits, hardly ever use them.
I have rubber gloves I use when I'm fragging.
Mostly, I wash up then go in. Sometimes, if see something amiss, I dive right in.