Marine aquarium cautions

[Pan]

Originally Posted by debbaDEEra

I knew that some corals are toxic but I had NO idea that zoos were this toxic. I have never worn gloves and was not told I should by any other the LFS. I do and have had swollen glands on one side of my neck that the doctors are watching and the next step is more tests. Could this be from me handling EVERYTHING in my tank wo gloves? I did months of research before we got the tank but I guess I missed this tutorial!!

"zoo's" are only bad for you if you jump in the lions cage...."zoa's" on the other hand...

[BCOrchidGuy]

For stings etc like jelly fish or frogspawn... anything with nematocysts simply wash the afflicted area in water you made contact in, IE tank water if you got stung in your tank. A sudden change in water chemistry can trigger the nematocysts to sting again and again, so if you are going to pee on yourself you'll have to find another excuse.

Douglas

ps this is what we taught when I was a diving instructor and as far as peeing, we'd tell people it was a nice way to stay warm in our cold water just pee in your wet suit.... which is why I used a dry suit.

[justinl]

not all zoos have palytoxin. I believe they only get them when they are exposed to a diet of a certain diatom. Stings from nematocysts are best dealt with by soaking in vinegar as it deactivates the nematocysts; urine only makes them fire more. If you don't have vinegar, just rinse in saltwater.

To me, the least regarded yet likely most serious of all aquarium dangers is the microscopic kind. people tend to ignore the viral and bacterial nasties like vibrio and mycobacterium (yes, a derivative of tuberculosis). in fact, marine biologists have recently found that viruses and bacteria make up a much larger portion of the ocean's biomasss than what was originally thuoght; possibly greater than half the biomass in the entire ocean! infections from the likes of these have led to aquarists having to get their fingers amputated. NEVER immerse an open cut in your tank unless you're wearing gloves and always rinse in warm soap and water afterwards.

[whatcaneyedo]

I was born with a low tolerance to venom and stings. I've had hundreds of immunity boosting shots so that bee stings won’t kill me anymore. So naturally I keep a Volitan Lionfish. lol Watch out for the spines on top, if you're like me they can kill you. Or if you're lucky it will just hurt like hell for a few days.

I wear Coralife Aqua Gloves whenever I'm messing around in the tank and I always try to keep an eye on where the lion is.

[randallino]

Be careful when working on your tanks and handling other pets, children etc. Last year I gave my parrot a bacterial infection by cross-contamination by putting nori in my tank and hand feeding my bird without washing my hands first . The bird is fine now, but my wallet took and major hit.

[Liv]

Thanks for the info.. I only know of a few things to beware of...I will pay more attention in the future!

[lobsterboy]

great thread Doug

[workn2hard2day]

Yeah, I know wear gloves. It was on the underside of a rock I picked up.

[Whiskey]

Awesome thread. I thought I'd add this bit of scientific information:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XARb8Cmkac


Cheers

[Puff]

Originally Posted by StirCrazy

all zoo's are toxic the more colourfull the more toxic. the Giant sun polyp ( Protopalythoa grandis ) was used by Hawaiian natives to tip spears in for mortal combat.

Make sure you don't wipe your face with a towel you used to clean up when fragging if you get it on your lips, they will go numb and you will taste nothing but copper for hours, if you actualy injext it... who knows.

Steve

well what in the heck!

earlier in the week i was at my gf's and kept spitting up this nasty metallic/salty taste that would not get out of my mouth. it even got me feeling very thirsty. after taking the dogs out i came home and ran to the bathroom and gargled water. nope, didnt work. then i literally got a bar of soap, jammed it in my mouth and swished it around. DIDNT WORK!!! it took all day to get out of my mouth, it drove me crazy.

the only thing i can think of is that i might have wiped my face with the towel that i had placed a piece of liverock on.

learned my lesson.lol

i now have the sudden urge to go and buy a pair of gloves.