rash

[calvindo]

dont mean to whine like a little girl, but everytime is stick my arm in the tank for more then 10 minutes, i end up with a rash on the arm. is this normal?

 

[nm reef]

Not for me its not...but I do get a bit of pain whenever the saltwater gets in open wounds....:scared:

 

[calvindo]

i do know that my tank is infected with ick. wonder if thats the reason why i have a rash. yuuuuck! that would be nasty!!! i've been scrubing my arm down everytime, but doesnt seem to help

 

[nm reef]

LOL...sorry but we may need to place you in quarentine and see if hyposalinity works on humans as well as it does on fish!!

 

[nas19320]

It may be possible that you have an allergic reaction to something in the water. You could buy full length gloves if you want to avoid the problem.

 

[calvindo]

thats a good idea! but maybe i should stop sticking my hands in the tank. some how i find it hard to do... always moving things here and there

 

[bang guy]

Gloves. Believe me... gloves!

 

[randy 12]

Do you have to have any red slime? Anytime I have my arm in a tank with red slime, I get a red raised rash. It disappears after a little while. People who are more sensitive to things like poison ivy and poison oak, etc. will get this rash.
Also could be stray voltage.

 

[cprdnick]

I don't suppose it resembles a sunburn does it? I read on this board the other day that someone thought they had gotten a kind of sunburn from their MH system.

 

[calvindo]

Originally posted by waterfaller1

http://www.umm.edu/outdoor/fish_handler.htm

ohh crap!!! i better go see a doctor. my rash is simular to whats described , but theres no slime... the skin bumps up a little and it itches too! thats it... no more messing with the tank for awhile. also going to get some gloves tomorrow.
was gonna take a picture of my wrist, but dont want to gross everyone out.
thanks everyone

 

[007]

I get the same thing if my hand is in the water at all . . . . I am pretty sure that it is a reaction of some sort, but it goes away rather quickly but my arm will be red for a while. I just rinse my arm off in fresh water from the tap, pat it dry and it usually goes away within a couple hours.
It feels like a mild burning sensation, but nothing severe. The redness looks like a mild sunburn. If the redness persists then I take an anti-allergin.
Its pretty common I think.

 

[elfdoctors]

If the rash goes away within a few days every time you do not need an antibiotic. A bacterial infection almost always needs several days incubation before breaking out.
I would also doubt stray voltage for a diffuse rash.
It is much more likely that you are mildly allergic to something in the tank. I know of one woman who works in a LFS who is allergic to one salt mix. She switched to a different salt mix and her rash resolved. There are also corals which release toxins. The suggestion about gloves as well as antihistamines ("anti-allergin") areis also good ideas.
Go ahead and post a picture.
Anyone who is squeamish should stop reading the thread NOW.