Hands off. Or out... A good reef policy because...

[Sk8r]

Look at it this way. Corals have gotten along with each other for millions of years, with all the stuff that grows and crawls.

Coral survives being sat upon by crabs, crawled over by worms, put in days of darkness from storms, tail-swatted by fish, and sloshed by pretty strong waves. It survives algaes, clams, sponges, and all sorts of adjacent growth. It survives ammonia better than fish can.

It does have pests: we assume you took care of those by dipping, and in the case of soft coral, especially zoas, not only dipping but holding for magnifying-glass inspection in a week's qt in case eggs (unaffected by the dip) give you nudibranchs.

The best intervention in your tank does not involve fingers, once your coral is set in place. THe best intervention involves test kits which delicately sip a bit of water and advise you to supply the conditions that favor your corals. Water condition is everything. You can also use water flowing through GFO to remove pest algae, and you can alter your chemistry by the judicious, test-accompanied, use of calcium, alkalinity buffer, and magnesium, which stony corals and clams use so fast water changes can't keep up.

In general, your hands bring body oils, or worse, the last soap, deodorant, hand cream, suntan lotion, or pet dander you ran into, not mentioning engine oil, furniture polish, dish soap, Windex, and other real untidy things you may work with.

Do not use, in your tank, any toothbrush or sponge or gloves labeled as 'antimicrobial.' Know what the bacteria protecting your tank are? Microbes. If these have a microbe-killer on them, they're not good.

If you MUST reach in, wear 'exam gloves' available, yes, in large men's sizes as well as women's, via internet or your local pharmacy.

 

[billdogg]

Well stated.

It has long been my belief that other than lack of patience, hands in the tank are the biggest issue people have when their tanks just won't flourish and/or corals just won't open up like they can.

In addition to all the contaminates that you can unwittingly bring to the tank, constantly moving things around "because they just aren't happy" is a big NO-NO. Corals are amazingly adaptable creatures and if you put them in a place in your tank that can meet their general requirements for lighting and flow, they WILL adapt and thrive, IF you let them. Moving them after just a few short days deprives them of that chance to adapt. Moving them again a few days later because they still aren't happy just sets them that much further back.

 

[gone fishin]

I agree 100% :thumbsup:

 

[BigEZ77]

I have these gloves from my lfs that go right up to the shoulders... Pain to glue frags down with those on

 

[billdogg]

I have those gloves too. Bought them after I ended up in the Urgent Care with Palytoxin blisters on my arm. I only use them for major jobs because they just don't have enough tactile feel to them. Disposable non-latex powder free gloves are available at a very low cost for frag gluing.

 

[snesbit01]

very good write up as always. i never thought about wearing gloves. i guess its time to invest in some.

 

[BigEZ77]

I have those gloves too. Bought them after I ended up in the Urgent Care with Palytoxin blisters on my arm. I only use them for major jobs because they just don't have enough tactile feel to them. Disposable non-latex powder free gloves are available at a very low cost for frag gluing.

Are there any that go high up the arm?

 

[Mark9]

I generally have my arm in my DT 6 days out of 7.
A quick RO wash before, and in she goes.
Between moving corals, fragging, flipping snails, cleaning and a thousand other things, I don't think twice about putting my arm in.
Just be smart about it and it shouldn't be an issue going "gloveless".

 

[kmbyrnes]

Once a week for maintenance. Good wash and rinse, then latex disposables.
The gloves are cheap and keep the super glue off my fingers!

 

[Ron Reefman]

I generally have my arm in my DT 6 days out of 7.
A quick RO wash before, and in she goes.
Between moving corals, fragging, flipping snails, cleaning and a thousand other things, I don't think twice about putting my arm in.
Just be smart about it and it shouldn't be an issue going "gloveless".

+1
My tanks are quite mature and I'm always fragging or having to move coral around. I'm not in 6 days out of 7, but more like once every 2 to 4 days. If you are careful about having clean hands, I don't see the issue. My tanks are a hobby and I enjoy working in them. I think this kind of concern is a bit over the top... like worrying about whether my SG is 1.025 or 1.026??? There are too many important issues to consider, this one is insignificant IMHO.

 

[C.Eymann]

I'm paranoid about contamination, in tank maintenance is done one time a week anything else can wait. No cleaners handled that day, no wrenching on cars, no deodorant. Hot, soap less shower right before working in the tank, followed by another with soap afterwards.

Need to invest in some corallife arm length gloves, ordered some from Tunze but they were definitely a one time use sort of deal.

Pretty much everytime after working in my tank I develop what looks like mosquito bites on my arms. Thoughts? Rarely get them when scuba diving.

 

[billdogg]

Are there any that go high up the arm?

All the major online places sell them. Shoulder length are like $15.

 

[Sk8r]

The exam gloves are cheap throwaways available at your drugstore. I use them for hand-mixing stuff in the kitchen, under garden gloves so I don't get dirt under my fingernails, and in the reef tank when there is a real need. Yes, they're short. Just rubber-band the wrist if you have a sore on your hand, and that also saves you from infection and coral sensitivity---which can be no joke.

If discardable latex skintight gloves are good enough for brain surgeons, they will let you delicately place and secure frags.