Anyone else get itchy palms when working in their tank?

[LyzzaRyzz]

Title says it all!
Everytime I work in my tanks, my palms get super itchy!!

[Waters]

Have to say that is the first time I have ever seen that posted ....my guess would be that you are allergic to something in the water?

[LyzzaRyzz]

I have no idea! I drink the stuff, shower in it, but something in my tanks makes me itch! It's so frustrating!! I have no idea..so infighter someone else might have the same problem, and know what it is!

[Corridor]

i Think it has to due with rejuvenating the oils in your skin because for one of my tanks i had this OCD with it and after sticking my hands in there and drying them off a whole lot they got rather irritated

[lochaber]

Is it just your palms? or any part of your skin that is exposed to tank water?
(or are your palms the only part that get wet?)

It seems a bit unusual that just the palms would be affected. In my experience, the skin covering the palms tends to be a bit more resistant to irritants then other areas of skin.

What critters/plants/substrate do you keep in your tank?

And do you regularly add any ferts or anything?

[chunkychun]

is your palm red or your fingers swollen? do you have history of allergies or arthritis or liver problems? is it on both hands or just the one you put in the tank?

[Seattle_Aquarist]

Originally Posted by LyzzaRyzz

Title says it all!
Everytime I work in my tanks, my palms get super itchy!!

Hi LyzzaRyzz,

Do you dose your tank with Excel or other Glutaraldehyde based carbon molecule source?

[LyzzaRyzz]

I dose with flourish comprehensive supplement..it's my palms up to my first knuckle...but my whole arm going in the tank, so I don't see why it's just my palms. I don't have any serious allergies, pets, dust, bees...

[LyzzaRyzz]

I have guppies, cherry barbs, BN pleco, RN pleco, a betta, some snails...my tanks are planted, but I haven't heard of any of the plants I have causing itchiness.

[bgallodoro24]

Hey guys my arms itch after being in my fishroom working in tanks. Nothing unbearable, but it does itch. I dont put anything in the water except.....water.

[LyzzaRyzz]

Yeah! It's not like poison ivy, or anything, but like dry skin kinda. But deeper.

[Diana]

Blood worms can cause an itchy reaction. The worst I have heard about is someone feeding freeze dried bloodworms, then sort of just dusting off their hands, then touching their eye. Had to go to the doctor.

To test this put some blood worms in a jar of water, make it pretty concentrated, and stick your hand in it.

If you feed blood worms in any form (frozen, freeze dried or as a component in a blended food) STOP.

Wear gloves until you have done several very thorough cleanings, vacuum the substrate the best you can, filter cleanings... and gotten rid of the blood worm remnants.
Once you are sure the tank is clean, try it bare handed again.
If the problem does not come back, it might have been the blood worms.


If this is not the answer, then in turn eliminate one at a time everything else you use in the tank. (put some of each item, one at a time, in a jar of water and stick your hand in)
Protein based things can cause allergies, other things can be irritants. Even if you do not normally react to much there seems to be something in the aquarium. By isolating each item in a separate jar you will highly likely figure out what is the problem and then you can eliminate it from the tank.

[R.sok]

I never get itchy palms working in my tank, Only thing I notice is my skin gets dry but I wash my hands right after. I dose comprehensive

I DO however get an itchy reaction feeding my betta freeze dried worms, if I get any smell of it my eyes also start to water & for that sole reason I have switched to feeding frozen blood worms

[Sethjohnson30]

I feed bloodworms and I get itchy palms when working in the tank. But I don't think they are related. My palms always get itchy when they've been in the water long after they've pruned up. This happens to me in hot tubs,swimming pools,aquariums, any time my hands are in the water for a long period of time.this does not happen to me if I just reach in to do some thing quick like replanting a stem that floated up.

[Diana]

R.sok, that sounds like you really are sensitive to blood worms. I would stop feeding blood worms. Dry hands may be related to the minerals in the water. Washing your hands thoroughly after having them in the tank would help there.

Sethjohnson30, that seems not to be related to blood worms. Especially if it happens in all sorts of other water like swimming pools and other non-aquarium water.