Dangers Of Marine Keeping?

[houndour]

I'm not so good with things like snails and shrimps and can't bare to put my hand in my FW tanks when there are snails I can see

I was wondering how much hands in water there is with a marine tank. I take it would be less than with a FW planted and plants grow fast and need pruning often...

I apologise for not doing my research on corals etc yet but I read the pinned topic above about the guy getting stung and I guess this is one of my fears of the marine world (and swimming in the sea).

Are there ways of handling things that sting (like gloves?!)?! I've read that you can't touch coral and your supposed to handle it at the base or by the rock its attached to. What happens if you touch coral? Is it that it's bad for the coral, or bad for you?

Sorry for my naivety...its a huge learning curve

 

[parker313]

It depends. You can do a fish only or fish only with live rock setup and those would minimize your contact with the water, but regardless, you're gonna have to dig in sometimes. I have a reef setup, so most of the times my hands are in the water, it has to do with rearranging the coral.

 

[Opcn]

if you are afraid get long gloves. There are some nasty things in the sea, I set up my live rock and inbetween my fingers and the sides of my hand (basicaly anywere with thin skin that touched the rock) itched like none other for about 6 hours, no clue why. As for corals so long as your skin is unbroken you are fine, with the exception of firecorals wich burn but are not fatal.

 

[steelhealr]

Hi...I did this page in my 24G startup thread...hope this helps:

Dangers of Owning a Nano Reef (or Why the @#$#%^ is My Finger Swelling)

We've all gone down to the beach or ocean at one point in our lives and either stepped on something, brushed against something or went running out of the water after seeing something skitter by our foot in the water. Well, know we've brought a piece of the ocean home. When we put our limbs in the tank, we are now in THEIR environment. What are some of the hidden dangers now lurking behind the glass in our living rooms?

Stings/Nematocysts

Many invertebrates have developed methods of defending themselves from attack or encroachment or even to get food by ejecting nematocysts, small capsules that can inflict a nasty sting. These animals are in a class called Cnidarians...jellyfish, anemones, etc. Reactions can include stings, rashes or the extreme of anaphylaxix.

Envenomation/Bites

Certain fish contain poison in their bites or in specially designed spikes in their dorsal fines. The most classic example is the lionfish. There is also a poison fang blenny. Again, reactions can vary from a mild sting to anaphylactic shock.

Ingestion of Toxins

Many soft corals secrete a slime layer, which, if not washed off the hands and ingested of if enters a cut, can cause extreme illness. Zoanthids are one in particular. If handling them or 'fragging' them (breaking it into smaller pieces), make sure to wear gloves and wash your hands afterward.

Lacerations

Razor sharp dorsal fins near the caudal fin can cause nasty cuts. Surgeonfish and some tangs are good examples. Mantis shrimp can split your fingertip if not handled carefully. Their chelae can smash thru shells and in some cases, aquarium walls. Some people have had bones broken.

Splinters/Bristles

Not too difficult to figure out. Bristle worms, if grasped or if LR is handled indiscriminatly, can have their small bristles break off in finger tips and cause extreme pain. Handle with care.

The most important thing to remember is that any injury occurring in a marine environment can lead to infection...and the bacteria can be quite different from the regular bacteria we are used to in our normal lives. These wounds can also take MUCH longer to heal. Use some smarts when sticking the hand in the aquarium:

1) Use gloves if possible if you have livestock that requires it or you are going to handle LR
2) Avoid sticking digits into blind areas
3) Don't buy livestock that you have no experience with if they are dangerous or poisonous and certainly don't stock them if you have small children in the house
4) Wash your hands after handling marine animals and invertebrates
5)Avoid doing tank maintenance if you have open wounds on your arms or hands
6) Siphon carefully if your tank contains potentially toxic livestock....start the siphon with a pump or by filling the tubing first
6) If you see any signs of infection...swelling, redness, pain, heat, chills, fever, etc..don't wait...get to the ER right away. Here are links to 2 threads that will help persuade you from 'toughing it out'.

http/www.nano-reef.com/forums/showthread...us&pagenumber=1

http/www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthre...finger+hospital

 

[houndour]

wow, I felt really stupid about mentioning gloves but I'm glad I asked now.


steelhair, thanks for all that info, very useful.


I have no intention of getting any poisonous fish, but I didn't realise that so many other things were a danger.

That thumb in the second post was disgusting. Scarey stuff really. But I'm not put off. The thought of wearing gloves makes it all more bearable


The first link did not work, steelhair.

 

[steelhealr]

The link:

http/www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...omething+bit+me

PS...I wear gloves when handling my corals. SH
SH

 

[Navarre]

Just to add to this thread.. the less time spent having your hands in a marine tank the better it will be. My leather mushroom will partially close up even though its across the other end of a 7ft taqnk when i have my arms in the tank!

I know its impossible to do maintenance without getting wet but try and keep this to a minimum if possible. Cleanup crew are probably one of the most overlooked yet most important additions. I know some wont like em but they arelly are worth their weight in gold.

 

[houndour]

Thanks Navarre.

I'm probably going to go for a 48 x 24 x 24 (120 US gallons) tank. Do you think this would be suitable for a beginner?

What kind of cleanup crew would I need for a tank this size?

As for gloves, are we talking just simple marigolds?

 

[Navarre]

My last tank was 48x24x24 (100 gallonsUK gallons)

I think this is an excellant size for a beginner. the only problem you will face is the cost.. liverock (50kg) and cleanup crew.. 100 of em (1 cleanup crew per gallon)

Dont worry about the cleanup crew.. get as many as you acn afford to start with and then simply purchase a cleanup crew each time you visit the shops. in no time at all you will be up to full strength and it wont break the bank balance.

 

[Opcn]

Internet is a good optio for cleanup crew, useually you can get quantity discounts and they are generallly hardy critters

 

[Navarre]

As you live in the UK, i can give you a couple of places that do great deals in cleanup crew. When you are in a position to buy simply PM me and i will send you the addresses.

 

[houndour]

Thanks guys. 100 clean up crew! Thats incredible. Yes, I did see "combination packs" of cleanup crew just like you get plant combis!!

So am I looking to spend £600 on LR?

I have lots of time to save up anyway.

What size Sump would I need? Do you add the volume in the sump to the volume in the tank to calculate stocking?

 

[Navarre]

GEt as much liverock as you can afford. You should be aiming for 50kg but thisis a large expense so what many do is to buy about half of this and then support it with reefbones (dead liverock) which is about half the price. Should you take this route however be sure to cycle the tank first as reefbones need cycling.

You could opt for buying the entire rock as uncured and this will save you a great deal also. It will take a few weeks to cycle it of course but as the tank is new this can be easily done.

As for the sump. Mine was 3ftx15x18 but i recomend you get anything you can fit under the tank.

 

[Tiggs]

houndour,

i got SW to get out of planted and i can assure you there is A LOT less time with hands in the water in a reef compared to a proper planted tank.

even so i got a giant box of medical gloves (non powdered) and never touch anything in the tank without them on.


as for clean up...you can buy the odd one every now and then but that works out VERY expensive over time with some shops charging 4X the price of a bulk buy of the net. I get all my clean up of the net in orders of 20+ a time and its pretty cheap that way.

 

[RoyalGrammaPrincessHannah]

I'm not so good with things like snails and shrimps and can't bare to put my hand in my FW tanks when there are snails I can see. - Well, you will probably end up wanting snails, if trying to avoid them is what you're getting at, scrubbing the walls for brown algae for a month{OR MORE} gets annoying and snails help.

I was wondering how much hands in water there is with a marine tank. I take it would be less than with a FW planted and plants grow fast and need pruning often... - You have to place corals, live rock, scrub walls, maybe move stuff around, maybe move powerheads around, you decide.

I apologise for not doing my research on corals etc yet but I read the pinned topic above about the guy getting stung and I guess this is one of my fears of the marine world (and swimming in the sea).- I understand about not researching, sometimes with specific Q's its easier to just ask! Being stung by corals isnt unheard of, but not too common. A lot of their tentacles arent even out during the day but you prolly wont feel it much anyway, even condylactis anemones dont hurt, theyre just sticky. But you will prolly be touching some wierd feeling things.

Are there ways of handling things that sting (like gloves?!)?! I've read that you can't touch coral and your supposed to handle it at the base or by the rock its attached to. What happens if you touch coral? Is it that it's bad for the coral, or bad for you?- No its not always bad, just wash your hands, especially with zoos! But 'coral' is a BROAD word, about as broad as words get. So maybe some coral may not like being touched, maybe others dont mind. Yes, clean gloves are appropriate and handling corals at the base is always best, but touching the actual animal isnt always horrible.

Sorry for my naivety...its a huge learning curve - I completely understand. As I said earlier, sometimes with specifics, its easier to just ask! I still find myself every day with wierd, naive little questions.


Also, be aware that a lot, well, most things in a reef are at least somewhat toxic if they die. So theres another reason not to start out with hard to take care of corals, sponges, etc.