Allergic to fishwater?

Liz

Liz

AC Members
Mar 25, 2005
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I was just doing a waterchange on my puffertank, and I noticed I had broken out in hives.... up towards the inside of my elbow (or whatever you call it).

Has anyone experienced this before?

I do know that I am horribly allergic to bloodworms if I touch my eyes after handling them... is it possible the allergens or whathaveyou have leeched into the water, or something? That's about the only thing I can think of.
 
I remember the pics you posted of your allergic reaction...Yikes!

Most likley, you're reacting a protien. And yes, it could be from the blood worms in the water, or it could just be from the break down of other protiens--particularly since this is a puffer setup. Is this a brackish or full marine tank? Either way, you could try running activated carbon, or a good protien skimmer. Both would help remove the protiens from the water, and that may help reduce your reaction.

Wearing long gloves would be the other option. You may want to be careful around reef setups, particularly those with softies--they tend to wage more chemical warfare than many others, and you may react to them as well.
 
It's full marine.

I already wear disposable vinyl gloves (latex allergy... geez, I'm allergic to everything!) to feed my fishes... I'll look into some longer gloves for sure. I took the carbon out for a few days, so maybe that's why it happened this time....
It's not a reef setup. Just a GSP with some live rock.
 
Your allergic to something in the water. I would have to agree with OrionGirl about a protien in the water but it could always be something else. My best advice is don't put hands in tank. ;)
 
DansMarineTank said:
I would not fancy my hand in your tank cartman
Click to expand...
lol :D
 
Another option to consider is an iodine allergy. While not as likely as the protein, if you do add iodine to your tank, or a supplement with iodine in it, it might be enough, particularly if you took out the carbon which can inactivate iodine. Same thing that causes most shellfish allergies...

Latex is another issue. To test just buy latex band-aids and put one on. If you break out, watch out and be sure to tell your doctor next visit (or any visit to a healthcare environment).

By the way, cubital fossa--"front of the elbow"

--MD
 
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