Hands? - Dirty vs. Clean??

[lordofworms]

Perhaps a dumb question but...

ok, so I wash my hands before I put them in the tank..(god knows what I have on there to begin with)
but what about the bacteria killing fresh scented soap that I use?? that nowadays good luck finding a hand soap that doesn't have kill germs this and fight bacteria that..

does it become inert when hands are dry? or am I each and every time slowly killing my beneficail bacteria every time I stick my hand in to clean/do PWC's/arrange..etc.

or am I just waaay too paranoid?
should I just clean my hands with water prior?

thank you. Love the forum!

 

[CA_BroncoFan]

Honestly I just make sure i dont have any lotion or have touched anything that i know ill harm the tank. Just rinse with warm water.

 

[DragonFish71]

I'm a bit OCD about my hands going in my tanks too. I wash all the way up my arms with anti-bacterial soap then spend 10 minutes making sure I have rinsed everything very well. I even scrub out under my nails.

 

[mr_X]

i don't even wash my hands unless i am pretty sure i have something on them. i don't use the anti-bacterial soap though..just regular bar soap.

 

[Lowryder]

i don't even wash my hands unless i am pretty sure i have something on them. i don't use the anti-bacterial soap though..just regular bar soap.

Remind me to never come to your house for dinner lol.

I have washed my hands right before, never had ill effects. I have gone in with dirty hands, no ill effects.

 

[mfdrookie516]

i dont wash my hands unless im going to be handling fish or if i've been doing something and could have something on my hands that i feel could harm the fish (cleaners, powder or solvents from cleaning guns, etc)

 

[mr_X]

Remind me to never come to your house for dinner lol.

I have washed my hands right before, never had ill effects. I have gone in with dirty hands, no ill effects.

LOL. you know what i meant!

 

[Andrewz00]

unless i have something on my hands that specifically would be harmful... ie bleach, oil, lotions, etc.... i hardly ever "wash" my hands before putting them in my tank.... i do rinse them with pretty hot water just to remove whatever natural oils/sweat that may be on them....

now after the water change is done, im forced to scrub down... not my choice but my wife... shes a lil paranoid about what "germs" are in the tank... LOL ive drank that water...but she doesnt care!

 

[supradupafast]

Unless I just finished working on my cars, I don't wash either... Just more work for the Beneficial Bacterias in the Tank

 

[Krypt]

I usually rinse my hands with warm water and just dry them off. Once dry, on go the gloves.

 

[TCool]

LOL ive drank that water...but she doesnt care!

How'd that taste?

I only wash my hands after I'm digging around in my tank.

 

[dkpate]

I ALWAYS wash my hands, since I have other pets too, and I make sure there is NO soap under my nails, just like Dragon does, and I make sure my hands don't smell like soap. I have used both anti-bacterial and regular, and never had any side effects.

 

[Mark Hewitt]

Because of my allergies I have to wash with special soap that has a warning on the back "Extremely toxic to aquatic environments" complete with a picture of a dead fish!

As a result I try to avoid putting my hands in the tank and if I have to, I wear gloves.

 

[BigJim]

I generally work on my tanks shortly after a shower and I've never had any issues. I'd rather take my chances with the possibility of a little soap residue than get that oily film on the water from sweat and oil on the skin.

 

[Andrewz00]

How'd that taste?

I only wash my hands after I'm digging around in my tank.

tastes like river water.... not exactly poland spring....

 

[mctypething]

I thoroughly wash my hands with anti bacterial soap prior to putting them in the tank. I make sure to rinse for a minute or so extra to get all possible soap residue off. I've never had any issues doing this. I'd rather have my hands clean when putting them in the tank than risk putting something that is on my hands in the tank.

 

[Mark Hewitt]

I thoroughly wash my hands with anti bacterial soap prior to putting them in the tank. I make sure to rinse for a minute or so extra to get all possible soap residue off. I've never had any issues doing this. I'd rather have my hands clean when putting them in the tank than risk putting something that is on my hands in the tank.

I'd be more worried about some of the "anti-bacterial" stuff lingering than I would be about my hands being dirty.

 

[HeathB]

I drown my hands in suds after I'm done with cleaning. Honestly all the poop and junk I'm vacuuming out can't be much worse than my hands.

 

[Ilikefishes]

Warm water ftw.

 

[TCool]

tastes like river water.... not exactly poland spring....

Oh, I know what that tastes like. Plenty of water skiing on the WI river has taught me what river water tastes like.