Any biology students here? YVR

[gregzz4]

Looking for biology students interested in researching/solving a rash I develop immediately after having my arms in my tank.

15-30 mins contact time with the tank while stirring sand/blowing rocks off causes small bumps which become red almost immediately after contact time and don't clear after 1 week.
I have multiple pics of the most recent event.

Looking for students interested in taking skin/water samples for analysis

You will need your own equipment/ be able to utilize your own lab

PM your field of study and contact #

[Animal-Chin]

Have you tested your arm with new water that hasn't been in a tank? I'd do that first and if you do get the rash its from the saltwater mix, if you don't its from something else. Then I'd take some sand from the tank and just lay it on my arm for 15 mins, does that make the rash? If so, why do you react to sand? Oh or is it a temp thing, if you cool the water do you get the rash?

How are you not conducting your on experiments? lol

[gregzz4]

How are you not conducting your on experiments? lol
Good point! I've had so much going on I hadn't even thought of it

[gregzz4]

Arms in new water - no problems.
Arms in tank water - no problems.
Disturbing sand in tank gets the itching started.

I'm going to perform the dino 'strain in a cup' method and see what critter I'm dealing with. Maybe what I think of as diatoms is actually dinos.
Would explain some snail losses, and the weird smell in my sock and skimmer

[Animal-Chin]

If it is Dino’s we can fight them together! My new tanks has them now, I forgot how annoying new tanks are!!! Lol

[gregzz4]

I'm going to start with identifiying what's going on diatoms/dinos.
I'm also going to siphon off the top layer of my sandbed and 'gravel clean' the rest.
Then I will add back a top layer of new sand that has been THOROUGHLY rinsed to remove any particlulates.
This will ensure I can keep my sand clean in the future.

I think what's going on is I didn't wash my new sand well enough so the fine particulates are trapping detritus.
Also, I think the diatoms are causing my sand to calcify.

If it is Dinos, and cleaning my sand doesn't solve it, I'm going to consider the Metro method being discussed on R2R. Dinoflagellates - dinos a possible cure!? Follow along and see! (https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/dinoflagellates-dinos-a-possible-cure-follow-along-and-see.253917/)
It's over 230 pages so be prepared for a night of reading.

[gregzz4]

If it is Dinos, and cleaning my sand doesn't solve it, I'm going to consider the Metro method being discussed on R2R. Dinoflagellates - dinos a possible cure!? Follow along and see! (https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/dinoflagellates-dinos-a-possible-cure-follow-along-and-see.253917/)
It's over 230 pages so be prepared for a night of reading.
Don't waste your time with that thread. It was a total bust.
This is a place to start
(https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/dinoflagellates-%E2%80%93-are-you-tired-of-battling-altogether.293318/)

If you do have Dinos, up your nutrients for up to a couple months. This will allow microfauna and good algaes to out-compete it.