Cleaning your hands of the fish smell...

Ken Jones

Administrator
Staff member
#1
Date: March 2, 2001
To: PFIC Message Board
From: Jimbojack

Subject: What's the cure for smelly hands?

For some reason my wife doesn't appreciate “Eau De Mackeral” or “Essence of Anchovy.” How do you get rid of the smell from your hands? I've heard of lemon juice, laundry detergent, mouthwash, hand cleaners, Ajax, etc. These only seem to slightly lessen or cover up the smell. Someone must know the answer. Please save my marriage!

Posted by baitfish

Orange pumice hand soap followed by lemon juice.

Posted by jimbojack

Any certain brand? I use Fast Orange pumice hand cleaner for work and after fishing, but it doesn't seem to do much for the smell.

Posted by baitfish

I use the brand made by GUNK.

Posted by Songslinger

Nature's Family shower and bath gel, available from Target, and cheap. Soak your hands in this stuff and then scrub with a brush and it will do the trick. Makes a decent bubble bath too. The scent is pleasant but not overwhelming and not feminine. I give it two fins up.

Posted by stinkyfingers

Why cure? “It's good to have "

Posted by stinkyfingers


Honest answer...Ok, really: This is what I do and you don't even need that much soap or anything fancy. A lot of times the smell is PERMANENTLY implanted into your skin. Surprised? Oh yeah, it's true. It NEVER comes off. In reality what happens is you take off the first couple of layers of your skin. That's the way to go, too. Ever remember getting glue on your hand in elementary school, when you peel it off your hand is clean as new? Well, same concept here. Here's what I do: HOT WATER. You almost don't need anything else. I mean HOT too. I turn it on all the way hot. I put some generic dish soap on my hands (Safeway brand), and start scrubbing under the water as it's heating up. I'll scrub ferociously until it gets intolerably hot, and then I scrub some more. Then you start darting them in and out of the lava-water quickly, keeping them wet with heat but not having to go to the hospital. I continue to do this until my hands look like boiled lobsters. I pull them out of the water, dry them off, and watch the steam come off of them. Pink as hell, and almost swollen, the first five layers of skin are gone - and about 80-90% of the smell right along with 'em. Try it, it works. It's also really good to do after you've eaten greasy food before you play the video games. I HATE greasy controllers or remotes or my phone or my lighters - Argh!

WASH YOU HANDS, WASH THEM VIOLENTLY, WASH THEM IN LAVA!!!

Posted by aafrench

Geez I think I'll keep my stinky hands before I try that! I thought Stinkyfinger meant something else? oh well Andrew

Posted by baitfish

Well you could always go the survivor route. I would think if you were mike on survivor, you wouldn't have that problem. OUCH! Sounds like Stinky's method is just one step below that:) Seriously though, the key to any of these is scrubbing with either a scrub brush, or I like to use a washcloth. Wait let me rephrase that... A designated fishing washcloth. baitfish

Posted by stinkyfingers

You will notice though, that in all cases...you are removing the smell by removing layers of skin. That's why people keep recommending "scrub brushes" and "harsh" chemicals, etc. Don't forget - lemon juice is acidic, and also does the trick... But really folks! You should see my hands, they're actually quite nice for a fishin', tree-hoppin', fence-jumpin', knife-fightin', hand boiling guy. Very soft and tender, I'm sure the girls appreciate that at times. ;) wink, wink...

Posted by harukan

"Stinkyfingers"? Sounds more like

"Lobsterfingers"
or "Poached Pinkies"
or "Hardboiled Hands"
or "Debrided Digits"
or maybe "Parboiled Paws"

I agree with Frenchy; I think I'd rather have some stench than cooked hands. If anybody else doesn't like a bit of the old Eau de Mer, tell 'em to stuff some cotton up their honker.

Posted by Kyle

Greasy controllers are the worst! *nmsg*

Posted by Hungs

What about Mountain Dew soda? I learn this from the cooking board, people soak/rinse catfish in Mountain Dew soda to get rid of the smell and all the slime.

Posted by R

Boraxo hand soap. It is a clean-all for about everything. From getting your whitewalls white again to cleaning your hands. Works well.

Posted by Kyle

What about when you’re still out in the field? Every time I un-hook a mackerel with my bare hands, I get all that slime on them. I use a towel to wipe some of it off, but that towel could only go so far... And know I continue to fish with slimed hands. This causes my pole and reel handle to become slimed for life. What do you do? (When there's no bathroom). Do you just leave your hands as they are? And drive home slimed?

Posted by Songslinger

Wet wipes will take care of that. Just make sure you discard them properly.

Posted by Mike. C

How about preventive measures. Is it to far fetched to try gloves. I used to use them all the time. You can get 12 pairs for a dollar at the dollar store. The skin tight latex ones...or you can swipe them next time your at the Dr.'s office. I have a lot of friends and relatives that are nurses so I get them from them. They can get a little warm in the summer months and they will get rips and tears. You definitely will go through a few pairs in a full day, but it does solve the problem of the smell. I don't really use them if I 'm using grass shrimp,.. that comes off easy. Pile worms and Anchovies are the worst though. All that oil gets in the pores and is real tough to get out. However is you really want to burn your skin off there is a much quicker and easier way. A little bit...I mean just a little bit...of laundry bleach or Ajax cleaner with bleach will do the same thing without all the painful scrubbing and swelling. The slimy feeling you get when you get bleach on your hands is your skin...just make sure you use some kind of moisturizing lotion afterwards.

Posted by Big Sky Dave

A few suggestions: 1 - use a hand lotion before you start fishing to plug your pores before the slime gets in 2 -- don't touch the fish, lift ‘em on the line, and unhook with pliers, if you're going to keep them, smack them on the head before unhooking, if you're going to release them dangle them over the water, grip the hook and shake 3 — try cleaning your hands with Baby Wipes - they're designed for fighting odor (also good for long camping trips away from a shower - old Montana outfitters trick)

Posted by fishsniffer

Go with anti bacterial soap and a stuffed animal. You heard right. I have one of my sister's old stuffed animals with thick long hair. It is small, so it fits in my hand. I get that wet, pour rubbing alcohol into it, and rub my hands with it. The thick long hairs seek out whatever it is that is causing the smell, and get it off my hands.
tight lines and clean hands. sniffer
 

Ken Jones

Administrator
Staff member
#2
I use De-Fishing Soap (liquid or solid) and I carry it in the misc. tub in my pier cart. It seems to work well but I think there are also many other commercial products out there that probably also do a good job.
 

K1n

Active Member
#4
wife hates it when I clean fish at home, but when i need to, I "wash/rub" my hands with a bunch of coins and it seems to significantly reduce the smell. I believe another friend of mine used to use a stainless steel "bar soap" to do the same thing.
 
#6
Never heard of coins being used.

Oh yeah, copper definitely imparts that metallic scent which can overpower fishy funk. Downside is pruritic dermatitis, a fancy name for itchy skin, to which some people are susceptible. A minor irritation but rarely dangerous. Question: who, in this day and age, carries coins anymore?

I have settled on raw ginger shavings and hot soapy water for a natural remedy. I carry a small stalk or knob of fresh ginger in my car. A good scrubbing with that and a nail brush and I can eat lunch on the water without gagging as well as drive home without polluting my steering wheel. It's also a first rate--and safe; my MDs approve--cure for indigestion: one coin-sized peeled slice works better than Tums or Maalox, without the chalky aftertaste.

I also use ginger for my cutlery even though my knives and cleavers are specialized for meats, fish or poultry. No lingering scent and it does not affect sharpness. Just run the blade through a hunk of ginger. You can use those cuttings as a nice tea in boiling water.