Fish TB/other diseases surviving outside of tank?

[bryo]

When doing water changes/tank maintenance I try my best to minimize contact with tank water (gloves, etc.), try not to splash water outside of the tank, and wash my hands thoroughly after I'm done, but I was wondering if I should also be sanitizing the area around the tank in case family members/friends (who aren't aware of fish diseases) touch the potentially contaminated surface and get infected.

If anyone has information about whether Fish TB/other diseases could survive outside the tank in significant levels it would be greatly appreciated!

[mizzoutank]

unless you see the disease in your tank, you have nothing to worry about.

ive been having my bare hands in my tank since i started it, and to expand this out, been swimming in lakes since i was 2. never caught a disease from it.
my hands have had cuts on them, and i have touched fish. still no harm done

the thing to be careful of is your sanitizing products getting into the water. that'll do a lot of harm.

but to address your question on a biological standpoint:
some things need a host to live, others can survive in with water. it just depends on the disease and what it needs to survive.

i honestly think you are fine and have nothing to worry about.
just don't drink the water, or stick your hands in our mouth or eyes when working in the tank and you'll be safe

[Cermet]

mizzoutank is correct. That said, it is fine to use gloves and wash your hands but zero need to clean up outside the aquarium. When the water drops dry, the bacteria is harmless.

For people placing their hands in a tank, do be careful with open wounds - best to avoid that when possible. The reason is that reports by researchers indicate that thanks to over use of antibotics (of course) bacteria found in a VERY FEW aquarium fish is getting antibotic resistent. That is not a big problem since your own system will generally handle it but do keep that in mind.

[talldutchie]

On any normal tank washing your hands after you're done is more than enough precaution. Fish tb, or Mycobacterium marinum, can be caught by humans but it tends to take either very long and very regular exposure or pre-existing skin damage (cut, bad rash that kind of thing)

The bacteria itself is a nasty little thing that is quite hard to kill. I know there was some research into the survivability of this critter done in the beginning of the century but I cannot find the document at this time. It would certainly be a good idea to wipe away anything that you may have spilled.

[Indian Woods Angels]

Any disease you can catch from an aquarium can be caught in any public restroom as well. Some private ones too. And then some. Unless you keep your aquarium in poor condition you have little to fear. The most common disease transmitted by aquaria is salmonella. You have about as much of a chance of salmonella exposure from your aquarium as you do a fresh leafy salad. Just use good common sense and you will be fine.

[madagascariensis]

The only time I would take such precautions is when quarantining new stock. If you've properly quarantined what is in your display tank and the tank is well maintained then you have nothing to worry.