There's some serious confusion about when to bleach and when not to
bleach. For example, on my first Eleuthera trip, someone told me not to
bleach Xenos as it would loosen the attachments. I suspected this was
wrong and experimented with a less-than-perfect specimen. And lo,
bleach will not harm the shell or loosen the attachments.

But there are times when I would not use bleach. For example, sometimes
a very clever Xeno will attach an intact bivalve, sometimes even one
that is still living. Obviously, the hinge material of a bivalve is
vulnerable protein and should not be bleached. In one case, I had a
Xeno that had such an attachment whose entire dorsal surface was
covered with some tenacious marine-life that looked like a cross
between snot and one of Lovecraft's more unpleasant ectoplasmic beings.
And after a day out of the water, it smelled like one of H.P.'s evil
extraterrestrial visitors. I balanced the shell in a small half-filled
container of bleaching solution, and then spot cleaned. It worked, but
it was a nerve-wracking hassle.

Which is why I have purchased some of these new Hi Ellen
I have found that bleach will remove some attachments on Xeno's, whereas they
are not all secured well and may even have encrusting growths that are
undermining their attachments, which may then de-cohese with bleaching.
However, that doesn’t mean you can not glue them back on.  I have bleached,
picked, scrubbed and even spot acid-ized Xeno’s and their attachments to make
them nice looking.

I’ll have to try the bleach gel pens!
Leslie

---------------------------------
I haven't had a chance to try them yet. But they might prove very handy.
Has anyone tried them yet?

Ellen
(Who is jamming pennies in her penny jar to save for another visit to
Eleuthera)

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