Butchering Cull Cockerels Today

[Molpet]

Okay, I found the manual and followed the directions. The temperature control was hidden behind the insulation. I adjusted the top and bottom to 150F. Thanks a lot for your help.

I just got to remember not to get scalded when I take a bath..............

I don't leave it up all the time. Bill will be higher if you leave it that hot all the time.
I turn the water heater up a couple hours before I want to scaled.

 

[3KillerBs]

So, I have a twenty dollar hot plate that takes almost an hour to heat a gallon for scalding.
I figure plucking doubles the total processing time even after the water is heated.

I don't count the water heating time as part of the processing time because I can ignore the water and do other things during that time.

I've only plucked less than 20 birds total so far, but with the right scald I can have the feathers off in less than 2 minutes. I do happen to be especially good with my hands on many things so maybe I'm a natural hand-plucker?

I don't leave it up all the time. Bill will be higher if you leave it that hot all the time.
I turn the water heater up a couple hours before I want to scaled.

I can't use this trick because our water heater is behind an access panel in the wall of the laundry room. Adjusting it is a major production involving power tools and over a dozen screws.

 

[Geena]

I have one of those little water heaters, it's maybe 15-20 gallons, that's not being used. I wonder if I could cut the top off and turn that into a scalder

 

[3KillerBs]

I have one of those little water heaters, it's maybe 15-20 gallons, that's not being used. I wonder if I could cut the top off and turn that into a scalder

That's an interesting idea. I have no idea what the anatomy of those heaters looks like.

 

[Molpet]

I have one of those little water heaters, it's maybe 15-20 gallons, that's not being used. I wonder if I could cut the top off and turn that into a scalder

Thinking that will work.
I have seen where people take the electric heating element and put it in the side of a container for scalding.

 

[3KillerBs]

This is a crosspost, but I wanted to have my thoughts here where I can find them:

Yesterday I was thinking about the birds I culled Tuesday and I realized that I really ought to have culled the crossbeak as soon as I realized how bad his beak actually was.

I had been checking his crop regularly to make sure he was eating, but not only was he visually about half the size of his brothers, when I got him plucked his breastbone stuck out like a knife. Slow starvation in the presence of abundant food is not a happy existence. Should I have another such bird I'll cull him as a chick and give him to the wildlife like I do with the dead-in-shell birds at hatching.

But Slowpoke, my deformed cockerel, lived a happy life while it existed. I'd assisted him to hatch, did therapy on his splayed leg and deformed foot, and, since he never seemed to be in pain (though he did grow more slowly than his brothers), allowed him to hang around with the company of others until I was ready to do the culling.

My hands brought him into the world, cared for him while he was here, and took him back out of the world as mercifully as I could manage. After he was plucked I discovered that his deformity was even worse than I'd thought -- to the point that he had only a 2-finger gap between his breastbone and his pelvis. Had he been a hen she'd have died trying to pass her first egg.

He probably ate enough feed in 6 months to be a very expensive 4lbs of picked chicken, but he enjoyed his life and it wasn't wasted.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

WOOT! My hot water from my faucet hit 150F exactly, now I can scald my chicken with out setting up my gas burner.

Cool beans, CNJ! BYC rules again!

 

[CNJ]

I don't leave it up all the time. Bill will be higher if you leave it that hot all the time.
I turn the water heater up a couple hours before I want to scaled.

Its on a timer, it stays on for 2 hours a day. I'll keep an eye out for my electric bill next month. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[CNJ]

Its on a timer, it stays on for 2 hours a day. I'll keep an eye out for my electric bill next month. Thanks for the heads up.

My water heater timer was on for 2 hour, but the water at 150F is too hot and it stays too hot all day up to the time the heater is turned back on. Its good for cleaning the grease out of the drain pipe, but its dangerous for visitors. I will turn it back down, and turn it up only when I process chickens.

 

[Meg22]

The problem I had, I think, is that the temperature cooled down too fast.

The first bird was pretty easy, but it got worse rapidly.

I had a hard time getting the water up to a high enough temperature in a reasonable amount of time since I have neither a turkey fryer burner nor a firepit to heat a big pot outside.

I brought them in to gut them, but I'm NOT bringing them in to pluck and fill my house with the reek of wet feathers.

I have only culled twice. 2nd time 4 birds. I put the kettle on while I was doing the first 2 and added it to the scald bucket to bring the temperature back up for the other 2.