Chickens are laying, now what?

[abhaya]

I do not wash unless they are nasty (poo on them) Then I wash as little as possible. The egg is wet when the hen lays it. That coating is the bloom. It kind of seals the egg shell so it is harder for bacteria to enter the egg. If you wash the egg you wash off the bloom making it easier for bacteria to enter the egg. If I wash an egg I try to use it quickly. I refigerate mine but some people dont.

 

[grandwake]

My girls haven't started laying yet but this is what I would go off of.
Here is a quote from Raising Chickens Right:

"Rinse eggs in water that is slightly warmer than the egg itself. Do not scrub. Scrubbing removes the invisible layer (bloom) which helps keep moisture in an egg. Store eggs in the fridge pointy end down in an egg carton or lay on their sides. If you have gathered eggs fresh from the hen house, they'll keep in your fridge for about 3 weeks."

 

[Nostalchic]

Well, I actually never wash my eggs before I use them either - but I tell people that I give or sell them to that IF they are going to wash them, not to do it until just before using them. My eggs are pretty clean - the ones that do have poop or something unappealing on them go into the "Icky Dog Eggs" carton

 

[rungirl]

I used to refrigerate my eggs until I was visiting a family who recently moved here from Mexico and I noticed that they kept their store bought eggs on the counter instead of the refrigerator. Yikes! They probably thought US eggs are like the fresh eggs they were used to at home. That got me thinking.... I realized that in a lot of countries, refrigeration isn't that common or probably wasn't common until more recently. People all over the world have been gathering fresh eggs for centuries and storing them at room temperature. Even my grandparents didn't have the convenience of hot water at the tap or antibacterial soap in the old days, and refrigeration if they had it, was an ice box. Well, they lived.

I realized that nature's solution for dealing with bacteria spoiling an egg was the bloom and it obviously works. It has to work, or the egg left under a hen would spoil and you wouldn't have baby chicks, right? So keeping your eggs on the counter has worked for centuries... Until egg farming in the US became an industry and they had to wash and refrigerate them before shipping to supermarkets to feed the masses.

So enjoy you fresh, naturally sealed eggs. I think they also lose their consistency after refrigeration.

Lisa

 

[celticfarmer]

Quote:
The only thing difference between us is that I wash the ones I give to people who don't understand bloom.

Otherwise there really isn't any need to wash good, clean, poop/mud free eggs.













Edited for spellin' mine iznt reel grate

 

[alaskachick]

I rinse them off if they are dirty. I do not use dishsoap.. that is overkill.

 

[Mak]

I'm with many people here. I don't wash eggs unless they are particularly dirty. Even then, I try to wash as little as possible. I wash before I use them- usually. Sometimes I forget, and haven't had any problems. I do refrigerate the eggs.

 

[OrloffTom]

Mine are generally pretty clean but the past couple weeks we've been having spurts of rain so some are dirty but I have been leaving mine out a couple days and then putting them in the fridge.

 

[1stTimeChknMama]

i wash & refrigerate if noticeable dirty & wiping off with a dry cloth doesnt get the dirt off( poopy/dirty eggs are gross to look at)

otherwise any clean/newly layed eggs get set in an egg carton unrefrigerated until needed. we go thru eggs quickly so they dont last more than a week anyways unrefrigerated. i use warm water only no soap, that usually gets the job done!