favorite cleaner or disinfection agent for hatching eggs?

[mypicklebird]

Do any of you incubator and hatching gurus wash/clean/disinfect your eggs prior to incubating?

I have not been cleaning them, just only using the really clean ones to incubate & relying on the bloom to keep the insides protected-- but last hatch 2 of the ones that did not hatch appeared to have died half of the way through- when inspected- looked like there was bacterial contamination (soupy egg content, smelled a bit off). So I am thinking about starting to disinfect the eggs prior to incubation.

Oxine? Dilute bleach? Antibacterial wipes?

Thank you for any help

 

[Homesteading_Bound]

I have always read that you should never clean with a soap, bleach etc. Maybe someone else can help you. Good Luck.

 

[mypicklebird]

Looking at the brinsea egg disinfectant concentrate- any opinions on this?

 

[dancingbear]

I have washed eggs before incubating, and it really didn't seem to make much difference, if any. I've washed eggs part-way through incubating under a hen, if an egg broke in the nest and got the others all gukky. One bunch got washed multiple times. They hatched anyway, much to my surprise. I think sometimes we get too hung up on this stuff. If the eggs are icky, I wash them. I just use plain water, and rinse off the dirt. I let them air dry, mark and set. I think it's better to remove the dirt, less chance of contaminating the eggs, as the shells are somewhat permeable.

But remember, the underside of a hen is not a sterile environment. Some bacteria may actually be good for building a strong immune system. I'm not sayng leave them all poopy or anything, I just think we sometimes go overboard on the sterility thing.

If using a 'bator, I start with the 'bator nice and clean, and disinfected. I don't think the eggs generally need disinfection. I'm sure others will have a different opinion, just figure out what works for you.