Freshly laid eggs..How long til they go bad?

[Hen Herder Dave]

We here in Texas have been getting 100 F temps during the day. I have read that normally you should gather eggs within 3-4 days. But with the 100F temps, should do it within 1-2 days. All I can find is a smell test as to whether they are still good. And me with a lousy sense of smell.

I have Googled and gotten tons of links on the water floating/sinking test. Done a variety of searches here. Sorry if I missed the threads.

Any links or advice will be appreciated.


Thank You in advance.



Hen Herder Dave

 

[gritsar]

In this heat, I gather eggs whenever I happen to be out at the coops. That's just me. Normally I gather them once or twice a day. Gathering them often makes sense for more reasons than just the heat. Eggs left in the nestboxes can get broken as they pile up and you don't want your hens finding out how good fresh raw eggs taste. Also, are an invite to egg eating predators.

As far as storing them, the staff at Mother Earth News did an experiment on storing eggs in the long run. The results were very interesting:


http://www.motherearthnews.com/Sustainable-Farming/1977-11-01/Fresh-Eggs.aspx

 

[kla37]

It's been really hot here in central NC, and we collect eggs every morning when I let the girls out and change their water, and every evening when we lock them up.

 

[scratch'n'peck]

That link to Mother Earth News was interesting, I'll keep my supply of eggs in the fridge all winter long.

As far as the coop eggs at 100 degrees, if necessary you could probably go for more than a day or two but you would want to check them really, really carefully for any cracks. I don't know if those would be eggs I would want to give to others or sell just in case...

 

[4nematode]

We always collect twice a day. That also gets us out there to say hello to the girls and make sure no one has overturned the water, etc. We like our girls to be very well attended. I know lots of people who take the "it's just a chicken" approach and leave their girls neglected. Not us!

Eggs have a long shelf life. When we fill a carton for sale, though, we put a use by one month date, just adding a giant cushion in case.

 

[Tripp16]

Hi Im not sure if this is what your asking but......I once was told that if you take a bowl of water and put the eggs in it whichever ones float they are bad. If they sink they are good!

So Float= bad
Sinks=good

Hope that helps!

 

[southerndesert]

It was 103 here today and forecast is we will see 108 by Wed. We collect twice a day around two pm then again around 4:00pm, birds are FR from 3:00pm to roost. Never had a problem with eggs gone bad in all my years keeping the critters here in the AZ deserts...

 

[merry hens]

I collect at least once a day, more often in hot weather. However, they'll remain edible for at least several days. When wild birds lay eggs, the eggs have to remain viable until the entire clutch is laid, which is around 5-6 eggs for a chicken progenitor like a junglefowl. Once they are stored in the fridge, they will last months. I've had eggs 2-3 months old that were still fresher-looking than the store eggs my roommates had. And if you wash them, they wont last as long because you wash the natural bloom coating off which is meant to protect the egg from bacteria. Or so I've heard.

Whenever I'm in doubt, I just throw 'em out and collect anew. Nothing is grosser than an egg that's gone bad.

 

[chickie2015]

Will eggs go bad quicker if I wash then before I put them in the fridge?

 

[JadedPhoenix]

Will eggs go bad quicker if I wash then before I put them in the fridge?

Yes because they have a natural layer called the bloom that keeps bacteria from going inside the egg. When you wash the eggs you wash that natural protection off. Remember, eggs are porous and without that layer bacteria is then allowed to seep inside.