oyster shells from seafood restaurants

[sydney13]

do you think restaurants throw out the oyster shells? if so has anyone ever used a seafood restaurants shells? i have crushed oyster shells in the past for the hens so im wondering if you think a sea food store wouldn't ming giving me their old shells?

 

[Imp]

Other people have posted that they use whole oyster shells.
Wash them, then crush.
Put them in a bag then crush with a hammer, or run them over with a car.

Imp

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Pretty much. Just wash, dry, and crush. Oyster, clam, or scallop shells. They all work.

 

[EweSheep]

Off to Red Lobster I go! Collecting the patron's clams would be easy enough! I dont like clams except for clam chowder.

 

[ranchhand]

Quote:
Hey Pinky, that's a really good way to have to get new tires!

Those suckers are sharp.

I recommend a burlap bag with the shells in it and a sledge hammer. Heck of a good workout. Keep in mind that the product of a huge bag is a small pile of crushed!

I'm on the SC coast and it's really hard to collect shells from restaurants. The state has special bins for shells and they collect them to dump back in the water and create new beds for growing more oysters. And restaurants freak out about liability if you go dumpster diving. There's also the time issue of an employee sorting the shells out separately if they don't normally do that.

OP, you don't say where you are. But if you are near the coast anywhere, talk to the seafood wholesalers and also see if there are any farms nearby that raise clams, crabs, oysters or lobster. They usually have huge piles of them laying around and won't mind you bagging some up. Wear heavy leather gloves.

Really, if time is money? It's a lot cheaper to get a 50# bag at TSC for $8.00.

LOL, can you tell I used to manage a clam farm?

 

[sydney13]

Quote:
Hey Pinky, that's a really good way to have to get new tires!

Those suckers are sharp.

I recommend a burlap bag with the shells in it and a sledge hammer. Heck of a good workout. Keep in mind that the product of a huge bag is a small pile of crushed!

I'm on the SC coast and it's really hard to collect shells from restaurants. The state has special bins for shells and they collect them to dump back in the water and create new beds for growing more oysters. And restaurants freak out about liability if you go dumpster diving. There's also the time issue of an employee sorting the shells out separately if they don't normally do that.

OP, you don't say where you are. But if you are near the coast anywhere, talk to the seafood wholesalers and also see if there are any farms nearby that raise clams, crabs, oysters or lobster. They usually have huge piles of them laying around and won't mind you bagging some up. Wear heavy leather gloves.

Really, if time is money? It's a lot cheaper to get a 50# bag at TSC for $8.00.

LOL, can you tell I used to manage a clam farm?

i had no idea you can get a 50# bag for only $8.00

if its that cheap then your right, its not at all worth the effort

ive been buying them at my feed store in 5# bags for $6 and thought that was the standard price

 

[Imp]

Hey Pinky, that's a really good way to have to get new tires! Those suckers are sharp.

That's funny, I thought about that the first time I saw someone post that. But as I thought of it I remembered that of all the oysters I cooked I never had one cut my hand, but lots will crumble/flake when you put pressure on it from the shucker. I think your right, seems a little risky, but it has been posted multiple times.
I suggest someone try it out and let us know.

Imp​

 

[Neil Grassbaugh]

I would be afraid of botulism.

The oyster shells you buy for poultry are actually dredged at sea from huge concentrations of nearly prehistorc shells.

 

[ranchhand]

Quote:
That's funny, I thought about that the first time I saw someone post that. But as I thought of it I remembered that of all the oysters I cooked I never had one cut my hand, but lots will crumble/flake when you put pressure on it from the shucker. I think your right, seems a little risky, but it has been posted multiple times.
I suggest someone try it out and let us know.

Imp

Well Imp, I think maybe it's because the East coast oysters are sharper than the West coast oysters?

Just kidding, but it could be a species difference, ours require a glove on one hand to shuck. I had a roomate who sliced a sidewall on fresh shells.

Sydney13, I found the bigger bag at TSC, on the floor with the big bags of feed. They do have the a smaller bags on a shelf above, but they are not at all economical.

ranchie - has smart oysters.