Should I clean off dirty eggs before I start incubating?

[mbleily]

I am sorry I got off topic. We are talking about shipped eggs to incubate. I just got carried away. I do get my eating eggs clean too but usually they are not that dirty. Sometimes a stain will stay though and you can't get it off. I have always told my people to crack on the other side. I am sorry I got off topic.

 

[DaveOmak]

A note to clarify "sucking stuff into the egg".... What I have read is.... the bacteria etc. that is on the outside of the shell.... When you have an enclosed container, like an egg shell that is porous, using water that is warmer than the interior of the egg causes the inside of the egg to expand... (thermal expansion)... supposedly, bacteria are smaller than the pores in the shell and using water that is about 102-105 deg. will not harm the embryo and due to the water temp being more elevated than the interior of the egg shell, expanding air sac, albumen etc. will not allow those bacteria to enter the egg shell...
Then there are the egg wash detergents that say, "after washing, this anti bacteria stuff stays on the egg to kill bacteria"......

I always figured chickens knew how to lay eggs and have healthy chicks....

I don't know if all this stuff I'm reading, is to get me to buy more stuff because I'm gullible or it's really necessary.....

Some or most of it makes some sense... It's so confusing trying to figure out the best way to go..... It's getting close to the time where I unscrew the top of my head, take the old brain out and shake all the BS out of it...

Dave

 

[jvls1942]

A note to clarify "sucking stuff into the egg".... What I have read is.... the bacteria etc. that is on the outside of the shell.... When you have an enclosed container, like an egg shell that is porous, using water that is warmer than the interior of the egg causes the inside of the egg to expand... (thermal expansion)... supposedly, bacteria are smaller than the pores in the shell and using water that is about 102-105 deg. will not harm the embryo and due to the water temp being more elevated than the interior of the egg shell, expanding air sac, albumen etc. will not allow those bacteria to enter the egg shell...
Then there are the egg wash detergents that say, "after washing, this anti bacteria stuff stays on the egg to kill bacteria"......

I always figured chickens knew how to lay eggs and have healthy chicks....

I don't know if all this stuff I'm reading, is to get me to buy more stuff because I'm gullible or it's really necessary.....

Some or most of it makes some sense... It's so confusing trying to figure out the best way to go..... It's getting close to the time where I unscrew the top of my head, take the old brain out and shake all the BS out of it...

Dave

yep, sometimes I think that learning how to read is a curse..

I suppose if one wants to be a purist or just fanatical, they can take all the precautions..

I am not either of the above.. I keep my job/hobby as work free as I can,,

I am happy with 80% hatches .. In all of my 71 years, I never had a 100% hatch that I can remember ..

those people that claim 100% hatches every time are liars.. IMHO

most of the eggs that don't hatch are just plain not fertile.. but I still count them as part of the hatch rate....

 

[ayschmidt]

I use warm water and a washcloth and only wash off the dirty parts... I have never submerged the eggs or used a gritty sponge. I always make sure my hands are clean. I wash them and store them in an empty egg carton for a day or two so the eggs can settle. If they are not dirty I leave them alone though.

 

[DaveOmak]

Sally Sunshine posted this link in another thread.... I found it had some interesting theories to ponder....... below is one excerpt I find especially interesting...... Dave

http://www.hubbardbreeders.com/managementguides/Incubation guide (english).pdf

~ DISINFECTION OF EGGS Even if all precautions have been taken to produce an optimum quality hatching egg the risk of contamination is ever present and cannot be ignored. The egg is particularly susceptible to contamination during the formation of the air cell. The creation of the air cell starts from the moment that the egg is laid. The progressive cooling of the egg leads to the contraction of its components (in particular the albumen and the pores found at the small end), which causes a type of suction. Ambient air enters the egg and becomes trapped between the shell membranes. If the air that enters the egg is contaminated because the environment is dirty for example or has been contaminated by soiling, shavings or straw that adheres to the shell surface bacteria or fungi can enter the egg and adhere to the external shell membrane. The degree of contamination may be very slight or not detectable after testing the shell but any contamination is very dangerous as pathogens multiply very quickly at the moment the chicks start to hatch. Disinfection of eggs while they are still warm and cooling down is the best time to prevent bacterial or fungal penetration into the egg. Further, disinfection of the egg shell surface has little effect on contaminants that have already penetrated the egg shell. When the egg is laid its temperature is slightly less than the hen’s body temperature, approximately 40°C (104.0°F). It will take the egg 4-6 hours (depending on the external temperature) to attain ambient temperature. It is during this period that the air cell is created and that eggs should be disinfected. This underlines the importance of frequent egg collection (4 to 5 times daily) to take advantage of disinfection as the air cell is formed. Infrequent egg collection reduces disinfection efficiency.

That can be found on page 8.... Then further discussion of disinfecting techniques and types of disinfectants follows.....

Thanks Sally Sunshine.... that article is cool......


Dave

 

[ayschmidt]

I cleaned up all my eggs before putting them in the incubator and out of 54 I had to throw out 3. I am on day 9 right now.

 

[chhickenraiser]

I wash my eggs in just water (water that is comfortable to the touch) with a soft rag. Seems to work OK.

 

[east272]

Broody hens don't wash them.

 

[Dr Gero]

My first time I used my incubator I follow the un wash proceder 46 pheasant dirty eggs. Only 3 chicks hatch normal, 2 were born weak and 4 cought a bateria and died in the egg. Then I started sanitizing the eggs with a little detergent and just got a bit better. Now I just clean them with my plain hands under foucet with misty warm filter water and that did the trick. Now i'm getting a very good hatching rate.

 

[AuroraSprings]

Now that I study egg cuticles for a living, I will be changing over to washing all of my duck eggs before hatching. The chicken eggs aren't usually terribly dirty, but ducks always choose mud over a clean nest - ALWAYS. It's ridiculous. Here's one of the articles that changed my mind - along with testing egg cuticle thickness and resilience myself:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22004811