To Wash or Not To Wash - Egg Washing Thoughts

[Chic-n-farmer]

Clean nesting boxes make for pretty clean eggs. Unless they have mussy feet from the run.

I don't wash hatching eggs and I spot clean, only, eating eggs. I guess it depends what you want in the fridge. Personally, I don't like chicken poop in the fridge.

And there are limits to what I will put in the incubator, too.

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

Quote:
Sorry! Pre-eating.....

I don't wash until right before using them, and then only if they really need it. (Except the ones I sell, they all get washed right before selling). The eggs will last longer in the fridge if left unwashed.

eta: I do not wash ANY that I sell for hatching, only for eating.

You know what's happening! I do the same with my eggs. My eatin' eggs, I just flick off the chunks & refridgerate.

 

[cackleberrycoop]

Quote:
I have read that eggs should be washed with warm water not cool, as the cool will draw in bacteria into the porous shell as it cools and contracts.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/se...forum/viewtopic.php?pid=5612327#p5612327#1210

I found state guidelines for washing eggs and it said the same thing - that the water should not touch the shell until it had reached a certain temp (can't recall it off the top of my head, but pretty hot) because that causes the air between the shell and the protective inner membrane to swell and "push out" against the shell - sort of sealing bacteria out while the washing process took place. Also read never, ever to soak eggs in water - running hot water only. Then air dry and spray with a warm, light bleach/water solution. I don't wash the eggs that I keep for our family until just as I'm using them, sometimes not even then...... But I tried selling eggs unwashed in the beginning and found that this really turned off most customers and now I wash for nearly everyone who buys them from us, though the people who want them un-washed are adamant that they want them that way... I simply don't have time in life to spot check eggs, so I don't bother trying to sand off bad spots.

 

[Ohhhdear]

I guess it depends on if you're keeping the eggs for yourself or if you're selling them.
Obviously, you can deal with whatever level of soil and poop on the eggs you feel comfortable with if they're for your own use.

But if you're selling them (like I do) your customers simply won't return if they open up the carton and find poop on the eggs! There will be an occasional open-minded customer who appreciates the bloom and knows that the poop isn't getting inside the egg.
But 99+% of your customers will mentally shriek "SALMONELLA!!" and might return that carton, won't refer you to anybody, and most likely won't come back.

People expect eggs to be like the ones they buy at the store; clean and cold. And of course, healthier, with orange yolks and a nice home-grown story to think about and make them feel "green" and warm-fuzzy inside while they're cooking with your eggs. That's a fact of modern American life. It's true, too. But we backyard chicken egg growers/sellers take advantage of this "story".

If we, as backyard chicken egg growers/sellers keep selling poopy, dirty eggs and someone gets sick, how long do you think it'll be before our munificent government cracks down on us all and enforces health & safety standards to *everybody*, not just the big producers? This may be an even bigger reason to wash and refrigerate eggs you're selling; we DON'T want the government breathing down our necks any more than they already do!!


So, how to wash?
Hot water, as hot as you can handle the eggs in as it's running over them. I do fill the sink a couple inches with the hottest water my tap produces and add a couple drops of Dawn detergent, not soap. Mostly to help dissipate any dirt and poop and make it easier to clean them. The eggs sit for less than a minute in the sink as they're all going in. They don't soak. The water's running hot, I take an egg in each hand and rub any dirt, poop, or stains off each egg and sit it on a towel to air dry.
The eggs are cartoned after they're dried, then refrigerated, ready to sell.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I use hot water on all eggs with Egg Washer Pro. Then refrigerate.

 

[ginormous chicken]

I wash, not because they are dirty. More so because I am worried about bacteria.
Some people tell me to wash, others say no way don't. I am kinda confused by the whole thing. I know I don't want myself, my family, or people I give eggs to, to get sick. Should I be using egg wash? What are the benifits?

 

[MakNugget]

No wash here. I keep my nest clean with lots of bedding and it seems like that does the trick. I may have had 2 or 3 that wasn't perfect, but was easily rubbed off.

My fresh eggs are kept in a basket on the counter until the basket is near full, then I carton them up and put them in the fridge to eat first.

I only have 3.25 birds laying, and eggs are retrieved daily, so the odds of dirty footsies trampling the eggs are minimal.

 

[chickbird]

Wayne&Kim1963 :

I myself wash every egg because a chicken walks around in poop and dirt and her feet are by the egg. I wash with lots of cool water. I wash my sink out with comet amd rinse it well for cleanliness. Then lay eggs in bottom of sink letting cool water run over them and i use one of those plastic green scratcher cloths and scrub any poopy places off and rinse well then lay on towel. Egg shells have layers of shell and you can scratch a stain to leave egg. I dry each egg then put in cartons.

i follow most of what is listed in this post....i wash all eggs as most dept. of ags. recommend. i wash in cool or lukewarm water and use the green scratch pad lightly until any poop or stain is removed and i change nest bedding often. i also dry eggs and then place them in a tray for a few hours to ensure they are dry before putting them into cartons.​

 

[AlbionWood]

Quote:
As I understand it, the only benefit to washing is cosmetic - it makes the egg look nicer. When it's laid, there are bacteria all over the outside, but they can't get through the membrane lining the inside of the shell while it's dry. If the egg stays wet for very long, though, the membrane gets moist enough for the bacteria to grow on it, and then the egg can spoil. Brief washing with warm or hot water, followed by quick drying, probably is safe enough.

 

[chickened]

If you decide to wash use warm water not over 140 degrees F. A better idea is to create a doormat if you will for the hens to negotiate prior to the nest boxes which can be a series of catwalks and fresh bedding on the entrances to the catwalks and by the time the hens get to the nest box their feet are pretty clean. If they have mud up to their belly feathers you shouldn't have chickens.