To wash or not to wash, that is the question.

[JodyJo]

mine rarely, EVER get dirty, keep the nest boxes cleaned out and voila...clean eggs!

A co-worker was hesitant to buy them from me, the first dozen I brought her, I made sure
I told her, "these are STRAIGHT from the nests", "wow they are clean" she said...
yes they are! Washing removes the bloom....which speeds up aging...IF there is any poop on them,
I rinse quickly, then let air dry.

 

[moetrout]

The only time I wash mine is if they are too gross to go in the fridge. I tell the people I give them to to wash just before eating. I myself only wash before eating if they are dirty, otherwise there's nothing on there that's gonna kill me. I know I've eaten dirtier stuff than that up north at deer camp!

 

[Smiles-N-Sunshine]

Yes, the best practice is to keep the nest boxes clean and leave the bloom ("protective coating") on the egg. I view those as "First Tier" eggs, perfect for selling or hatching.

However....

(And with ducks, it's always However....)

Eggs with a little dirt or "organic matter" on them get rinsed with warm water, and gently rubbed with the thumb, then air dried. Even after sometimes weeks in the fridge, I've never noticed a difference in quality between washed and unwashed eggs. No noticeable difference in hatch rate, either.

Eggs with a LOT of "organic matter" are scrambled and fed back to the birds. No way I'm letting any lousy crows have any!

 

[peteyfoozer]

same here, I never wash the eggs. My nests are well bedded and clean though, so there is nothing nasty on them to begin with. They just stay fresher longer if you don't wash em.

 

[bairo]

ford or chevy?

If you wash they have to go into fridge

If you dont wash they can stay on counter for 2 weeks (hard to believe, huh) We are one of the only places in the world that refrigerates eggs.

 

[LilyD]

Quote:
When I first started doing eggs I was told that if you do wash the eggs don't wash them in cold water because it closes the pores on the eggs.
Also they told me not to wash in very hot water because it opens the pores wide and allows bacteria in. They said use room temp water to wash them and then put them in the fridge afterward. Pretty much I wash mine because it is the preference of my customers. I will eat eggs fresh out of the coop without washing as long as they are clean. They don't seem to get dirty unless the girls lay in an odd area like in the run or on the roosting perches lol.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Looks like the consensus is wash if they're dirty.
Sometimes it stays muddy here for days. The girls don't have a chance to wipe their feet before they hop in the nest. If it has been dry the eggs are clean and I don't wash. If they're muddy or otherwise soiled I wash and with a little detergent in water about 20 degrees warmer than the egg. If there are cracks(rarely) they show up in the warmer water.

 

[6chickens in St. Charles]

I recently cared for a college student with campylobacter infection of the bowel. He had nearly died from this food poisoning. I helped him look it up, it is usually transmitted via bird poop or eating contaminated poultry or eggs. So, that got me thinking about the campylobacter bacteria. Why do I feed my family unwashed backyard chicken eggs and nobody here has had the near death experience like my patient? These are the discussion points we considered:

1. The silky soft waxy "bloom" on the eggshell does indeed keep chicken's bacterial stuff outside the egg.

2. Campylobacter is a warm-water-inhabiting bacteria which dies in airy, oxygen rich environment. It requires warmer than 100 degrees to reproduce, without much oxygen. Campylobacter are usually transmitted via jacuzzi's, private swimming pools, warm puddles and undercooked poultry. Birds are excellent carriers for campylobacter, as birds' core temp is usually 103 degrees, often higher. The egg sitting in a basket on our kitchen counter is not nearly warm enough to support campylobacter, even if it had been smeared onto the egg during lay.

3. We make everybody warsh their mitts before preparing and eating food. So if they've touched warm wet campylobacter-soiled stuff, it is washed off.

4. the college age patient stated he often ran through goose-poop infested short-cuts to class and to the cafeteria, without taking time to wash hands before eating. Likely, he believed he must have tied/removed/put on his soiled shoes once or twice before eating, at least a few times before becoming ill. None of his family or friends became ill, and they have been sharing food.

5. We are not too careful about chicken poop in our yard, but we all wear "outside shoes" which are left in the mudroom and change into "inside shoes" indoors. Still, we believe chicken poop germs are around, and we have developed healthy normal immunity over the course of 3+ years living with our pet chickens.

We do not wash our eggs. They taste even better after sitting on the counter in their basket for at least a week. Sometimes I turn them, though, so there are no moist spots which don't get exposure to air or light.

I seriously enjoy the silky feel of pulling a warm egg out from under a silly broody hen, though. Its nice. She'll keep as many as she can, so I have to reach in there 2 or 3 times to collect my silky soft pretty eggs from under her wingies. She doesn't mind if I pet her first, it gets her purring how proud she is to be so broody. Really, a fresh egg with its bloom all silky and smooth is a very nice feel.

 

[CluckyJay]

Hehe, spit-shine!

 

[NajmoNests]

For hatching eggs, I do dunk in bleach solution briefly. This has helped with my hatches..

. For eating eggs, water/wipe if necessary, maybe.