To wash or not to wash?

[Suess hens]

that is my question.
I got my first egg yesterday. I did not clean off the dirty spots until I used it this morning. I laid it in a separate egg container than those stinky store bought ones. I have another egg today, has a few spots that need to be washed off.
So, should I wash--and I mean just scrub the parts that have the "dirt" on it--or wait until use? I am also questioning because I have friends that want some of our eggs, and I'm thinking the squirmish city girl may have issue with "dirt" spots on her eggs.

 

[LynneP]

I don't bother. I use those eggs first, and since it usually means one of the nests has some poopies, I've gotten in the habit of checking aas I collect and tipping out any hay that is soiled. Makes a huge difference. I've been told that washing eggs, unless you have a suitable solution for doing so, can break down the 'bloom' that coats the egg, it's that damp stuff that dries just after laying. If the bloom is compromised, bacteria can enter the egg.

 

[jossanne]

I wash off all eggs that come in with any muck on them immediately. This week has been rainy, so there have been a few that have been trodden upon with dirty feet when girls are entering already-used nest boxes.

If they're clean, I don't wash them. But I'd rather not wash dirty eggs in the middle of cooking, just because I'd like my hands to be clean, and they don't feel clean after washing yucky eggs, even when I've washed with soap.

 

[Suess hens]

Quote:
It is all fresh bedding, swapped it out this morning before she laid, but it is a brand new layer that is giving me her soiled eggs, so I thought that might have to do something with it.
I knew about the bloom that was why I didn't wash until use.
So...what is a suitable solution to wash eggs with?

 

[Chick_a_dee]

I just wash the spot off them. Usually I get just a shaving stuck to the side of the egg, because most of my girls lay on the floor right now in little nests they've carved out in the corners of the coop.

I've really got to get on with it and make the new nest boxes and decomission the old ones LOL.

We don't much care about OUR eggs, but for selling we just take off the most obvious bits of yucks.

 

[digitS']

Suess hens, I don't see any real good reason to put them in the fridge unwashed.

I've done it and used the sandpaper cleaning trick - still don't understand how any bloom stands up to sandpapering.

A Mother Earth News report on sampling 6 month old supermarket & uwashed refrigerated eggs was posted not long ago. I'm not into backyard laying hens to eat any 6 month old eggs but the lesson I took away from reading the article is that it makes very little difference in storage life, washed or unwashed.

Here's what Virginia Tech says about the safe handling of eggs. Water temperature relative to egg temperature is an important issue.

Steve

 

[Suess hens]

Thanks Steve!
I was figuring that washing and refrigerating would be okay since essentially that is what I am getting from the store, and my reason for having our own eggs is what is inside (better vitamins, healthier, and no drugs or antibiotics).