Water Glassing: Egg Preservation Experiment!

[fat brown hen]

Where are you located? That can make a significant difference. You might want to include your general location in your profile.

I know, it gets hot here. I didn't think about it at the time. I don't have a pantry or a closet that isn't attached to a bedroom, will have to think about where else they could go.

 

[WingItRanch]

I know, it gets hot here. I didn't think about it at the time. I don't have a pantry or a closet that isn't attached to a bedroom, will have to think about where else they could go.

I keep mine on the kitchen counter because I like the look of the multicolored eggs. But I also have a pretty clutter-free kitchen and I know not everyone can do that with various appliances taking up room.

 

[fat brown hen]

Not sure what went wrong in your case, but with the most common problem: cracked egg with lime water infiltration, there is no problem using the other eggs.

Out of curiosity: Can lime water infiltration be identified through visual inspection? And does it ever happen to porous shells with no obvious cracks?

I just baked a batch of pancakes that taste seriously off. At first I thought I used too much baking soda, but there's something not right, and I can't put my finger on it.

 

[fat brown hen]

I keep mine on the kitchen counter because I like the look of the multicolored eggs. But I also have a pretty clutter-free kitchen and I know not everyone can do that with various appliances taking up room.

I thought they had to be kept in the dark?

 

[WingItRanch]

I thought they had to be kept in the dark?

I think the coolness is more important than darkness. I kept them in the corner of my countertop away from any direction sunlight and had no issues.

 

[TooCheep]

Out of curiosity: Can lime water infiltration be identified through visual inspection? And does it ever happen to porous shells with no obvious cracks?

I just baked a batch of pancakes that taste seriously off. At first I thought I used too much baking soda, but there's something not right, and I can't put my finger on it.

From my experience, lime water infiltration can be identified by a thin crack. If you see that, just assume the egg is bad and toss it. I smash bad eggs in my compost pile as the egg, shell and lime are all good for compost.

Generally, when I pull out a batch of eggs from the lime, I rinse them off and look for defects before putting them in a carton for use. You may have missed the crack and used a bad egg.

 

[TooCheep]

I thought they had to be kept in the dark?

That is a general rule in food preservation. Light, heat, oxygen and bacteria/pests are the enemies of long-term food preservation. All forms of food preservation find ways to control those factors.

I don't know how much of an effect light has with the egg shells, but personally, I would play it safe and either keep them in the dark or just don't keep them as long.

 

[lynbo22]

Has anyone used the hydrated lime from Home Hardware or Home Depot? After seeing that video, I bought 6kg of it and water glassed my eggs. Then it seemed like all the info I was getting was to only use pickling lime. Are they really the same like she says in the video? (Sorry if this question was already asked. I went through 12 pages and didn't see it)

 

[TooCheep]

Yes. Pickling lime = Hydrated lime. Here is the info I posted earlier. Sounds like you are doing fine. Feel free to post in this thread if you have further questions/issues.

The pickling lime was in greater demand this year due to Covid and more people trying to grow/preserve their own produce. The good news is that it the same chemical is actually available in larger quantities at very reasonable prices.

It can also be found as:

• Horticultural Hydrated Lime, generally 2-5lbs, enough for multiple years- example at Amazon, I bought at my local garden center.
• Hydrated Lime, generally 50lbs in the construction area of your hardware store- probably more than most people will want to deal with- example at Lowes

 

[lynbo22]

Yes. Pickling lime = Hydrated lime. Here is the info I posted earlier. Sounds like you are doing fine. Feel free to post in this thread if you have further questions/issues.

Thank you! That's a relief