Well anyone who has chickens knows that during the winter they slow down production, if not completely stop. We don’t give artificial light to our chickens during the winter because we feel if God gave them the winter off, so should we!
When I worked, I gave away dozens of eggs every week, but towards winter would start keeping them so we wouldn’t run out, and we refuse to buy store-bought eggs. However, we’d still find ourselves “rationing” them so we’d have enough for any baking or eating we’d be doing.
Well this year we started what they call “water glassing” them, which will keep them fresh for up to two years! Everything I had read said to keep the eggs with the pointed ends down (which we always do anyway). But trying to keep them upright in a container of ANY size is next to impossible. So, Glowforge to the rescue!
It took me two days of experimenting with the legs, sizing, etc., as I’m still not good with figuring things out to making precision details. I wasted some plexiglass, but I finally got what I am satisfied with. And best of all - it works! I was able to get my eggs in the bucket, cover them with my lime water, start the second layer, and carry it all downstairs without jostling the eggs. (They say you’re not supposed to move them once you fill them, but come on - seriously? My kitchen is upstairs and my storage pantry is downstairs!
I had extra holes for legs, because originally I designed it so that I could put additional stands on, but that takes away from how many eggs I can fit in the bucket, plus once the first layer of eggs is in the bucket, I couldn’t attach the adjoining legs! Which is fine. This works well for me.
I love it when I can make useful stuff here at home!
Never knew you could keep eggs for more than a month or so! Thanks for the info, I will have to read more about Water Glassing so I don’t waste so many eggs. The egg stand would be nice in the fridge too!
Unwashed straight from the chicken eggs will last two or three weeks on the counter. In the fridge 2 or 3 months. But washed store bought eggs have to be refrigerated. The air proof membrane has been washed off.
I love stuff like this, too. I’ve made a few ‘functional’ things and there’s a great satisfaction to be found in it. I also liked hearing about your egg preservation process. I used to have chickens (which I loved)…and can identify with the egg thing. Very nice work!
Thanks so much for sharing. I don’t think chickens are permitted in our new neighborhood but I’m still hoping. I just read up on water glassing. So interesting!!!
If they are fresh, not store-bought, they don’t have to be refrigerated as long as you do not wash them. When an egg is laid, it has a liquid coating (that dries almost instantly) called “bloom” that provides protection from bacteria, etc. If you wash the egg, you MUST refrigerate it because you have washed off the bloom, which is why store-bought eggs are always refrigerated. Fresh, unwashed eggs can last up to 3 months not being refrigerated, although I don’t like to go longer than 2 months, and ours usually don’t last that long anyway.
The water-glassing allows you to store them for up to 2 years, and according to everything we read, you can’t tell the difference between one that’s been stored and one just laid. So it’s worth a shot. Especially since I figure that if, for some odd reason it doesn’t work, I haven’t lost any more than I would have had I given them away like I did last year!
You might check with your local government. Most cities, even big cities, will allow 4-6 chickens (no roosters) for private consumption (eggs and/or chickens). So many areas have relaxed their rules on it because of the current times.
You bet! If they last that long. I’m only planning to store about 300-350 (sounds like a lot, huh?!) which should get us through the winter. We usually eat at 3 a day for the two of us, plus what I hard boil or use in cooking. So we go through a lot of them.
Two types of material can be used to water glass eggs: sodium silicate and lime (calcium hydroxide). Sodium silicate is a food-grade chemical material and commonly used to seal concrete surfaces and can be bought much cheaper at a big box or hardware store, but that bothers me. So we just buy what’s called “pickling lime,” the calcium hydroxide. More expensive, but oh well.
One of the “musts” when we moved was that I would have plenty of space to have chickens. We’d never had them before, but had friends who did. I have found that chickens, besides providing eggs), are great fun. We have 2 roosters (they get along) and 13 hens. They all have their own personalities and are so much fun to watch. The roosters help keep the girls in line and are great at protecting them from hawks, etc.
“water glassing” them, which will keep them fresh for up to two years!
While this seems very interesting, I just have to say, regardless of how confident someone might be of their long-term egg storage methodology, I would not eat an egg that had been stored without refrigeration for 2 years. Yikes. That seems like a formula for instant food poisoning. No thank you.
Better than the 100 year old eggs some countries eat! I can understand your concern. And I doubt ours will be 2 years. We’ll have eaten them long before that. But it’s definitely a good way to store them instead of having that many of the counter or in the fridge. I’ll definitely let ya’ll know this winter how they are!
Thanks for the info, I will have to read more about Water Glassing so I don’t waste so many eggs. The egg stand would be nice in the fridge too!
I can understand your concern. And I doubt ours will be 2 years. We’ll have eaten them long before that. But it’s definitely a good way to store them instead of having that many of the counter or in the fridge. I’ll definitely let ya’ll know this winter how they are!