To perform the float test, place the egg in a large bowl of water. If it sinks or stays at the bottom, it is still fresh. An older egg will either stand on its end or float. The float test works because air builds up inside the egg as it ages, increasing its buoyancy.
The water test for egg freshness
First, fill a bowl or glass with about four inches of cold water and gently place your egg(s) inside. Very fresh eggs will sink to the bottom and lay on their sides. If an egg stays at the bottom but stands on its small end, it's still acceptable to eat; just not quite as fresh.
Preserving eggs utilizing the water glassing method allows farm-fresh eggs to remain fresh between one year to 18 months. However, there are individuals who state their eggs remain edible for up to two years in the preserving liquid. The method of water glassing eggs has been practiced since the early 1800s.
To conduct a float test, fill a bowl or cup with water (it should be big enough to fully submerge your egg). Gently place your egg inside and see if it sinks or floats. If it floats, it's old and you may want to toss it.
If they sink to the bottom and lay flat on one side, they are fresh and good to eat. A bad egg will float because of the large air cell that forms at its base. Any floating eggs should be thrown out.
In short, you can eat eggs two months out of date. It'll be fine. If you eat an outright bad egg, that's a different story. Eggs pretty exclusively spoil from contamination, and the signs and symptoms are pretty clear if you consume an egg that's been harboring salmonella.
The best way to test if your eggs are still good after you've boiled them is, again, the smell test. Basically, you'll notice the smell is off if an egg is starting to go bad. This is true for raw eggs and it's true for boiled eggs—the funk doesn't lie.
As long are they are kept refrigerated at 45 °F or lower, fresh shell eggs are safe to be consumed four to five weeks beyond the carton's Julian date (the date eggs were packed).
Information. Eggs may be refrigerated three to five weeks from the day they are placed in the refrigerator. The "Sell-By" date will usually expire during that length of time, but the eggs will be perfectly safe to use. Always purchase eggs before the "Sell-By" or EXP (expiration) date on the carton.
A general rule, unwashed eggs will last around two weeks unrefrigerated and about three months or more in your refrigerator. If you're experiencing an egg boom, it's smart to refrigerate any unwashed fresh eggs you aren't planning to eat immediately. This will help them last longer.
If it sinks or stays at the bottom, it is still fresh. An older egg will either stand on its end or float. The float test works because air builds up inside the egg as it ages, increasing its buoyancy. However, an egg that floats may still be safe to eat, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Salmonella illness can be serious and is more dangerous for some groups of people. Most people who get sick from Salmonella have diarrhea, fever, vomiting, and stomach cramps. Symptoms usually begin 6 hours to 6 days after infection and last 4 to 7 days. Most people recover without antibiotic treatment.
An unwashed egg will last for 6 months or more in the refrigerator. If the fresh eggs have been washed, then the shelf life will be similar to a store bought egg - about 4-5 months.
Old eggs should always be disposed of responsibly to avoid contamination and food-borne illnesses. You can choose to compost, feed them to animals, recycle them at local centers, or throw them in the trash. Eggs with foul odors or discoloration may be spoiled and should not be eaten.
While egg farmers supply a safe, clean, fresh product, it is possible for eggs to become contaminated by the food poisoning bacteria Salmonella. The good news is Salmonella is killed instantly at 74oC. So even if you are unlucky enough to get an egg with bacteria on it, the food will become safe by cooking it properly.
The eggs stored in cold temperature tend to undergo condensation when they are taken out to room temperature. This promotes the growth of bacteria over the egg shell, thereby contaminating the egg and making it harmful for human consumption.
Eating rotten or contaminated eggs carries the risk of making you very sick. Rotten eggs can be easily identified by a strong sulfur smell. Contaminated eggs contain bacteria called Salmonella which can penetrate the shell.
Anyway, as the egg gets older it ends up with more gas inside and less water, and the gas is lighter than the water. Overall, this makes the egg lighter and in fact less dense than water so that a stale egg floats.
Get Treated. Generally speaking, you recover when you ate rotten egg in just a couple of days. When sick, make sure to hydrate with diluted sports drinks, ginger ale and water. For those that are very young or old, or have an immune system problem, a visit with the doctor is highly recommended.
Thermostabilized eggs stored around 65°F will last for about 2 weeks and stored at 34°F they will last for up to 8 months. Thermostabilizing and oiling fresh eggs are often combined to make their storage life even longer. The two processes can be combined by heating up oil instead of water to dip the eggs into.
Here's What Fresh Eggs Daily Tells Us:
By law, an egg can be sold for up to 30 days after the date it was put in the carton. And farmers have up to 30 days to go from when the egg is laid to the carton. That means those supermarket eggs can be two months old by the time you buy them.