On a small regenerative farm, efficiency matters—but so does doing things the right way. As our flock has grown, so has the daily egg count. Washing eggs by hand, one at a time, is no longer feasible and feels like one of those quiet bottlenecks that eats time at the end of a long day.
So instead of buying an expensive commercial egg washer, we did what farmers have always done: we built our own.
The Idea Behind It
Eggs don’t need aggressive scrubbing. In fact, too much friction can do more harm than good. What they do need is gentle movement and clean water to loosen debris without damaging the shell.
The solution? Air pressure.
Using a simple PVC manifold connected to an air compressor, we created a bubbling system inside a heavy-duty food-grade container. When air is introduced at the bottom, it creates a steady stream of bubbles that gently agitate the water—rolling and lifting the eggs just enough to clean them naturally.
Think of it like a farm-scale bubble bath for eggs.
How It Works
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A perforated PVC grid sits at the bottom of the container
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Compressed air feeds into the grid through a valve
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Air bubbles rise evenly through the water
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Eggs are placed in a wire basket and lowered in
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The bubbling action loosens dirt and debris without harsh contact
No spinning brushes. No chemicals. Just water, air, and a little ingenuity.
Why We Love This System
✔ Gentle on shells – no cracking, no scuffing
✔ Scalable – wash a few dozen or a large batch at once
✔ Affordable – built with readily available materials
✔ Easy to clean & repair – no proprietary parts
✔ Quietly satisfying – watching dirty eggs come out clean never gets old
For a farm like ours, where animal welfare, product quality, and stewardship matter, this felt like the right balance of old-school practicality and modern problem solving.
Built for Real Farm Life
This washer was built in spare evening hours—between chores, family time, and the usual never-ending to-do list that comes with farming. It’s not fancy, but it’s sturdy, effective, and exactly what we needed.
And honestly? There’s something deeply rewarding about gathering eggs from healthy hens, washing them with a system you built yourself, and knowing exactly how every step fits into the bigger picture.
That’s farm life at Dogwood Farms—simple, thoughtful, and always improving 🌱
