I love eggs, and not just because I love the way they taste. Of course, part of my eggophilia is also due to the fact that eggs are an affordable, high-quality protein, usually costing less than 30 Naira apiece.
Despite much publicized cholesterol warnings, more and more research is revealing the many health benefits of eating eggs. Everything from strengthening muscles to improving brain function, with most research now showing that an egg or two a day is just fine for most people.
A Few Fun FACTS About Egg Shells
- An egg shell is made of calcium carbonate, which is also the main ingredient in some antacids. Each medium sized egg shell has about 750-800 mgs of calcium.
- The shell makes up 9-12 percent of an egg’s total weight, and contains pores that allow oxygen in and carbon dioxide and moisture out.
- The shell color of an egg is representative of the breed of hen that produces the egg. White hens produce white eggs and brown hens produce brown eggs.
Natural Pesticide
Crumble the shells of eggs and place them around the plants in the garden. They will protect against attacks on small pests such as snails and lizards. Also, the shell itself acts as natural pesticide. The smell of eggs prevents the arrival of unwanted guests in the garden.
Home Doctor
The thin membrane located inside the shell can be used as a protection, remedy and preventive when it comes to overgrown nails.
The Cheapest Plumber
Crush several egg shells and put them into the drain and let the water run. Thanks to the running water, shells will pass through the pipes and remove dirt and grease.
Kitchen Tool
Make a small hole on the egg’s bottom with half a centimeter in diameter. Gently shake the egg until its content is out. Wash the shell with under lukewarm water, dry it and use it as a mold for making chocolate eggs.
Scale Cleaner
Put some egg shells in kitchen towel and use wooden pestle in order to crush them completely. Next, mix the crushed egg shells with apple cider vinegar and use the resulting mixture as an abrasive mean for removing scale off of the sink, thermos etc.
Mean Against Itching and Skin Irritation
Put egg shells in a jar of apple cider vinegar. Let the mixture stand still for 2 days. The shells will soften and the jar’s content will become homogeneous mixture. Use the mixture against skin irritation and itching.
Compost for Naturally Fertilized Soil
Eggshells quickly decompose in the compost pile and add valuable calcium and other minerals to the soil in the process.
Powerful Cleaner
Ground eggshells make a wonderful (and nontoxic!) abrasive for those tough-to-clean pots and pans. Mix them with a little soapy water for a powerful clean.
Hummingbird feeders tend to grow all sorts of nasty stuff. Clean it by first by rinsing with hot water. Then add some crushed egg shells, fill 1/2 way with water, and shake. The shells act as an abrasive, removing mold or other built-up gunk. Rinse well before re-filling with hummingbird food.
It’s almost impossible to get a scrub brush down the narrow neck of a thermos. Clean your thermos using the instructions above for hummingbird feeders.
Garden Fertilizer
Eggshells are rich in calcium and other minerals that help your garden thrive. Crush eggshells into tiny pieces and sprinkle into each hole before planting. Then, sprinkle additional shells around the base of your plants every two weeks.
Start Some Seedlings
Fill an egg carton with empty, rinsed eggshell halves and poke a hole in each one for drainage. Then add potting soil and one or two seeds to each shell. When the seedlings are big enough for transplanting outside, just crack the shell at the bottom and plant them, shell and all
House Plant Booster
Keep a mason jar of eggshells covered with water for watering indoor plants.
Cat Deterrent
Have a problem with cats using your garden as a litter box? Crushed up egg shells will keep them away, too. Just scatter shells in the areas that they frequent, and after stepping on those shells a few times, they’ll move on.
Better Tasting Coffee
Add some crushed eggshells to ground coffee before brewing it to make it taste less bitter. When you’re done, toss the grounds and shells on your compost heap!
Make Your Own Powdered Calcium Supplement
Skip the pills and simply bake your shells at 350 degrees for 8 minutes. Let them cool and grind them to a fine powder. Add your supplement (a teaspoon or less) to your favorite smoothie or juice once a day.
Make Your Own Sidewalk Chalk
What you need:
- Approximately five empty egg shells
- 1 teaspoon flour
- 1 teaspoon very hot water
- food coloring (for colored chalk)
Crush the egg shell into a bowl and grind it until it is a powder. Make sure all the pieces are ground. Take out any big pieces before going on to the next step.
Mix the flour and hot water in another bowl. Then add 1 tablespoon egg shell powder and mix into a thick paste.
Add your favorite color food coloring. Just add a drop or two for colored chalk. If you want white chalk do not add anything.
Shape the paste into chalk sticks or press into soap molds for fun shapes. If making chalk sticks roll the sticks up tightly in a paper towel.
Let your chalk dry for 3 days.
Laundry Whitener
Some say that if you toss some shells in a mesh bag in your laundry, the gray tint to your whites will disappear.
Eggshell Candles
The next time you have eggs for breakfast, carefully crack the shells in half and save them as a base to fill with beeswax for candles. Just insert a wick, let the wax set and remove the peel.
The Fuel of Tomorrow?
Just when your brain was totally fried by all my ingenious reuses for eggshells, researchers at Ohio State University recently discovered that eggshells might be the key to producing affordable hydrogen fuel. I've heard of walking on eggshells, but maybe some day we'll be driving on them too.
For most eggshell uses, it is better to make sure they are clean and free from bacteria. If you don’t wash the eggs thoroughly before using, bake the shells at 150 degrees Fahrenheit on a cookie sheet for about 10 minutes.
If you have tried any of the above , have anything to add or have suggestions, kindly drop a comment in the comment section below.
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