Eggshell House

So I've seen posts on here and even videos on youtube of people saving their eggshells, boiling them, baking them, and then putting them through a coffee grinder or just crushing them with a rolling pin.

I have eggs that I can't eat, my mother just isn't in the mood for, and the neighbor just keeps bringing us more when she over shops and runs out of fridge space! I'm tired of seeing these things go to waste so often and am worried that when my mother IS in the mood for an egg, she'll use one that has gone bad.

Eggshells supposedly dissolve over time, releasing calcium into the water which is beneficial to snails and shrimp. How fast they dissolve depends on your PH I think? Well, I don't like the look of crushed eggshell scattered all around the tank, and I don't have a coffee grinder to use to turn it into a powder. One comment on a youtube video stated that they took the one Easter egg method, made the one hole bigger and created a egg cave for her fish. I thought, 'Why can't I do this for the shrimp?!'

I started off with the old, blow the yolk out for Easter painting, method. Pain in the butt and I ended up crushing 3 shells, one success. I then made the one hole bigger so the shrimp could get inside. I then boiled and microwaved the eggs, took the membrane out, and put it in with the shrimp. They really love it so much, that they refused to let me clean it out when tank cleaning day rolled around. But my issue was the jagged edges.



The edges didn't seem to bother them, but they bother me. I tried taking the tack I used to poke holes around the bottom and remove that but it only made the jagged edges worse. So I looked into 'cutting' eggshells and found a video. I had the tool I needed and I tried. A less jagged hole! Success!


The edges are way less ridged, making me feel much better. Now I gotta boil, bake/microwave, and take out the membrane before storing them for later use. I figured, since eggshells are safe and technically beneficial to aquariums, why not find an aquatic use for them so they don't completely go to waste?!

Figured I could post this here, update on the different ways I come up with to use these for the aquarium.

 

So I've seen posts on here and even videos on youtube of people saving their eggshells, boiling them, baking them, and then putting them through a coffee grinder or just crushing them with a rolling pin.

I have eggs that I can't eat, my mother just isn't in the mood for, and the neighbor just keeps bringing us more when she over shops and runs out of fridge space! I'm tired of seeing these things go to waste so often and am worried that when my mother IS in the mood for an egg, she'll use one that has gone bad.

Eggshells supposedly dissolve over time, releasing calcium into the water which is beneficial to snails and shrimp. How fast they dissolve depends on your PH I think? Well, I don't like the look of crushed eggshell scattered all around the tank, and I don't have a coffee grinder to use to turn it into a powder. One comment on a youtube video stated that they took the one Easter egg method, made the one hole bigger and created a egg cave for her fish. I thought, 'Why can't I do this for the shrimp?!'

I started off with the old, blow the yolk out for Easter painting, method. Pain in the butt and I ended up crushing 3 shells, one success. I then made the one hole bigger so the shrimp could get inside. I then boiled and microwaved the eggs, took the membrane out, and put it in with the shrimp. They really love it so much, that they refused to let me clean it out when tank cleaning day rolled around. But my issue was the jagged edges.
View attachment 733814

The edges didn't seem to bother them, but they bother me. I tried taking the tack I used to poke holes around the bottom and remove that but it only made the jagged edges worse. So I looked into 'cutting' eggshells and found a video. I had the tool I needed and I tried. A less jagged hole! Success!
View attachment 733815
The edges are way less ridged, making me feel much better. Now I gotta boil, bake/microwave, and take out the membrane before storing them for later use. I figured, since eggshells are safe and technically beneficial to aquariums, why not find an aquatic use for them so they don't completely go to waste?!

Figured I could post this here, update on the different ways I come up with to use these for the aquarium.

That's actually pretty cool! What fish are hiding in there?

 

That's actually pretty cool! What fish are hiding in there?

I only have Amano Shirmp so just those. I've seen them pack 4 at once into that shell. Not sure what fish the youtube comment that triggered this project had. Must be really small ones though.

 

What a clever idea!

 

Thanks! ^w^

I finished cutting into the eggs. I had 8 to use, only managed 6 houses. 1 egg didn't cut right, the other egg I didn't bother with as it had micro cracks running down the one side. I didn't want egg going everywhere.

I currently have the 6 that were successful in a pot on the stove to boil.

 

So I figured I'd post a small update.

The eggshell house lasted about 4 months. I added the first house to the shrimp tank at the end of September, and it completely fell apart while cleaning the tank today, January 10th.

I left the remnants of the old egg on the floor of the tank and added a new eggshell house. If you would prefer to remove the eggshell house once it reached this stage, you'll probably need to get a cup or something and very gently move the egg into the cup, otherwise it'll fall apart if touched.