HI, I'm in north central FL and want to incubate...questions

[PattiS72]

My hubby is making an incubator out of a shipping cooler. He has a light socket, combo thermometer/humidity gauge. We have it sitting on my desk. What should the temp be and the humidity?

 

[AmyLynn2374]

My hubby is making an incubator out of a shipping cooler. He has a light socket, combo thermometer/humidity gauge. We have it sitting on my desk. What should the temp be and the humidity?

Well, it sounds as though it is a still air (no fan) so the temp should be 101-102 taken near the top of the eggs. (Fan forced air incubators are 99.5F)

Humidity-ask that question and you'll get 100 different answers.

The first 17 days most people find their "magic humidity number" between 30-50%. The reason we control humidity is so that the egg looses the proper amount of humidity and the air cell grows at the right rate. Different people achieve this with different levels. My new philiosophy is pick a number between 30-50 percent and start your incubation. I believe watching the air cells and monitor the growth is the key, especially for new hatchers trying to find what humidity works for them. If you candle (especially days 7/14) you will know if your humidity is sufficient or whether is needs to be highered or lowered. Compare your air cells to the egg chart:


If your air cells are too small for the days of incubation above you know that your humidity is too high. (Not enough moisture is escaping the egg. This can cause chicks to drown at hatch in the excess fluids.) In this case you lower your humidity. If they are significantly too large you know your humidity is to low and too much moisture is escaping too fast. (This can cause the membrane to shrink wrap the chick.) You need to raise your humidity so it slows/stops the air cell's growth and lets the gestation period catch up to the air cell growth.

At lockdown (when you stop turning the eggs and open vents) the humidity needs to be highered. The recommended is AT LEAST 65%. I try to get mine up to 75%. Some get away with the bare minimum. If you are going to raise it only to the least recommended keep in mind that if you need to open the bator during lock down, the decrease in humidity CAN shrink wrap pipped chicks.

Probably more info than you are looking for, but there's my two cents...lol

 

[AmyLynn2374]

And I recommend using at least 2 thermometers for accuracy and for checks and balances in the bator.

 

[PattiS72]

I wanted to post pics but for some reason I can't.

 

[PattiS72]

I also read that eggs need to be gotten fresh, but not put right into incubator for about a week. Hubby said it wasn't a rule. Should we wait a week or not?

 

[AmyLynn2374]

I also read that eggs need to be gotten fresh, but not put right into incubator for about a week. Hubby said it wasn't a rule. Should we wait a week or not?

If you are going to be incubating a weeks worth of your own eggs, then yes, you'll want to gather them, store them (I believe the recommended temp is 60-70F), most people use their egg cartons to store them in, and you want to turn them or tilt them 3xs a day, and put them all in the incubator at the same time. You don't want to collect two or three eggs everyday and put them in your bator, that will give you a very staggard hatch, and unless you have a second bator for hatching that can get very stressful and in my opinion lessens the hatch rate because you are going to have eggs in lockdown conditions when they shouldn't be.

Now if you have 20 chickens and you get 20 eggs in one day and you want to incubate those 20 eggs at once, then no, you don't hold them a week.

 

[PattiS72]

 

[PattiS72]

If you are going to be incubating a weeks worth of your own eggs, then yes, you'll want to gather them, store them (I believe the recommended temp is 60-70F), most people use their egg cartons to store them in, and you want to turn them or tilt them 3xs a day, and put them all in the incubator at the same time. You don't want to collect two or three eggs everyday and put them in your bator, that will give you a very staggard hatch, and unless you have a second bator for hatching that can get very stressful and in my opinion lessens the hatch rate because you are going to have eggs in lockdown conditions when they shouldn't be.

Now if you have 20 chickens and you get 20 eggs in one day and you want to incubate those 20 eggs at once, then no, you don't hold them a week.

Okay, I get between 7 and 9 eggs a day (some in the am and some in the pm). I planned on doing like 6 this time. Not sure how many I can fit in the bator. (see the pics above).

 

[AmyLynn2374]

Okay, I get between 7 and 9 eggs a day (some in the am and some in the pm). I planned on doing like 6 this time. Not sure how many I can fit in the bator. (see the pics above).

That's a nice looking job. Keep an eye on the light fixture, as it's not ceramic and those can tend to get extremely hot and burn out. Yes, I would collect them and store them until you have how many you want and then put them in all at once.

 

[PattiS72]

it's staying between 104 and 106 degrees F. That's too high isn't it? Hubby says if we ask 100 people we'll get 100 different answers.