Candling

So it has been one week since I put some eggs in and I candled a few to see if there was anything and out of about 5 only one looked to be infertile..the problem is I left the top of the incubator off for about 5 minutes? Will this affect up the eggs at all because the temperature dropped?

Nope. I'm sure it will be fine. The eggs can stay at the right temperature for around 15- 20 mins after taking the incubator lid off. Good luck with your hatch!!

Hi!!!

My very first time incubating, I freaked out over things like this as well. Then I had a hen raise eggs, and while I admired her diligence and determination, she was off her eggs for up to an hour at a time at points in a rather cold basement room I'd set up with a heat lamp, and every egg hatched without issue.

It's so hard being a first timer. But your eggs are fine. As for the infertile egg, give it to day 14 IMO. I had some slow starters, and if there's no crack, it's not going to hurt anything.

Good luck!!!!

champers44 said:

So it has been one week since I put some eggs in and I candled a few to see if there was anything and out of about 5 only one looked to be infertile..the problem is I left the top of the incubator off for about 5 minutes? Will this affect up the eggs at all because the temperature dropped?

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Think about momma hen. They are usually the best incubators. But during a 21 day incubation...sometimes a bit longer if they continue to sit on late eggs, they need to get up every day to eat, drink, and poop. When I watch my broodies they get up and take care of their business, and I even find them out in the yard scratching around for a bit. It was not uncommon to see them off the nest for 20 minutes or more at a time. There have even been some studies that have come out that allowing for a cooling period every day will actually help increase the hatch rate. (I cannot remember off the top of my head, and if you are super curious I am sure that you can Google to find the answer, I think it was a relatively small number... something like 1 additional hatch out of 50?! For some reason that number sticks in my head.) Some of the newer/more expensive incubators are actually programmed for a cooling period every day.

Also keep in mind that you are attempting to keep the core temp of the egg up. Just like it takes a while for your incubator to get up to the correct temp when you are placing your eggs, it will take a while for your core temp to drop. I am sure that you noticed when you closed your bator back up the temp recovered much quicker than when you placed your eggs for the first time.

Being a newbie is hard. There are so many "rules". So much to remember. So much that can go wrong. But sometimes we are our own worst enemies. We can (and I did) worry ourselves sick. Try to take a deep breath and enjoy the process!!!