tips and secrets of the GQF 1502 sportsman...

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I don't hatch in my cabinet, I only use it for incubation but I also do staggered hatches. I use my old styrofoam incubators as hatchers.
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Just my take, but the Sportsmans are nearly foolproof and very forgiving. I both incubate and hatch in mine. I do not use the bucket, just the humidity tray. I open the door every week (Sometimes a few times a week) to either add eggs, candle, move eggs to the hatching tray or remove chicks. I add water to keep the water trays full when I am opening the doors for other things anyway.

Yes, I usually leave the door open while I'm doing these things too.
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When I first started, I worried myself sick trying to keep everything perfect. Airflow, temps, humidity, everything. I'd add the wafer sponges during lockdown to raise the humidity. Tried to never open the doors and if I did, work fast so they were only open for a few seconds.

Now on Thursdays I just open the door, move each week's trays down one rack, put the eggs from the bottom trays in the hatcher and remove those trays, and fill up the water humidity trays. On Saturday or Sunday I open it up, put fresh eggs in the top rack, remove the hatching tray and chicks, wipe the bottom out good and return the hatching tray, top off the water again and go on my way. I candle either day I have time when the eggs are around 18 days old - give or take a day or two.

My hatch rate? Exacly the same as when I tinkered with it every day trying to keep it perfect. My humidity stays about the same even during lockdown.

Good luck!
Hi,

Can I ask what you keep your humidity at? So you just keep it the same constantly and dont use the wick pads?

Thanks!
 
My sportsman is an older one that I have had for many years. I have hatched in it but now I just incubate. I do have a bucket. Usually during incubation I like to keep the humidity around 35-40%. I use my old styrofoam incubators as hatchers as I posted above. I have put foil over most of the water tray to control the moisture because during incubation the eggs need to loose some moisture. I don't use the sponges.
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I have been having issue with getting the humidity up too. I just put more sponges in to give more air to water surfaces. I hatch in egg cartons. It is just what I am used too. I have hatched with them laying on their sides too. If I am hatching shipped eggs, I definitely do in cartons. My air cells always seem wonky.

Good luck!
I saved up seems like forever to buy mine and I'm having the same problems last hatch I had to put eggs in another bator to hatch them but still working on it .
 
I have the 1502 sportsman as well. Just using the pan for water with a wick or two. I can't keep the humidity at a certain steady level. The water runs Out before end of the day and humidity is everywhere!!! Any tips on how to keep humidity at a more steady level?
Hi everyone that's the problem im having.Thank you for help.
 
To be honest I don't think it is a big problem. I have the same thing with my styrofoam incubators. I use my cabinet to incubate in and my styrofoam incubators as hatchers. My Hova-Bators fluctuate in temperature more than my Little Giant styrofoam incubators do but I still have great hatches. The hatches may take couple of days because of the temperature differentiations. Also, I usually do staggered hatches. Here are a few pictures of my set up. This is just works for me. I think of it like this, I have had broody's hatch eggs and they usually get off of the nest every day to eat, drink and poop. They may be off the nest for as long as 20 to 30 minutes. I had one broody that would not get off of her nest. I think she would have died trying to hatch her eggs but I took her off of her nest every day for around 20 minutes and blocked off her nest and as soon as I unblocked it she was back on it. All of her eggs hatched. Good luck...







Please quit posting this over and over and over again
 
I think it would be helpful if people would quit using the term "dry hatching" i don't know about every type of egg out there but i do know chicken eggs. AND THEY REQUIRE HUMIDITY to hatch properly! Perhaps it would be better to tell people u have ur incubator in a very humid area and it doesn't require u to add extra water to the humidity pan.... but u are not performing a dry hatch simply because u are not adding water. U "dry hatchers" out there please post a humidity reading from ur incubator or at least from the room ur incubator is operating in bcuz i asure u that ur eggs cannot hatch in a zero percent humidity environment for 21 days at 99.5-100 degrees.
I know that u "dry hatchers" are getting by with very humid climates but some readers may take ur "dry hatch" comments literally.
 

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