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Lockdown is tomorrow 3/31! Questions, HELP!!

post #1 of 8
3/30/12 at 11:38am
Thread Starter 

My lockdown is tomorrow!! What do I need to know besides taking the eggs out of the turner and not opening the incubator? This is only my second time hatching. My first hatch I only had 3 hatch. 


Edited by Wensleydale Farms - 3/30/12 at 2:56pm

10 BLRW's + 12 BLRW eggs hatching! 14 Alpaca, 2 Horses, 4 barn cats, 11 kittens, 1 house cat, and 3 dogs. 

 

Visit www.wensleydalefarms.com for more information about the alpaca.

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10 BLRW's + 12 BLRW eggs hatching! 14 Alpaca, 2 Horses, 4 barn cats, 11 kittens, 1 house cat, and 3 dogs. 

 

Visit www.wensleydalefarms.com for more information about the alpaca.

Reply

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post #2 of 8
3/31/12 at 3:35pm

first congrats!!  celebrate.gif

 

next, make sure to bump your humidity up.   What is the humidity right now????

mother to a wonderful 14 yr old boy,2 step children, 2 dogs-1 corgi, 1 red heeler,  1 cat and a bunch of chickens. Married to a wonderful man who puts up with my love of chickens!
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mother to a wonderful 14 yr old boy,2 step children, 2 dogs-1 corgi, 1 red heeler,  1 cat and a bunch of chickens. Married to a wonderful man who puts up with my love of chickens!
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post #3 of 8
3/31/12 at 7:28pm
Thread Starter 

Thank you! after I read this and bumped up the humidity to about 50%. Does it need to be higher?

10 BLRW's + 12 BLRW eggs hatching! 14 Alpaca, 2 Horses, 4 barn cats, 11 kittens, 1 house cat, and 3 dogs. 

 

Visit www.wensleydalefarms.com for more information about the alpaca.

Reply

10 BLRW's + 12 BLRW eggs hatching! 14 Alpaca, 2 Horses, 4 barn cats, 11 kittens, 1 house cat, and 3 dogs. 

 

Visit www.wensleydalefarms.com for more information about the alpaca.

Reply
post #4 of 8
3/31/12 at 8:25pm

Yes, for lockdown it should be about %75-80.

Proud Momma of 5 wonderful children. Support from the greatest husband at my side. Kept company by a Great Dane, Mastiff and a Dane/Lab/Shepherd mix. Pest control from 2 cats, Pigs now in the freezer. Turkeys didn't make it past the Hollidays. Many breakfasts and lots of laughs and great times provided by over 30 adult LF chickens of many breeds! Now on our adventure to buy a new Farm.

 

Plea...

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Proud Momma of 5 wonderful children. Support from the greatest husband at my side. Kept company by a Great Dane, Mastiff and a Dane/Lab/Shepherd mix. Pest control from 2 cats, Pigs now in the freezer. Turkeys didn't make it past the Hollidays. Many breakfasts and lots of laughs and great times provided by over 30 adult LF chickens of many breeds! Now on our adventure to buy a new Farm.

 

Plea...

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post #5 of 8
3/31/12 at 8:30pm

IMO 75-80% is too high. I use dry incubation and only add water at lockdown. I add enough warm water to bring humidity to about 60%. When the chicks start hatching, the humidity will rise on its own due the to wet chicks. I remove my chicks when they are dry and active, but I do wait until there are several to remove at once as to minimize the number of times the incubator is opened during lockdown. Also, it's o-kay to let the temp fall a bit if the chicks are going to spend a day or more in the incubator. I went into lockdown tonight as well. When I placed the eggs in lockdown, there were already 2 pips in the tiny game eggs.

I live with my partner and our daughter in the foothills of NC. We LOVE our critters!
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I live with my partner and our daughter in the foothills of NC. We LOVE our critters!
Reply
post #6 of 8
3/31/12 at 8:43pm

I did the dry method for the first time and had almost a 72% hatch rate.  I kept my humidity at 65%.  There were times that it dropped and I got some hot water out of the faucet and put a couple of capfuls (pop bottle caps) in.  I was using a still air  incubator.

4 horses, 21 Araucanas, 6 blue marans and a whole bunch of mutt chickens.

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4 horses, 21 Araucanas, 6 blue marans and a whole bunch of mutt chickens.

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post #7 of 8
4/1/12 at 5:02am
Thread Starter 

Ok, Thank You all for the responses. I have bumped up the humidity to about 65%. I keep checking on it to see if anything has happened yet and am trying hard to sit on my hands.

10 BLRW's + 12 BLRW eggs hatching! 14 Alpaca, 2 Horses, 4 barn cats, 11 kittens, 1 house cat, and 3 dogs. 

 

Visit www.wensleydalefarms.com for more information about the alpaca.

Reply

10 BLRW's + 12 BLRW eggs hatching! 14 Alpaca, 2 Horses, 4 barn cats, 11 kittens, 1 house cat, and 3 dogs. 

 

Visit www.wensleydalefarms.com for more information about the alpaca.

Reply
post #8 of 8
4/1/12 at 5:33am

Hang in there and Good Luck!!!   fl.gif

 

Keep us posted!!!

mother to a wonderful 14 yr old boy,2 step children, 2 dogs-1 corgi, 1 red heeler,  1 cat and a bunch of chickens. Married to a wonderful man who puts up with my love of chickens!
Reply
mother to a wonderful 14 yr old boy,2 step children, 2 dogs-1 corgi, 1 red heeler,  1 cat and a bunch of chickens. Married to a wonderful man who puts up with my love of chickens!
Reply
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BackYard Chickens › BYC Forum › Raising BackYard Chickens › Incubating & Hatching Eggs › Lockdown is tomorrow 3/31! Questions, HELP!!