building a incubator from a wine cooler

JekkaLynn said:

Honestly 95% of what you said about mk2 went over my head...
Can you explain more about what you did with mk1? That sounded more like my level of skill...

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Ok Trying to keep this to what do you really need to know verses all the tech details

A peltier based wine cooler does not have a compressor or any of the parts that a standard home refrigerator uses. Basically it uses a trick with electricity to transfer heat from inside a wine cooler to outside the wine cooler. By simply swapping the 2 wires that go to the peltier you can reverse the action so the heat outside is now transferred inside the incubator. The peltier chip itself is not efficient so it also produces its own heat which is normally blown out of the back of the cooler. That will now be blown into the cooler giving you a heater that capable of making 99.5F inside the cooler

Like all heater now all you have to do is add something to stop the heater from going above 99.5F so any controller can be added to turn the peltier on and off. The wiring is simple, Just take either wire that you reversed to the peltier and run that to the relay on the temp controller. Place the temp controller sensor inside the incubator and its ready to go.

If you post pictures of a wine cooler with the rear metal shield removed I can mark the wires to swap on the pictures and also draw a diagram of where to attach the temp controller. As the peltier and fans run off 12vdc the temp control can be 12vdc or 120vac. Get a temp controller that's easy to mount ebay has them cheap then you will only need to cut a hole or mount a box on top to hide all the wiring. I normally add one extra small 24vdc fan (40mm) inside in the top corner to mix the air. I wire this to one of the 12vdc fans inside. Putting 12v to a 24v fan will make the fan run slowly so it blends the air.

I hope this helps

This is a link to turner that smileygreen64 is working on https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1146880/any-advice-for-egg-turner-motor You might find the post interesting as a 4 bottle wide 2 bottle high (minimum) wine cooler should have enough room to install something like this.

Thanks. When I manage to get my hands on a wine cooler I will be back with pictures. I am hoping to make a couple simple incubators and hatchers out of wine coolers so that my daughters school can use them in classrooms and I can use them at the local fair for the poultry display

I know Gpop's incubator build is a bit overwhelming for us who are technically and mechanically challenged. but as the user of his incubator (and his wife) I can honestly tell you this is one amazing incubator and hatcher.

We have hatched hundreds of chicken and quail eggs in this thing and other than me over loading and unbalancing the turners with jumbo sized eggs and the old peltier going, it's been a incredible incubator. I can't imagine I would be happier with any incubator I've seen ready made, including the GQF or Brinseas. I can open this thing up, remove chicks and close the door back and it's back up to temp and humidity almost instantly.

I like his turner too. Since I rarely set eggs in one lump but instead set them as they are laid by the hens, I can pull the trays out, candle or set eggs and pop them back into the bator. No waiting hours for the temps to get back to what they need to be. The peltier is strong enough to overcome the chill of the new eggs. Within a minute the bator is back up to temp.

This is truly one amazing incubator. G should be mass producing these things haha!

I might get a wine cooler tomorrow.
I agree the mk2 sounds amazing but there is no way possible that I could follow the instructions to build it...the mk1...I might be able to handle with a bit of help.
Technology confuses me. I don't know how things work just that they do work. I couldn't even understand most of what was said. I will have the friend who is helping me look over it. Maybe he will be able to understand it.

gpop1 said:

This is a link to turner that smileygreen64 is working on https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1146880/any-advice-for-egg-turner-motor You might find the post interesting as a 4 bottle wide 2 bottle high (minimum) wine cooler should have enough room to install something like this.

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Can you post a picture or model # of the timer that you talk about using. Thanks

timers are a pain as there so many different models available and most are smart timers that can be complicated to set up.

If I was going to buy one I would look at something like this
http://www.ebay.com/itm/12V-DC-Mult...243910?hash=item3ab6848f46:g:KTQAAOSwLzdWRpo1
(usa seller)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/DC-12V-Mult...222133?hash=item3f51f92535:g:y~8AAOSwal5YI-6P
cheaper but will take a few weeks delivery

set to function 5

I don't have one on hand but if need be I can get one and work out how to set it

Thanks for the links. I was going to buy the motor from china so might as well get the timer there to and save a few buck. I'm just trying to get mine set up so I have automatic turner, for now I have a wire through the top and do it by hand every 3 hours then leave them flat at night. I have 2 wine coolers 1 that I incubate in and 1 to hatch in. Couple of pics of what I have. I really enjoyed reading about your build.