- Jun 9, 2017
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This is my first time incubating eggs (chickens) and it all happened in a bit of a rush - I had initially had bought fertilized eggs for my broody hen who promptly decided she was done with motherhood and left me with a bunch of eggs to raise!
So I quickly bought the best incubator I could find (Borotto Lumia 16) and set them in it and I've made it to the first fully day of lockdown, doing research all the while.
I've set the eggs on the hatching grid as instructed, and because the plastic was fairly slippery, included a semi-permeable rubber shelf liner as per recommendations online.
Now I'm starting to worry about the circulation of humidity in the incubator. It is set up do that there is a fan and heat source at the top and two water reservoirs at the bottom underneath the hatching grid. But because of the rubber mat, I've introduced an extra layer between the fan and the water chambers that make me worry the humidity won't be sufficient due to poor circulation.
Unfortunately, I didn't realize in time that many people install their own humidity sensors to confirm the humidity is correct. I also know that too low humidity can cause the chicks to die when they hatch. And that I REALLY shouldn't be making any changes now that the eggs are in lockdown. So you may understand why I'm starting to worry!
So my question is, essentially, does anyone have opinions on what my next steps should be? Do I even need to worry about humidity circulation? Should I "intervene" to add a humidity gauge, or perhaps cut away some of the mat lying over top of the water reservoirs to improve circulation?
Thank you all in advance.
So I quickly bought the best incubator I could find (Borotto Lumia 16) and set them in it and I've made it to the first fully day of lockdown, doing research all the while.
I've set the eggs on the hatching grid as instructed, and because the plastic was fairly slippery, included a semi-permeable rubber shelf liner as per recommendations online.
Now I'm starting to worry about the circulation of humidity in the incubator. It is set up do that there is a fan and heat source at the top and two water reservoirs at the bottom underneath the hatching grid. But because of the rubber mat, I've introduced an extra layer between the fan and the water chambers that make me worry the humidity won't be sufficient due to poor circulation.
Unfortunately, I didn't realize in time that many people install their own humidity sensors to confirm the humidity is correct. I also know that too low humidity can cause the chicks to die when they hatch. And that I REALLY shouldn't be making any changes now that the eggs are in lockdown. So you may understand why I'm starting to worry!
So my question is, essentially, does anyone have opinions on what my next steps should be? Do I even need to worry about humidity circulation? Should I "intervene" to add a humidity gauge, or perhaps cut away some of the mat lying over top of the water reservoirs to improve circulation?
Thank you all in advance.