How many of you have had good hatch rates with Brinsea incubators? I have the mini eco and Love it but it's small and I may have to upgrade for next spring in order to hatch more at once.
Brinsea incubators
- Thread starter brijay2
- Start date
Currently using their cabinet incubators, and those things are beasts. They work very well, and always have a high hatch rate with minimal issues.
- May 27, 2013
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Since posting I have found this information:
Brinsea Octagon Incubator Tips
February 21, 2009
One of the best incubators we have used are the Brinsea Octagon 20's & 40's, we use several of each model to hatch our Buckeye chicks year around! Over the years we have found a few tricks to keeping these incubators running in top condition and getting +95% hatches on a routine basis with our own Buckeye chicken hatching eggs. A Brinsea Octagon seller here on ebay once wrote. "if your eggs are fertile they will hatch in a Brinsea!"....we'll that's almost true and here a few secrets to our success using Brinsea Octagons;
1.) NEVER rely on the built in "digital" temp on these units! Use it as a rough guide but get a Digitial "PROBE" Thermometer....
2.) Invest in the Brinsea Digital "Probe" Thermometer that can be attached to the lid using velco. This is the most accurate Digital Thermometer we have found....don't settle for something "cheaper"!
3.) Keep a supply of Brinsea "Evaporator" Pads and cut them to fit the water slots in the bottom of the incubator....they should extend out about 2" but make sure they dont cover the vent holes!
4.) If your unit does not have the evaporator pad clips that allow you to attach a pad in the lid above your eggs we recommend you contact Brinsea and buy them (see brinsea website).
5.) Use a 50-60cc syringe with a long plastic tube to keep your water trays full without opening the incubator every other day.
6.) Buy a couple of gallons of "distilled" water to use in the bators....NOT tap water, NOT spring water.
7.) Silicone GREASE....find a good "white" silicone grease to apply to your auto-cradle ends. DONT use petroleum oils, petroleum greases or Vaseline!
We are fortunate to have an H22 Humidity module that very accurately monitors the humidity inside our bators but these units don't function correctly 100% of the time with respect to maintaining the water levels or humidity. They are tricky to get working, tricky to maintain so we simply use ours as a digital hygrometer....this is EXTREMELY accurate!
Our Brinsea incubators are slightly modified with respect to the humidity portion, we don't rely on the wet bulb hygrometer Brinsea sells with or for the Octagons. We remove the thermometers and use the base to insert a plastic tube for "injecting" water to the evaporator pads as needed to keep our humidity around 60-65%. If you don't have a good "digital" hygrometer get one but you can get but without it if your willing to give your "syringes" a squeeze every other day!
Now if your wondering what the heck we are talking about refer to your Brinsea owners manual or down load one (see brinsea website), a little secret....the H22 manual has better information on using the evaporator pads above your eggs! The H22 has an adapter that attaches to the end of the Octagon with a plastic hose fitting....you don't need the adapter you can modify the existing plug by drilling holes the diameter of your plastic tubing (aquarium airline tubing works great). Once you have the exaporator pad in place in the lid and in the base your ready to go. We found a 50-60cc syringe with 10-12" of tubing on the end is great for filling the bator and keeping the upper pad moist.
Finally, keeping a thin film of silicone grease on the auto-cradle pin and drive end as well as the base slots will keep your Brinsea Octago running longer! It reduces noise and vibration and cuts dont on the wear of the plastic parts of the Auto-Cradle. The Brinsea Octagon's have a small design flaw on the Auto-Cradle end oposite the motor drive. You can wait for yours to break (it will trust us) and then try to repair it, if you can find the pieces that broke off.....or it take the "pro-active" approach and "Modify" your Octagon BEFORE it FAILS! Brinsea sells replacement auto-cradle ends if you don't want to make this repair yourself...we recommend having an extra on hand because every unit we have owned has failed in the area. It is a design flaw but not significant enough for us not to use these fabulous incubators.
A plastic pin on the opposing drive end tends to "snap" or break off...we have solved this by removing the screw that simply threads into a plastic boss and then drilling a 3/16"-1/8" diameter hole all the way thru the cradle end. We then reinstall the plastic pin with a 3/4 inch long 4-40 or 6-40 "bolt" thru this hole and lock it down with a 1/4" diameter flat washer and lock nut! Apply SILICONE grease to both the pin and drive end of the Auto-Cradle and the top of the slots on the yellow base of the Brinsea Octagon....SILICONE will NOT gum up and WONT attack the plastic and the only thing better than a SILICONE is a "PerFluoropolyether" (PFPE) but the cost of these lubricants are outragous or cost prohibitive!
If you start your incubator 2-3 days before placing hatching eggs in the bator you can make sure the temperature and humidity have stabilized. We recommend doing this and if you have a room where the room temperature remains a contant 68-72F this will help your hatch tremendously. Rooms and basements that have wide temperature fluctuations can reduce your hatch rates. We even monitor our room humidity (digital hygrometer) and try to keep it above 70% (RH) using humidifiers...not everyone is as obscesive as we are when it comes to hatching chicks!!!
When people call or e-mail us with hatching problems 75-80% of them are related to the environment in which the bator is kept....in a basement, in a garage, on the back porch, etc. About 15-20% are related to humidity and not knowing what is happening with the water levels....no hygrometer, opening the bator too often to check water, wrong water (tap instead of distilled). If you have ever picked up a hen sitting on a nest of eggs, she is almost damp to the touch on her down feathers! With Brinsea Octagons, you can almost tell the humidity level is "correct" by the condensation on the clear plastic lid, but it is a good idea to always use a quality Digital Hygrometer in the bator and in your hatching room.
Good Luck and Happy Hatching!
PLEASE visit the American Buckeye Club website (americanbuckeyeclubDOTorg) to learn more about the rare heritage breed. The Buckeye Chicken is the ONLY American breed to be developed by a woman and is an outstanding dual purpose breed.
Brinsea Octagon Incubator Tips
February 21, 2009
One of the best incubators we have used are the Brinsea Octagon 20's & 40's, we use several of each model to hatch our Buckeye chicks year around! Over the years we have found a few tricks to keeping these incubators running in top condition and getting +95% hatches on a routine basis with our own Buckeye chicken hatching eggs. A Brinsea Octagon seller here on ebay once wrote. "if your eggs are fertile they will hatch in a Brinsea!"....we'll that's almost true and here a few secrets to our success using Brinsea Octagons;
1.) NEVER rely on the built in "digital" temp on these units! Use it as a rough guide but get a Digitial "PROBE" Thermometer....
2.) Invest in the Brinsea Digital "Probe" Thermometer that can be attached to the lid using velco. This is the most accurate Digital Thermometer we have found....don't settle for something "cheaper"!
3.) Keep a supply of Brinsea "Evaporator" Pads and cut them to fit the water slots in the bottom of the incubator....they should extend out about 2" but make sure they dont cover the vent holes!
4.) If your unit does not have the evaporator pad clips that allow you to attach a pad in the lid above your eggs we recommend you contact Brinsea and buy them (see brinsea website).
5.) Use a 50-60cc syringe with a long plastic tube to keep your water trays full without opening the incubator every other day.
6.) Buy a couple of gallons of "distilled" water to use in the bators....NOT tap water, NOT spring water.
7.) Silicone GREASE....find a good "white" silicone grease to apply to your auto-cradle ends. DONT use petroleum oils, petroleum greases or Vaseline!
We are fortunate to have an H22 Humidity module that very accurately monitors the humidity inside our bators but these units don't function correctly 100% of the time with respect to maintaining the water levels or humidity. They are tricky to get working, tricky to maintain so we simply use ours as a digital hygrometer....this is EXTREMELY accurate!
Our Brinsea incubators are slightly modified with respect to the humidity portion, we don't rely on the wet bulb hygrometer Brinsea sells with or for the Octagons. We remove the thermometers and use the base to insert a plastic tube for "injecting" water to the evaporator pads as needed to keep our humidity around 60-65%. If you don't have a good "digital" hygrometer get one but you can get but without it if your willing to give your "syringes" a squeeze every other day!
Now if your wondering what the heck we are talking about refer to your Brinsea owners manual or down load one (see brinsea website), a little secret....the H22 manual has better information on using the evaporator pads above your eggs! The H22 has an adapter that attaches to the end of the Octagon with a plastic hose fitting....you don't need the adapter you can modify the existing plug by drilling holes the diameter of your plastic tubing (aquarium airline tubing works great). Once you have the exaporator pad in place in the lid and in the base your ready to go. We found a 50-60cc syringe with 10-12" of tubing on the end is great for filling the bator and keeping the upper pad moist.
Finally, keeping a thin film of silicone grease on the auto-cradle pin and drive end as well as the base slots will keep your Brinsea Octago running longer! It reduces noise and vibration and cuts dont on the wear of the plastic parts of the Auto-Cradle. The Brinsea Octagon's have a small design flaw on the Auto-Cradle end oposite the motor drive. You can wait for yours to break (it will trust us) and then try to repair it, if you can find the pieces that broke off.....or it take the "pro-active" approach and "Modify" your Octagon BEFORE it FAILS! Brinsea sells replacement auto-cradle ends if you don't want to make this repair yourself...we recommend having an extra on hand because every unit we have owned has failed in the area. It is a design flaw but not significant enough for us not to use these fabulous incubators.
A plastic pin on the opposing drive end tends to "snap" or break off...we have solved this by removing the screw that simply threads into a plastic boss and then drilling a 3/16"-1/8" diameter hole all the way thru the cradle end. We then reinstall the plastic pin with a 3/4 inch long 4-40 or 6-40 "bolt" thru this hole and lock it down with a 1/4" diameter flat washer and lock nut! Apply SILICONE grease to both the pin and drive end of the Auto-Cradle and the top of the slots on the yellow base of the Brinsea Octagon....SILICONE will NOT gum up and WONT attack the plastic and the only thing better than a SILICONE is a "PerFluoropolyether" (PFPE) but the cost of these lubricants are outragous or cost prohibitive!
If you start your incubator 2-3 days before placing hatching eggs in the bator you can make sure the temperature and humidity have stabilized. We recommend doing this and if you have a room where the room temperature remains a contant 68-72F this will help your hatch tremendously. Rooms and basements that have wide temperature fluctuations can reduce your hatch rates. We even monitor our room humidity (digital hygrometer) and try to keep it above 70% (RH) using humidifiers...not everyone is as obscesive as we are when it comes to hatching chicks!!!
When people call or e-mail us with hatching problems 75-80% of them are related to the environment in which the bator is kept....in a basement, in a garage, on the back porch, etc. About 15-20% are related to humidity and not knowing what is happening with the water levels....no hygrometer, opening the bator too often to check water, wrong water (tap instead of distilled). If you have ever picked up a hen sitting on a nest of eggs, she is almost damp to the touch on her down feathers! With Brinsea Octagons, you can almost tell the humidity level is "correct" by the condensation on the clear plastic lid, but it is a good idea to always use a quality Digital Hygrometer in the bator and in your hatching room.
Good Luck and Happy Hatching!
PLEASE visit the American Buckeye Club website (americanbuckeyeclubDOTorg) to learn more about the rare heritage breed. The Buckeye Chicken is the ONLY American breed to be developed by a woman and is an outstanding dual purpose breed.
Um. Guess I answered my own question via further research! Well if I can't be a good example, perhaps I can be a horrible warning!!!
USE DISTILLED WATER IN BRINSEA INCUBATORS! I read the owners manual on both units and perhaps missed that bit twice lol. Perhaps a teeny label like on the gas tank, "unleaded water only"?
I keep it nearby for my beloved 'Shark' steam mop, never thought to put it in the Brinsea...
- Thread starter
- #3
Let me know how your Duck hatch goes!!!
Love my Brinsea Octogon 20 Advance EX, set it and forget it! Spot on temp./humidity all the time.
Well, this makes me feel more confident! I just bought an Eco Advance last week and, on day 6 I'm 7 for 7! So far, I really love this incubator!
We ran 4 Brinsea 20 this year, recently sold off two and still have two running literally non stop. As soon as a hatch finishes we clean, reset and go again with no down days between. Ducks (including calls) peafowl, quail, chickens all hatch with high % numbers. Will be adding their cabinet this next year.
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