Frustrated

[Lextextrapper]

I have a homemade cabinet style incubator and I am having a heck of a time getting the temperature uniform throughout the whole cabinet. It's seems to be the warmest in the front center part, a little cooler in the right hand mid-section and even a little cooler yet on the left hand side. I've tried adding another fan and moved it around to different areas of the cabinet, but nothing seems to help. I am open to any and all advice and suggestions. I almost to the point of throwing it onto the burn pile!

 

[DirtCreature]

oh no! i have no advice for you. im sorry. im just not that cool yet when it come to hatching eggs, and far far away from being as cool as you and having a homemade one... I hope the best for you, and hopefully someone who can help or have some good ideas can help you soon!

I was wondering maybe the "cooler" parts are as well insulated as the others?

It might help if you put pictures up so someone could see what you have going on...?

 

[boxleyjoe]

take i ziplock bag and fill it 1/4 water. fold it in half vertically to create a pocket of sealed water. put a rubber band around the bottom to keep the bottom from spreading and hang close to where your eggs will be. you can test the temp of the bag and that will tell you the actual temp of the egg, no matter what the fluctuating temp is in your incubator. I recommend getting a brinsea incubator thermometer, it has a probe that you can slide down in the crevice of the "water wiggler" you just made. Don't use a water heater thermostat for your incubator, get a wafer style

hope this helps

 

[Lextextrapper]

Thanks for the input. I do have the wafer type thermostat because I've never been able to get a hot water heater thermostat to provide a steady temperature (not sensitive enough for me). I'll try to get some pictures of my bator this morning and post them to see if that will help with suggestions.

 

[Lextextrapper]

Middle front thermometer reads 99.6, right side reads 94 and left side reads 96.

 

[SierraView]

I made a incubator out of a mini fridge years ago and worked very good. I had a fan the size you have and put it in the top and had my heat and thermostat in the bottom. I also filled up a whole case of mason jars with water and stacked them in the top and bottom for a heat sink.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

I believe your problem arises with your top shelf being solid. How can the air circulate well being mostly blocked off like that? I believe if you drilled many holes in that shelf or replaced it with a cut down refrigerator shelf (something allowing free air flow) your cabinet would become uniform.

 

[Lextextrapper]

I'll have to try the refrigerator shelf idea tomorrow morning.

 

[boxleyjoe]

I agree, the air needs to be able to flow around the eggs and throughout the whole incubator. If drilling doesn't work. try adding a fan in the bottom blowing the opposite to the top. I used an old side by side fridge and used the existing fans, cut out holes in the divider between the fridge and the freezer side (tapped the wires to the defrost element for a heat source) and put the fans in blowing opposite. I took the glass out of the shelfs and made cross pieces out of scrap aluminum to hold up the egg turners. The air flow seems to be just right and the freezer is a buffer zone for temp flux.

 

[kellyn]

Dude, awesome 'bator! you've given me even MOOOOOOOORE ideas!