Incubators Anonymous

[ChickNmamma]

Hovabator Genesis Question:

do you guys leave the red plug in during hatching for extra airflow?

I have my humidity around 65-70% steady. Day 20 and have some eggs pipped already.
located in AZ...dry as the desert right now outside.

thanks!!

Both plugs OUT! Those chicks need oxygen! They are just learning to breathe - they need all the oxygen they can get.

I would put some buckets of water around where the incubator is to keep the external humidity up a bit, hopefully your internal humidity won't drop much - and the hatching chicks will add to the moisture..

 

[ozexpat]

Hovabator Genesis Question:

do you guys leave the red plug in during hatching for extra airflow?

I have my humidity around 65-70% steady. Day 20 and have some eggs pipped already.
located in AZ...dry as the desert right now outside.

thanks!!

all plugs must be out during lockdown

 

[Arielle]

Quote: Internal or external??

 

[Texasmja]

Internal or external??

Internal

 

[Arielle]

SUrprise surprise-- one duck is out and the second is internally pipped, so I opened a pin hole at the top to check--too much blood in vessels, so I"m sitting on my hands. Third egg stunk-- first stinky egg ever. (I smelled every egg until I found it.)

Waiting for last marans eggs to hatch then putting about 10 eggs under the hens to finish the next batch. THey are getting these chicks thru lock down far better than I am.

I keep bothering the hens looking for fluff balls and can only reach in with my hand ( very long box with 2 broody hens. THe girls are standing, and I can feel the moisture in the air.

Note to self = must date eggs, NO exceptions! NONE.

 

[ki4got]

Hovabator Genesis Question:

do you guys leave the red plug in during hatching for extra airflow?

I have my humidity around 65-70% steady. Day 20 and have some eggs pipped already.
located in AZ...dry as the desert right now outside.

thanks!!

NO! plugs out, especially during hatching. those chicks need lots of air now that they're starting to breathe on their own..

you can always add more water if it evaporates too fast. you can't add more air once they stop breathing.

 

[ki4got]

fwiw, with these broodies hiding nests and surprising me with assorted hatch date eggs, i'm leaving them all in the incubator (still turning) until drawdown or internal pip (whichever I catch first LOL).

so far doing this I've had 100% hatch. hm... makes me wonder if even dry incubating, they're still too wet. one that hatched today was pipped in the small end, IN THE TURNER! partially glued to the rack, and came out just fine in the hatcher.

 

[Arielle]

fwiw, with these broodies hiding nests and surprising me with assorted hatch date eggs, i'm leaving them all in the incubator (still turning) until drawdown or internal pip (whichever I catch first LOL).

so far doing this I've had 100% hatch. hm... makes me wonder if even dry incubating, they're still too wet. one that hatched today was pipped in the small end, IN THE TURNER! partially glued to the rack, and came out just fine in the hatcher.

karen, what are you saying? Eggs are staying in the incubator longer than the std 18 days and the extra days in the drier environment is netting a better hatch rate??

 

[ChickNmamma]

fwiw, with these broodies hiding nests and surprising me with assorted hatch date eggs, i'm leaving them all in the incubator (still turning) until drawdown or internal pip (whichever I catch first LOL).

so far doing this I've had 100% hatch. hm... makes me wonder if even dry incubating, they're still too wet. one that hatched today was pipped in the small end, IN THE TURNER! partially glued to the rack, and came out just fine in the hatcher.

So far my very best hatches all started under a broody hen. 9/9 and 8/9 - taken away from the broody because I either wanted to switch to eggs I wanted her to hatch - or because I didn't want her to hatch any - but I couldn't "kill" the ones that had really started - so into the incubator they went.

I think there is something going on the first 4 days that messes them up later on in my incubator. Most of the ones I took from under the broody were about 4-6 days along. Sneaky broodies! I am thinking next year of putting the eggs I want to incubate under the broody for the first 10 days, stealing them and replacing them with those I collected during those ten days - do it 3 times then give her the second round to hatch and I get 20 chicks and she gets 10. .....

 

[ozexpat]

karen, what are you saying? Eggs are staying in the incubator longer than the std 18 days and the extra days in the drier environment is netting a better hatch rate??

i dont raise humidity until 1st external pip in SoCal and in the Philippines I stopped adding water at all = just do a total lock down - no peeking at all for 48 hours from 1st pip.