Off grid, non electric incubator?

[Triggerjay]

Here is a link to my 12 volt incubator. In an outtage, all I have to do is take it out to the car and plug it in.. If a person wanted to, they could use a battery tender type charger, and run the incubator off of a battery all the time, and the tender would recharge the battery as it uses it.. then if the power goes out, the batt should be close to full, and last several hours,... maybe even a day or so... :

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=222189

Jason

 

[CARS]

I had a post a while ago about an old redwood, kerosene heated incubator I found. Some one posted a link to a company that still makes them (although not a pretty as a wood cabinet

)

http://www.thomaseximp.com/thomas/egg.html

 

[Davaroo]

Kerosene was the fuel of choice for most home incubators in times past. It has its drawbacks, but is also simple and so eminently suitable when tended well.
Finding a kerosene fired incubator today that actually works will be your challenge.

AS Buster suggests, we are way behind the curve, generally re-inventing what our ancestors already knew.
Don't you hate it when that happens?!

 

[Cheep a'lil Talk a'lil]

Quote:
Ooooo, that looks like a good book. Thanks for posting it, I bookmarked it so I can give it a read.

 

[dancingbear]

I remember reading a description of a sawdust incubator. There was (if I recall correctly, anybody familiar with these things, please feel free to correct my errors) an inner box and an outer box, with space in between full of saw dust/maybe wood shavings. There must have been some sort on drain plug, and a layer of insulation on top, as well. Anyway, the idea was to add hot water to the sawdust, and it would hold the heat for a long time. I think the water was drained and replaced with more hot water 2 X's a day. I googled it, never really found out anything else, though. There was a big space to fill with sawdust, and I guess it would have been well insulated on the outside. The article I read said these were once in wide usage, so it's odd I couldn't find anything about them.

 

[Buster52]

Well, now you got me thinking about this subject. This pamphlet has a couple of options that work for off-grid setups...

http://www.fastonline.org/CD3WD_40/LSTOCK/001/agrodoks/34-e-2004_screen.pdf

 

[Buster52]

Cheep a'lil Talk a'lil :

Quote:
Ooooo, that looks like a good book. Thanks for posting it, I bookmarked it so I can give it a read.

I tend to download them to my computer. Look on the upper right of the page and you will find a link to a PDF version of the book.​

 

[yaddaluvpoodles]

You all are awesome! Great ideas and information. Gonna keep me busy thinking and dreaming for a while.
One of the people I work with told me that he set up a "brooder" consisting of an old clawfoot bathtub with a kerosene lantern suspended over one end. Said it worked great. I currently don't have any domestic birds at all... may be easiest if I do just start out with some good brood hens.


On the other hand (wink, wink) some years ago I had a magpie duckling that was a bit slow out of the shell, ended up getting left behind while mom played her new hatchlings, I found the poor little guy lying on the ground near the nest, thought he was dead but turned out to be a severe hypothermia. So... I put the POODLE brooder to work, poodle was put in a "down" in a sidelying position. I put the duckling up against her tummy, between her hind legs. Took a long time, but eventually the duckling warmed up and out he came. The poodle always thought that was "her" duck, the duck was never quite right in the head (I would assume from brain damage from being so cold for so long) he only lived about a year then I found him dead in the yard. But, in a pinch the poodle brooder worked. Have also used "it" for newborn baby goats in subzero temps.... Try that with a boxer! (these stories are true... just had to poke a bit of fun back at the boxers... by the way.. I have BIG poodles, who, for the most part are not big barkers!)

Dar
granitemtnranch.com

 

[Cheep a'lil Talk a'lil]

We use to get our kerosene from a gas station. We would take our kerosene cans (just like gas cans but blue color to be more aware of the different contents) in and have them filled. It was a lot cheaper then buying small containers from hardware or sporting goods stores.

Off the subject of incubators but just wanted to add that I think to have a great breed of dog you have to have a great owner.
Bad owners give breeds a bad name.
Sounds like you two love your dogs very much which is what makes your dogs so great, your love.

Great storys by the way. Did the odd duck follow your poodle around thinking it was its mother?

 

[Junkmanme]

Unfortunately, it is difficult to find a gas station these days that stocks kerosene. However, a visit to the local "bulk plant" will normally get you kerosene.