Simulated Natural Nest Incubation~Experiment #1 So it begins....

[enola]

Snow in SC is devastating. Since it hardly ever snows here the state does not have snow removal capacities. The few snow plows only clean interstates and city streets. And to make it more dangerous people in SC do not have a clue how to drive in snow.......

 

[Beekissed]

....nor have the right tires, I'm thinking. That's important, even if driving without a 4WD. I think the south better start learning to adjust to these severe weather patterns because I think this will be the new normal. Same as for us in our summer months...I think we are going to see increasingly high summer temps, bigger storms and tornadoes on the increase.

Times.... they are achangin'.

 

[enola]

I agree with you. Three inches of snow paralyzes the entire state. Management is amazed ehen I show up for work on snowy mornings.

 

[Beekissed]

That's 'cause you are a hillbilly!

You know how to drive mountains in snow. It's a skill set.

Turned and shuffled the eggs while playing the "broody" sound and then left them open to air while the "broody" took a little me time to drink, eat, and presumably to get rid of that awful broody plug. Took the time to add more moisture to the soil under the nest to try and equal the amount of moisture one might have on a snowy day like this one. I'm gearing up to leaving that nest for two days without tweaking it any. Will just have to have faith that the temp swings won't be so great that it ruins the hatch, faith in the Lord to watch over my eggs.

I'll leave it open at least 10 min. tomorrow morning, will mist the feathers a little before I cap it off for the next two days of no turning and no opening the nest. This is all just flying by the seat of my butt feathers here, so there are no rules and no way of knowing if what I'm doing is helping or hurting....it's exciting but also holds a little fear of the unknown.

It's weird but I'm sort of feeling a little motherly towards the warm, brown eggs...I think I'm getting old and senile.

 

[Beekissed]

Got that little temp spike right after sun down again..went up to around 102.5, so had to remove the broody pillow. It's holding at 99.5 right now. While I'm gone I'm going to leave that broody pillow off of the heating pad and trust it to keep the nest warm, even when the ambient temps in the house fall. From what I've read it's better to have the temps fall a little than to spike, so I'm going to go with that theory.

I'll supply some insulation around the nest box itself to try to keep things stable there but I'm not going to cover the top of the box in any way. I think it's a miracle to even have a heating pad that is delivering just the right amount of heat on one of its settings to keep this nest at the right temp. What are the chances of that?

Tomorrow and the next day is the time for faith.

 

[montain_dweller]

Good luck, I will be following this thread

 

[enola]

Little of topic......

What is your recipe for laundry detergent?

 

[Beekissed]

I use a half bar of FelsNaptha laundry soap, a cup of Borax and a cup of Arm & Hammer Washing Soda...you can now find all these ingredients grouped together at most Walmarts. Just grate the soap and melt it into 8 cups of water...I do this on the stove and it seems to make better soap if you really get it to boiling a little. Then I add the powder ingredients, stir well and separate into two old gallon laundry detergent jugs(I like the ones that the pour spout comes out of...this makes an opening that's perfect for a standard canning funnel), then add cold water to top it off, shaking it well. Let it sit for 24 hrs to thicken up a bit and then use. I just use the cup measuring cap on the laundry detergent bottles and use it just like any other soap.

You'll have to shake it pretty well before using as it tends to clump up and solidify a little up near the top of the jug. I just shake well before I use it each time. It won't suds but it will clean well and leave no residue or smell at all in the clothing. I don't even have to use fabric softener of any kind because this leaves the clothes so soft and with no static at all.

I tried using this same recipe as a dry detergent and it didn't last as long as the liquid, so I went back to the liquid. I make enough to fill 4 jugs and this lasts me a long, long time.

 

[enola]

I make mine dry with the washing soda, borax, baking soda, 1 bar of Fels naptha soap and one bar of pink Zote soap.

There is only me to do laundry for and I think this batch may last me nearly a year. No fabric softener here either.

 

[Beekissed]

Don't you just love not having to buy ol' stinky store bought detergents? I can't bear the smell of them, even the "unscented" ones. And they always leave static in the clothes...I hate that.