What is the ideal humidity for hatching in an incubator?

[chickengeorgeto]

(Excuse the dangling participle) How much ventilation do you have going on?

What is your normal or background humidity?

You must add h20 to the air in your incubator to maintain "relative" humidity because as the temperature in your incubator increases the relative humidity decreases.

Are you in fact measuring the humidity INSIDE your incubator or the humidity entering your incubator?

Don't forget that when you add cool eggs to a running incubator the amount of heat needed to overcome the addition of cool objects (the eggs) rises. Perhaps something like a brick in the incubator for a few days before the eggs are introduced will provide a heat sink or heat reserve to prevent the thermostat from giving you wild swings in temperature.

I depend on this type of hydrometer. Not only will it measure relative humidity it also acts as a backup for your thermometer because it uses two thermometers. You'll also need to print off a scale to figure the true relative humidity. In other words, in the world of hatching eggs.... everything is relative..... sort of.

I find that the last 3 days a Wet Bulb reading of around 83 - 85 degrees is ideal. Of course 99 - 100 is about right in a multi level forced air GQF incubator.

I depend on this type of hydrometer. Not only will it measure relative humidity it also acts as a backup for your thermometer.

 

[frw1985]

I respectfully disagree.  The air cells are small for this stage of development, and it looks like the chicks died just at the point they should have internally pipped.  

This would indicate that the humidity was too high the first 18 days of incubation and the next try should have less humidity the first 18 days.  Also verify that the temperatures remain stable at lockdown when the eggs are removed from the turner and placed on the rack.  Often the change in distance from the heating element to the rack is enough to influence the hatch.

From reading some old files on line from Texas A and M Poultry Dept. They say several times in this excerpt your area/environment where you live Will determine the way you will be able to effectively incubate eggs. Changing up your ways will need to make adjustment for incubation depending on the end result and also looking at the eggs during incubation.
. Also they give broad areas for humidity 35-65 percent the first 17-18 days or 14 if dealing with quail. Most of the excerpt isabout quail. Which are a little harder to hatch than chicken . The shells can dry out very fast.
If you are going to watch the size of the sir sac, I woud finding a chart online to look at that will give you approx percentages of weight loss that is needed vs days of incubation. A small scale weighing in grams like used to measure powder for re-loading ammunition. There are some good ones online very inexpensive.
Another view!
If you think your chicks died before even trying to peep out . Then you might have something else going on besides humidity. If there is a bacterial problem going on it could take 16-18 days into the incubation before the bacteria kills the chicks. Bacteria loves to grow at the same temp and humidity as your chicks. Be sure to definitely sterilize your incubator and you might try to clean your eggs also.
We bought some hatching eggs from someone who is now has had a bad hatch with all of his flocks. He has advised us to now sterile our eggs before they hatch and our incubators. Also afterwards. At least the guy has kept in touch with his problem and told us about the problem.thankfully those eggs are alone in a separate incubator.
What does everyone use for disinfectant? Also your pricedure!
Where I live it is very humid all the time unless we have just had a cold front blow through and that doesn't happen often! We also live on a Large Lake and that raises the humidity also. All of these things do make a difference in hatching eggs.
I hope you figure it all out but don't give up! It shouldn't have to be this technical but sometimes it is.
Having chickens is half of the fun Hatching eggs and raising chicks is the other Half!

 

[MrsBachbach]

Look how most incubators with a fan are in the center and the top of the incubator. This circulates the air down and back up. That is why your humidity is lower on the bottom and higher in the top. Your humidity(water) is on the lower level!
I would move the fan to the top center next hatch and see if that takes care of the circulation. Also try moving your portable thermometers around to check for hot spots or cold spots.
I have built incubators , hatchers brooders etc and also been hatching for over thirty plus years. If your humidity is 40-60 you are probably ok. And depending on the humidity in your area and the air sac space on the egg will let you know if you need to raise the humidity, I use to just mist them a couple of days before hatch. I always had good hatches.
Remember those who are raising larger heritage breeds the larger the bird the lower the fertility. Same for the smaller bantams.
We raised jumbo pharaoh quail for years and we were pleased with an 80 percent hatch. But I could hatch my chicken or bantam eggs in with the quail and I would get almost a hundred percent every time.
It is like several I have said make adjustments for your area take notes if you have problems try something different. You will have to investigate the eggs that did not hatch to be able to make the determination as to what you need to change.
Yew are of the explosions. It doent like to wash off. Hazmat mask would be best!

I'm not sure what incubator you are referring to, but not the Hovobator I am talking about Mine reads the opposite of what you said. It reads a lower humidity at the top than what the bottom of the incubator reads with my portable humidity reader. This incubator has a digital display and that is what is reading a higher temp and lower humidity than what my portable thermometers and humidity readers say. I actually have a lower temp near the eggs and a higher humidity. That sounds reasonable though, because higher temps usually do mean lower humidity. Anyway, my point was don't trust the digital display. Also, the circulating fans on those type of incubators are not moveable. Really no other place to anchor them.

 

[Sprayanimal]

...

Alex,


I have only hatched 3 batches, but I´ve had very decent hatches.  I use 45 - 50 % humidity, so if I may advice, in your case I would lower, not increase the humidity for days 1-18 and I have had no problems hatching in the 60´s (preferably 65) % for days 19-21  Last time out I hatched 17 out of 20.  Good luck!




I put my humidity / thermometer under a broody hen the other night. Humidity was 55% temp was 99.4. A big no no is to open incubator once they start to hatch. Make sure fill water the day before and leave it be. If you must add water do it fast. And a slight mist with a spray bottle would be ok too warm water. Once they dry out the chicks stick and tire quickly. Once dry even strong chicks have little chance of breaking free.Good luck

 

[sonshine15]

I made my first incubator and put eggs in last night. I've been reading all the posts and have a question: For those without factory incubators, is misting, water on a sponge, or water on a paper towel getting the best humidity levels? I have a sponge in a small bowl and am continually adding a couple holes to my box.........

 

[lazy gardener]

Do you have a hygrometer? How big is your incubator? Do you have a space to put a sponge or dish of water that is not in the hatching chamber? I've used dishes of water and sponges in my home made bator. For good optimal control, sponges sitting in a little cup, with a straw or length of airline tubing so you can add water directly to the cup without opening the bator work best.

 

[sonshine15]

Thank you! I didn't think of a tube! It's only a small styrafoam (sp) cooler. I copied one on youtube while hubby was at work. It came out nice. He came home and added a dial to my electrical to get the temps right. I did get the temp set after half a day but the humidity was still a bit off. The tube would have solved it. I went from a 3" sponge to a strip of a sponge, got it set then it began drying too. I'll put the tube in and try it next. Family emergency so I may not be on here for a week or so. Then I'll put eggs in again and be able to leave them more than a day.

 

[RVAnnie]

Yikes. I start my hatches with 3 cups of water in the incubator and eventually it gets down to about 25-30% for the balance of the time till lockdown. I boost the humidity starting day 17 to 50-60% and then on up to 75% for day 18 and beyond. You can get a digital thermometer/hygrometer at walmart pretty cheap or on Ebay. I have 3 thermometers in my bator in different spots. I also have analog thermometers and hygrometers in the bator. I have had between a 53-85% hatches using this semi dry method.

Don't drop your humidity suddenly. mop out most of the water out of your bator and open any vent holes you may have plugged. Let the humidity drop to 50% for a day or 2 then lower again unless you are getting ready to lock down. Candle your eggs and look for movement. You won't see much because they are getting big. Let us know what happens. You can also float candle them if you aren't hearing chirping. Warm to the touch water and the egg should float and wiggle on its own if the chicks are still viable. Dry off egg when done. Good luck. My fingers are crossed for you.

 

[YborChix]

I have an old 1602 with no turners. I added a large pc fan that works best if it is blowing "UP" towards the wafer. Sometimes it seems like the temp is all over the map and who remembers to turn eggs perfectly? But the last one I did, I got 100% hatch. Now it's just a back up for the digital.

 

[MimaB]

I'm trying to hatch Khaki Campbell ducklings in a DIY incubator.
Finally won with humidity regulation:
FOR BASIC REGULATION: a small water dish with floral foam, water topped up without opening the bator by means of a baby intravenous needle (scalp vein set or "butterfly needle": small needle attached to 30 cm plastic tubing) - any fine tube or a drinking straw will do.
FOR FINE TUNING: wet cotton wick hanging near the light bulb - the wick goes through a hole in the incubator lid and its upper end is kept in a water container outside of the incubator; by regulating the length of exposed wick you can adjust the humidity - particularly useful during the lock-down period. Make sure your hole is big enough for the wick to slide in and out easily; when not fiddling with the wick, seal around it with putty