3 Temperatures: Pick One

[dalbabes]

I got one of those cheapy $50 incubators off Amazon and I'm doing a first run. It says its running at 38 degrees Celsius/100 degrees Fahrenheit, but my 2 other cheapy thermometers inside right next to each other read 102 and 104 respectively. So now I'm trying to figure out what should I do? Do I risk running a little hot or running a little cooler? I'm thinking of splitting the different and decreasing the temperature 1.8 degrees. I'm in the CA heatwave so it could slant a little hotter anyways.

Any opinions?

 

[Egghead_Jr]

Yes, I have opinions.

First and foremost never trust built in thermometers on any incubator. Secondly use an oral thermometer to calibrate or find which of your two temp readings inside incubator is accurate.

Once you have a calibrated thermometer put a piece of tape over the incubator reading and take the other thermometer out. Use only one thermometer. Don't give yourself a headache or reason to second guess. It's just not worth it.

With your first hatch and the one thermometer inside incubator you'll know everything you need to know about every hatch thereafter. If the chicks hatch early then you need to incubate lower temp. If they hatch late then you need to incubate at a higher temp. If they pip the night of day twenty and hatch day twenty one into twenty two then that's where you need to be. Take the tape off the built in thermometer and write what the reading is on top of the incubator. From then on you would incubate at that incubators number knowing it is correct.

Keep it simple and write it down on the unit itself to always know.