40*F !!! Did I ruin my hatch?

[GracefulBantams]

I checked on my incubator this morning, and it read 40*F

I had a total of 45 eggs in it, with 20 being eggs that were donated for my 4-H poultry club, and the other 25 being eggs from my own fancy birds.
I have a thermometer that records the high and low temperature for a 12 hour period (I think it's 12 hours), and it said "Low 40F, High 99F". That means that it was sometime during the past night that it died. But 40*F is just sooooo low!

 

[slackwater]

Since you don't know how long it was off, or how cold hte eggs got, I say you wait until you'd normally candle and see how they faired. How far along are they? I know the earlier they are, the better the chances they survived.

 

[4-H chicken mom]

How long do you think it was at that temp? I would continue on, candle in a few days. You may be surprised. They are tough little buggers. Don't give up yet.

 

[Chosen Chickens]

I would do what the above post said and wait till you would normally candle them.... but just a heads up... most likely they are all gone... that is way way way way low, but you never know.

Also, I had heard that it is worse to have lows and highs at first when they are so tiny.... but the above said it is better then later.... which is right?

 

[greathorse]

Quote:
where is your incubator? It seems unlikely that it got to 40 degrees unless it is outside or garage. It wont of course get colder than the ambient temp. I had mine go off for about 18 hours and got down to 58 degrees and the hatch was pretty decent.

 

[GracefulBantams]

Quote:
They are a week and a half along. I set them the Wednesday before last.

 

[GracefulBantams]

Quote:
I think sometime late yesterday evening or during the night is when it quit. The incubator is wodden with insulation, and since it is well insulated I think they had only been at 40* for a very short time.... but 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, etc, none of those are good temperatures either

 

[GracefulBantams]

Quote:
I will candle them this evening or tomorrow, but I have accepted the fact that I may have lost the whole clutch

Since they are about mid-way, I suppose it wouldn't make much difference which was worse (bad temps at the first, or at the end)

 

[GracefulBantams]

Quote:
It's in a garage next to my house. I can believe that it got down to 40, since the air temp was 25 at the time.
That gives me a little bit of encouragement, thanks.

 

[fordmommy]

Don't give up! It may be that they will survive. Just today there was the first of a bunch hatched by a person who's mama must have gotten spooked and she flew out of the coop and the owner did not know how long they were with out there mama. Owner thought the whole lot had been lost. She candled them and at least 2 had movement after that happened. And now today....born! There may be a chance. Hang in there.


P.s. It was in the 30's there.