Eva Gabor
In the Brooder
- Dec 6, 2016
- 1
- 0
- 20
Hello All,
I am new to any forums. I have never done it before.
I am a Disabled Air Force vet and I have started raising my own meat as a hobby.
In the process of learning to raise my own birds from eggs I spent $100 on a desktop incubator and it was crap.
I came up with a way to convert an old fridge into an incubator for about $50. You do not have to cut any Freon lines to do this. It includes a digital thermostat to control the temp to 99° F and an outlet box so you can plug in a couple low amperage devices like an egg turner or two. If you add a light socket and fan to the mix you could make any container into an incubator. It's just that a fridge already has a fan, a couple lights, and doors, and drawers, and shelves, and can be cleaned well and cleaned easily and it's well insulated. And.....you can get super nice refrigerator for free off craigslist. I am keeping an eye open for a wine chiller/cooler with a clear door.
I have tested a few different ways to control the temp including using a hot water heater thermostat and the digital home thermostat works WAY better. The hot water heater thermostat allows the temp to spike resulting in a low hatch rate and deformed chicks. The highest the home thermostat can be set is 99°. The temp has remained between 98.9°-100° F measured with two digital thermometers.
I have hatched chickens, ducks, quail, and turkeys in this incubator.
But before I write everything up and post it, I want to know if anyone is even interested.
Eva Gabor
Green Acres
Jefferson, OR
I am new to any forums. I have never done it before.
I am a Disabled Air Force vet and I have started raising my own meat as a hobby.
In the process of learning to raise my own birds from eggs I spent $100 on a desktop incubator and it was crap.
I came up with a way to convert an old fridge into an incubator for about $50. You do not have to cut any Freon lines to do this. It includes a digital thermostat to control the temp to 99° F and an outlet box so you can plug in a couple low amperage devices like an egg turner or two. If you add a light socket and fan to the mix you could make any container into an incubator. It's just that a fridge already has a fan, a couple lights, and doors, and drawers, and shelves, and can be cleaned well and cleaned easily and it's well insulated. And.....you can get super nice refrigerator for free off craigslist. I am keeping an eye open for a wine chiller/cooler with a clear door.
I have tested a few different ways to control the temp including using a hot water heater thermostat and the digital home thermostat works WAY better. The hot water heater thermostat allows the temp to spike resulting in a low hatch rate and deformed chicks. The highest the home thermostat can be set is 99°. The temp has remained between 98.9°-100° F measured with two digital thermometers.
I have hatched chickens, ducks, quail, and turkeys in this incubator.
But before I write everything up and post it, I want to know if anyone is even interested.
Eva Gabor
Green Acres
Jefferson, OR
Last edited:
