coachYania
In the Brooder
- Feb 23, 2015
- 91
- 20
- 48
It did, thanks, she is doing better
Air Cell/ Humidity
- Thread starter amynrichie
- Start date
Good to hear that!
coachYania
In the Brooder
- Feb 23, 2015
- 91
- 20
- 48
She is already walking, yesterday she couldn't even stand, thanks a lot!
That is awesome!!!
I'm on day 15. I candled the eggs last night and all 24 have squirming chicks in them but the air cells seem small compared to the pictures I see here. Is there something I can do to help them or do I just have to let nature take its course? Temp is steady at 99.5 and humidity is between 45 & 50 like I was told... this is my first hatch so i don't want to unknowingly kill my chicks by accident!!!
If your air cells are too small, it's because your humidity was higher than necessary for your conditions. Was it the incubator manual that told you to keep it at 45-50%? It's unfortunate that they do, because that causes problems for many people.
As this is your first hatch and you are nearing the final stretch, there is little you can do, but the best thing you can do is to remove all the water from your water trays until the 18th day of incubation, when you remove the eggs from the turner if you have one, and allow them to prepare for hatch. Also open the vent plugs on your incubator, but carefully watch the temperature to ensure that opening the plugs does not cause the temperature to destabilize. If it does, simply remove the incubator lid while you wick out the water, leave it off for about 15 minutes, then put the top back on. The warm eggs will lose a considerable amount of moisture, and so will the incubator foam if it's a foam incubator. The brief cooling period at room temperature will do no harm to the eggs, as they cool down rather slowly compared to the air.
Add water to try to reach 60-70% humidity for the last few days. Ideally you'll have the water in place before the first pip, but if your pips come earlier than expected, get water in as fast as you can and close the lid and do the hardest thing of all...wait.
It's much easier to adjust the humidity gradually over the first two and a half weeks. Trying to adjust all at once, late in incubation, is hard. So don't be surprised if a few just don't make it out of the shell. Good luck!
As this is your first hatch and you are nearing the final stretch, there is little you can do, but the best thing you can do is to remove all the water from your water trays until the 18th day of incubation, when you remove the eggs from the turner if you have one, and allow them to prepare for hatch. Also open the vent plugs on your incubator, but carefully watch the temperature to ensure that opening the plugs does not cause the temperature to destabilize. If it does, simply remove the incubator lid while you wick out the water, leave it off for about 15 minutes, then put the top back on. The warm eggs will lose a considerable amount of moisture, and so will the incubator foam if it's a foam incubator. The brief cooling period at room temperature will do no harm to the eggs, as they cool down rather slowly compared to the air.
Add water to try to reach 60-70% humidity for the last few days. Ideally you'll have the water in place before the first pip, but if your pips come earlier than expected, get water in as fast as you can and close the lid and do the hardest thing of all...wait.
It's much easier to adjust the humidity gradually over the first two and a half weeks. Trying to adjust all at once, late in incubation, is hard. So don't be surprised if a few just don't make it out of the shell. Good luck!
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The place I got the eggs from told me about the humidity and she also sent an article from backyard chickens which said the same thing...guess this was a learning experience for sure! I will take the water out and hope for the best! what should the humidity be if I ever incubate any other eggs if it's been too high this time. I was prepared to not have all of them hatch but after seeing them all moving in there I feel bad for possibly killing some due to my inexperience...
Well, everyone has success with slightly different methods, as we all use different types of equipment and different environmental conditions. We also find over time things that just work better for us when we do it that way, but it may not work well for others.
So the most important thing is to let the EGG tell US what it needs.
We do that by monitoring the air cell during incubation, from the initial size at set through day 18. If the air cell is on track at day 7 and 14, then day 18 should bring no surprises. For me, an incubator set humidity of 38% average works. Others are great at 21%. And a few do need to maintain 45% to offset really dry ambient conditions, or frequent incubator opening.
Temps are the same, we generally run 99.5-100.5 in a fan assisted incubator, or 101-102 in a still air.
Vents open or vents closed depends on how well your incubator holds humidity, but one challenge is ensuring good air exchange while maintaining high humidity at lockdown, so many resort to adding sponges, wet rags, or additional water containers.
Taking good notes during incubation is essential to better results in the future. Mark the air cells with a pencil when you candle, and you will soon learn to know when you need to raise or lower humidity. Make the adjustment, and check again in a couple of days.
Hatching eggs is like making bread. You start with a recipe, then when you get it to work, you tweak it to make it work better for you. But hatching is SOOO much more addictive!
Happy hatching!
So the most important thing is to let the EGG tell US what it needs.
We do that by monitoring the air cell during incubation, from the initial size at set through day 18. If the air cell is on track at day 7 and 14, then day 18 should bring no surprises. For me, an incubator set humidity of 38% average works. Others are great at 21%. And a few do need to maintain 45% to offset really dry ambient conditions, or frequent incubator opening.
Temps are the same, we generally run 99.5-100.5 in a fan assisted incubator, or 101-102 in a still air.
Vents open or vents closed depends on how well your incubator holds humidity, but one challenge is ensuring good air exchange while maintaining high humidity at lockdown, so many resort to adding sponges, wet rags, or additional water containers.
Taking good notes during incubation is essential to better results in the future. Mark the air cells with a pencil when you candle, and you will soon learn to know when you need to raise or lower humidity. Make the adjustment, and check again in a couple of days.
Hatching eggs is like making bread. You start with a recipe, then when you get it to work, you tweak it to make it work better for you. But hatching is SOOO much more addictive!
Happy hatching!
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You're on day 15, so there is plenty of time to adjust and get the air cells a bit bigger. If you have a fan forced incubator your temp is good but in my opinion that humidity is too high, especially if you are using a styrofoam bator. A "dry" or "low humidity" incubation is much better in my opinion. I would agree with WalnutHill and remove the water. Pat the water wells dry with a cloth/paper towel and run dry for 24 hours. Recheck, at least spot check a few of the eggs after 24 hours to monitor the progress, (you don't want them too big either or that will cause it's own problems.) If they still appear small do the same for the next 24 hours. Seeing that you are only at day 15, running dry should average you out before lockdown and let you proceed to lockdown on time.
This is the method I use to incubate where humidity is concerned. I swear by this method, (at least for styrofoam bators). http://letsraisechickens.weebly.com...anuals-understanding-and-controlling-humidity
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