ANY advice in human incubating & hatching would be gratefully appreciated :)

i am reaching out to all to give me any advice to make sure i'm successful at hatching

  • candling

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • hatching

    Votes: 3 100.0%

  • Total voters
    3
Highly recommend a hygrometer to monitor and set your humidity. With experience and trial and error you could obtain great hatch rates without one but this being only 7 highly prized eggs I'd pick up a cheap one at your local box store. Cheap or expensive all hygrometers need to be calibrated so there is no need to spend extra money on one. Small, easy to fit in incubator is what you want.

I don't recommend multiple equipment. You'll tear your hair out or lose it to worry that they all read different. Calibrate one hygrometer and use a medical thermometer to calibrate temp. A digital or glass oral or other medical thermometer is the most accurate device you can find without paying over $100. Likely you already have one in the bathroom cabinet.

Still air incubators you set temp to 101-102 F measured at top level of eggs. An incubator with fan you set temp to 99.5 F at egg level.

Auto turners are awesome. After hand turning for years I'd lost the zest to turn religiously and hatch rate suffered. Picked up a cheap auto turner and back to 90-100% hatch. Being your first hatch hand turning shouldn't be a problem. Turn at least 2 times a day and more is better.

700


This is a good image to guide you for air cell growth. HIgher humidity retards moisture loss in egg and lower humidity quickens. I suggest a salt test on hygrometer and setting humidity to 30%. If by day 14 your air cells are small simply take out all water and run dry for as many days as it takes to catch them up before jumping humidity to 70% for last 2 to 3 days.

Salt test:

Fill a milk cap size container with salt and add drops of water until it's saturated. I pour off any standing water.

Put hygrometer and cap with salt in sealed container for 6 hours. I use a quart size zip lock bag and allow for a small pillow of air.

Record your RH reading after 6 hours. A salt environment is 75% RH for all ranges of normal temperatures. Subtract your reading from 75 and write that number on masking tape to fix to incubator as reminder of the calibration.

Ex: Your reading is 84%, 75-84= -9 You'll always subtract 9 from your hygrometer reading for true RH.
 
In that long winded post it's hard to believe I'd forgotten something...

Humidity is adjusted by surface area of water not the depth of it. To obtain a target humidity you need to add or take away area. Regional climates only affect humidity inside the incubator by how much or little surface area of water is needed to maintain target RH. For example, in my climate I only need to put a double shot glass of water in the incubator to hit around 30% RH. I literally place the shot glass in there. To hit 70% RH at hatch time I fill two of the four bottom troughs in incubator. Your climate and specifically how dry or humid your house is dictates how much surface area of water is needed to get to desired RH inside incubator. Once there your incubator environment is the same as a person in the mountains or dessert with same (calibrated) RH reading.

Most breeds do well at 30% RH during incubation. The thing that would change is if a breed has more porous egg shells. If Silkies do then a higher RH would be in order to slow the moisture lose in egg. All hatching is 70% RH regardless of breed.
 
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i am all so incubating 5 chicken eggs and this is my first time too i think im going to to candle my eggs on day 7 i just put then in four days ago and i already cant wait for them to hatch im hatching a white leghorn mix a barred rock mix and rhode island red mixs lol cant wait to see what they look like hope your hatch gos well good luck with your hatch and your flock :celebrate:thumbsup
 
Highly recommend a hygrometer to monitor and set your humidity. With experience and trial and error you could obtain great hatch rates without one but this being only 7 highly prized eggs I'd pick up a cheap one at your local box store. Cheap or expensive all hygrometers need to be calibrated so there is no need to spend extra money on one. Small, easy to fit in incubator is what you want.

I don't recommend multiple equipment. You'll tear your hair out or lose it to worry that they all read different. Calibrate one hygrometer and use a medical thermometer to calibrate temp. A digital or glass oral or other medical thermometer is the most accurate device you can find without paying over $100. Likely you already have one in the bathroom cabinet.

Still air incubators you set temp to 101-102 F measured at top level of eggs. An incubator with fan you set temp to 99.5 F at egg level.

Auto turners are awesome. After hand turning for years I'd lost the zest to turn religiously and hatch rate suffered. Picked up a cheap auto turner and back to 90-100% hatch. Being your first hatch hand turning shouldn't be a problem. Turn at least 2 times a day and more is better.

700


This is a good image to guide you for air cell growth. HIgher humidity retards moisture loss in egg and lower humidity quickens. I suggest a salt test on hygrometer and setting humidity to 30%. If by day 14 your air cells are small simply take out all water and run dry for as many days as it takes to catch them up before jumping humidity to 70% for last 2 to 3 days.

Salt test:

Fill a milk cap size container with salt and add drops of water until it's saturated. I pour off any standing water.

Put hygrometer and cap with salt in sealed container for 6 hours. I use a quart size zip lock bag and allow for a small pillow of air.

Record your RH reading after 6 hours. A salt environment is 75% RH for all ranges of normal temperatures. Subtract your reading from 75 and write that number on masking tape to fix to incubator as reminder of the calibration.

Ex: Your reading is 84%, 75-84= -9 You'll always subtract 9 from your hygrometer reading for true RH.
thank you for all the info, much appreciated :) , I have one of these incubators but i was told 60% was ideal before i found this terrific site.
 

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i am all so incubating 5 chicken eggs and this is my first time too i think im going to to candle my eggs on day 7 i just put then in four days ago and i already cant wait for them to hatch im hatching a white leghorn mix a barred rock mix and rhode island red mixs lol cant wait to see what they look like hope your hatch gos well good luck with your hatch and your flock :celebrate:thumbsup
Good luck to you too :thumbsup I'm pretty excited myself :celebrateas well as anxious :hmm, i hope all will be well and will look forward to your post of your new chicks when they hatch. :D
 
ANY advice in human incubating & hatching would be gratefully appreciated :)

ROFLMAO :lau Can't help myself. :wee sorry too funny :oops:actually tried this :eek: could actually work - human incubating eggs may be possible... :ducTucked stolen mallard egg in brassier to keep warm for few days but gave it back to momma and they all hatched and made front page in the Capital newspaper. :th:D:D

DOH! Why can't. I get this to display correctly?!? Never mind......
 
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ROFLMAO :lau Can't help myself. :wee sorry too funny :oops:actually tried this :eek: could actually work - human incubating eggs may be possible... :ducTucked stolen mallard egg in brassier to keep warm for few days but gave it back to momma and they all hatched and made front page in the Capital newspaper. :th:D:D

DOH! Why can't. I get this to display correctly?!? Never mind......
Okay, I need proof!!! Hehehe!! I did something similar when I was a kid. :p
 
Really
Okay, I need proof!!! Hehehe!! I did something similar when I was a kid. :p
Proof? You don't believe me...
:confused: can't. Was front pager but don't have photo
It was like 27 plus hatchlings assisted from west street to safety when they hatched
More: mallard nesting in planter in a courtyard 2× per year 4 years
 
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