I'm thinking about buying a Brinsea Octogon 20. I'd love to get some feedback about this or other Brisnea products...which model, what you like about it, what you don't like about it etc.
I just bought a Brinsea Octagon 20 ECO, the first set of eggs are in it right now, due the 10th of October. The Octagon shape is really cool, if I wanted to turn them by hand it would have been super easy, just tilt on one end, tilt back to flat, tilt on other end... I really dig the little racks, I can do goose eggs, duck eggs, quail eggs, a mixture of bantam and regular chicken eggs, I like the idea of that kind of flexibility. I have to keep an eye on the humidity vent hole, because it is very sensitive and just a little jar can slide it open or closed. The little thermometer it came with is very accurate, I set it up with 6 thermometers in it and it was right on the money where it needed to be! So far, so good, and all the eggs I knew were fertile are candling out alive and kicking!
I have the Brinsea Octagon 20 ECO, and am very happy with it. It's very user friendly, the thermometer has been very accurate in all my hatches, and with the turner in use, there is only humidity to think about. (the next model up in price has the optional humidifier, which would be nice, but it's pricey and I really don't find adding water when needed to be much of an inconvenience). If you're only planning to hatch a small number of eggs - no more than 2 dozen chicken eggs at a time - this is a very good choice IMO. Happy hatching!
I have a Brinsea Octogon 20 Advance EX (has humidity pump) and LOVE it. Hatches perfectly, we live in hot/dry central TX and I don't have to worry about humidity levels. Definitely recommend!
I own one Brinsea Mini Advance two Mini Advance EX and three Octagon 20 Advance EX incubators. Love 'em all! Started with the first Mini Advance, the next purchase was a Mini Advance EX (with the humidity pump) and then I bought an Octagon 20 Advance EX since I already knew how wonderful the humidy pumps are for someone who lives alone and works out of the home. They are not only fool-proof, they're downright Stupid proof! The second Mini Advance EX was purchased next, when I started buying lots of hatching eggs in BYC auctions, and I had a few more eggs than would fit in the Octagon. Finally, I bought the two additional Octagon 20 Advance EX units. Ya can't go wrong with Brinsea! Check the Brinsea FaceBook page for the monthly sales code to use at checkout, can be anywhere from 10 to 30% sometimes.
There are two types of Octagon available, the Eco and the Advance. The Eco just comes with a basic knob to adjust the temp up or down, and a glass thermometer to check it with. It doesn't have any digital display or other buttons to fiddle with. You can rock it side to side by hand to turn your eggs, or you can buy an auto turning cradle to sit it in. The Advance is the fancier model, with a digital readout. You set it to the temp you want, and the electronic innards do all the work to keep it there. If the temp in your bator room goes up or down, your bator will compensate and keep the eggs at the temp you set, which means you don't need to be quite so fussy about where you situate it compared with the Eco model. You can set an alarm to go off if the temp does go up or down, even though it's almost definitely never going to happen. And you get a constant readout of temp and humidity on the little display. The standard Advance model just shows you the humidity, but if you buy the EX humidity pump and plug it in, you can also program in the humidity you want and the bator will keep the humidity right where you want it too. Gryeyes is right, it really is almost completely stupid-proof. Which is why I bought one. And I've been completely happy with it.
Quote:IMO - if you have that many Brinseas, they should give you one for free!!!!!!!! That is a lot of incubators!!!!!!!!!!
I LOVE my Brinsea. I have the eco 20 as well. I do wish I had saved and purchased the Advance though. Not beacause the eco doesn't work perfectly, but because I as well work and have kids and can't always tend to the humidity when I should. The eggs I purchase are always expensive, so having the automation would be great and relieve some anxiety about losing expensive eggs. It would just relieve the unkown element of the humidity for me. Highly recomended company!
Another YES vote for Brinsea, I have an ECO 20 and it's very easy to use, temp stays steady and for a beginner incubator hatcher like me, the price was worth it. I have three ducklings warming up in my hair as I write, all hatched in the brinsea. I would definitely buy another, and spend a little more for the Advance, though so far the little manual vent and using sponges has maintained adequate humidity at hatch.
