April 2020 Hatch-A-Long! All are welcome!

[CluckNDoodle]

Seeing all of this math and everything, makes my head hurt.

I feel like incubating shouldn't be such a hard process. I don't even do anything like this, but I don't deal with other people's eggs.

I know the quality of my eggs and they're like gold to me especially with 90% hatch rates.

Does doing all this math truly give you a better hatch rate?

lol! No, it doesn't for me, I've always gone by air cell development but everyone is different. Do what you're comfortable with! Weighing is more effort in my opinion but it also takes a lot of the guess work out for someone that has never hatched before and is struggling to decide what the "right" air cell development looks like even with diagrams.

This was actually my first time weighing along side watching the air cell development because someone requested that I do it for different sized eggs. I'll eventually put together an article with both methods to help people decide what works best for them.

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

Seeing all of this math and everything, makes my head hurt.

I feel like incubating shouldn't be such a hard process. I don't even do anything like this, but I don't deal with other people's eggs.

I know the quality of my eggs and they're like gold to me especially with 90% hatch rates.

Does doing all this math truly give you a better hatch rate?

I think it’s a good way for people to touble shoot issues. For example, the poster that’s weighing her eggs this time, had a bunch DIS at the end of her last hatch and she suspects it was due to too low humidity and weighing them this time sort of takes the guess work out of it. It can give some peace of mind. I did it once and never plan to do it again because it was just too much work and math for me. But if I was having issues and couldn’t figure them out, I’d consider doing it.

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

Woke up to 4 eggs pipped (Day 20). Looks like maybe I’ll have a couple March babies haha. 2 are pipped in the wrong end. These aren’t shipped eggs so not sure why these babies are all turned around!

 

[Jules929]

I'll "weigh in" on the topic.
Since I can't have a rooster, I always incubate shipped eggs.
I originally used a pencil to mark the air cells. The irregular air cells weren't as easy for me to decide if the air cells were progressing properly, so I started weighing the eggs.

I work with math regularly in my job. I loved the Excel spreadsheets that @julskinka posted. Once I set up my own spreadsheet it is just a matter of entering the weights and the spreadsheet does the calculations.

For me, the measurable numbers give me more confidence than marking the eggs.
I think the key is to use the method that is most comfortable for each individual.

 

[FortCluck]

I think it’s a good way for people to touble shoot issues. For example, the poster that’s weighing her eggs this time, had a bunch DIS at the end of her last hatch and she suspects it was due to too low humidity and weighing them this time sort of takes the guess work out of it. It can give some peace of mind. I did it once and never plan to do it again because it was just too much work and math for me. But if I was having issues and couldn’t figure them out, I’d consider doing it.

Yeah I have never had issues like that. My first hatch I had 9 DIS then I got advice to dry hatch, my humidity was too high.

I look at air cells. It's the key indicator of how your egg is doing.

I haven't sprayed my duck eggs at all yet because the air cells look amazing way better than my first hatch with spraying. I'm also doing them dry.

 

[Akoharski4]

First pip! Woo-hooo!

 

[Fatimetta]

The incubator arrived today! Now I am just shopping around for a good thermometer and hygrometer that will fit inside. They all seem good until you read the reviews...

 

[Fatimetta]

First pip! Woo-hooo!

Yay!!

I bought this thermometer/hygrometer: https://incubatorwarehouse.com/incubator-remote-thermometer-hygrometer.html

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

Yay!!

I bought this thermometer/hygrometer: https://incubatorwarehouse.com/incubator-remote-thermometer-hygrometer.html

That one looks nice!

 

[ChocolateMouse]

I was gonna use my dry erase board to take notes on my egg incubation and turning times but I misplaced it and can't find it. >(