Borotto Incubators (All about)

[RoosterML]

I have both the Borotto and Incuview - but the Lumia 16 which is FLAWLESS. Yes there's no hygrometer, but I easily just added a couple extra hygro/thermometers in. I still prefer the rolling turning of the incuview, but the capacity just isn't there, so just recently ordered a real 49 since I have had such good hatch rates with the Lumia 16. Not bothering with the pump, I don't mind manually putting in water. Have had great success with both machines for call ducks, micro serama, japanese bantams, etc. as well as much larger eggs like standard cochins. Worth the money, and still much cheaper than the brinsea.

I also had the incuview before I purchased the Borotto. Both great units just remember to rotate the eggs every 5-6 days in the Borotto

 

[Finnie]

so just recently ordered a real 49 since I have had such good hatch rates with the Lumia 16.

You ordered a Lumia 49? Or did I miss something?

Edit to add: I did not know “real” was a brand. I had googled Lumia incubators, but only 8 and 16 came up. So that’s why I got confused. After I posted, I googled “Lumia 49”, and the “Real 49” came up. Sold by Premier 1. Got it! Not confused any more!

 

[RoosterML]

You ordered a Lumia 49? Or did I miss something?

Edit to add: I did not know “real” was a brand. I had googled Lumia incubators, but only 8 and 16 came up. So that’s why I got confused. After I posted, I googled “Lumia 49”, and the “Real 49” came up. Sold by Premier 1. Got it! Not confused any more!

Heck what you said confused me

 

[AngeJD]

You ordered a Lumia 49? Or did I miss something?

Edit to add: I did not know “real” was a brand. I had googled Lumia incubators, but only 8 and 16 came up. So that’s why I got confused. After I posted, I googled “Lumia 49”, and the “Real 49” came up. Sold by Premier 1. Got it! Not confused any more!

Yes lol - Borotto has 2 main products, the Lumia line which are their newest models, they have the clear top like the Incuview, and come in a Lumia 8 and 16 (8/16 egg capacity). The Real is their older model, also comes in 2 sizes with the Real 49 being their big one with the 49 egg capacity. Similar to how the Lumia works, but no clear top - instead you have two little windows for viewing!

 

[Biga1280]

I Just got my Real 24 in the mail yesterday. I immediately unboxed it and set everything up. I’ve had it running for a tad over a day and a half now. I did not buy the humidity pump. I have one reservoir filled like it said to do for the first 14 days. I have a thermometer/hygrometer in there to verify my temps, and the temp is inconsistent in all areas on the egg tray (sometimes as much as 2 degrees F) although the humidity stays around 35 %. Is this something I should be concerned with? I’ll be using this to hatch quail eggs.

 

[AgnesGray]

Thank you for sharing your experiences!

I was a hairs breath away from buying a Real 49 on Premier 1 and decided to come check out what BYC peeps have to say about them and am now not 100% sure. I have more turkey eggs pouring in than I have incubator space for and incubating them all would probably pay for this new bator, which I am tempted to do, but would probably not cover the cost of the more expensive Brinsea and definitely not a GQF Sportsman (my original plan lol).

Would you that own them buy it again still? Without the humidity pump or with it? It looks like it's about a $100 upgrade at the moment. Thanks!

Edit to add: can anyone compare it to the NR 360s? I currently have a few of those (LOVE them) and the way they turn the eggs all around the heat is even and the humidity is easy, they just have the limitation of taking a lot of space for the 22 eggs that they hold.

 

[Biga1280]

Thank you for sharing your experiences!

I was a hairs breath away from buying a Real 49 on Premier 1 and decided to come check out what BYC peeps have to say about them and am now not 100% sure. I have more turkey eggs pouring in than I have incubator space for and incubating them all would probably pay for this new bator, which I am tempted to do, but would probably not cover the cost of the more expensive Brinsea and definitely not a GQF Sportsman (my original plan lol).

Would you that own them buy it again still? Without the humidity pump or with it? It looks like it's about a $100 upgrade at the moment. Thanks!

Edit to add: can anyone compare it to the NR 360s? I currently have a few of those (LOVE them) and the way they turn the eggs all around the heat is even and the humidity is easy, they just have the limitation of taking a lot of space for the 22 eggs that they hold.

I am in the process of hatching my 2nd batch of quail now. The first batch I got 30 out of 38. This is the only incubator I’ve ever had. I’ll say this, there is a lot of fluctuation in the temperature across the surface after the egg turner is removed. I had a 2 degree difference between the left side in front of the window and the right side. You kinda have to manage where you put your eggs when it comes to that. Otherwise, the humidity is pretty easy to control. I downloaded the Govee app to go with my hygrometers so I’m able to keep an eye on the numbers through Bluetooth. I wouldn’t buy the humidity controller. Hope this helps.

 

[TwoShepherds]

I just hatched out chicks (chicken) the other day with the Real 24--This time I had 79 percent hatch rate from shipped eggs which I am quite happy with. Last time I got 19:20 of the eggs I set to hatch; unfortunately I lost one egg during lockdown, but it was an almost perfect hatch--they were my own backyard eggs.

I didn't use the humidity pump--it flooded my tray several times on my first attempt to hatch quail eggs and I've been afraid to try it again. Others seem to have better luck with the pump (based off reviews online) so perhaps it was user error...but if so, I don't know what I did. I read the instructions meticulously. At any rate, I don't have a problem manually filling the reservoirs. I wish I had saved the $100 I spent on the pump. Results may vary???

I always place several thermometers/hygrometers inside the incubator and the temp does seem to vary slightly in spots--but as long as all temps are in a safe range I don't obsess over it. I believe you are supposed to rotate the eggs every 5-6 days--I just rotate after candling. My last two batches have started pipping around day 19 and hatch on day 20, though this time I had three hatch later (day 22).

I would love to try the NR360 to compare the two incubators. Brinsea seems stellar but I can't justify spending that kind of money for the small number of eggs I'm likely to hatch in a year. I chose the Borotto because it seemed like it was reliable, and the price while not cheap seemed reasonable. The egg turner was what put me over the edge. I like that it holds different sizes of eggs--at the time I thought I was going to be hatching both quail and chicken eggs, and I had read a few reviews where people said they had to manually turn quail eggs in the NR360 and I don't have time for that.

I don't regret getting the borotto and I would buy it again especially if I was planning on hatching different sizes of eggs. Turns out, I decided to get out of quail so if I were buying an incubator today only for chicken eggs, I don't know if I would choose Borroto or NR360.

 

[AgnesGray]

Sounds like 2 "no's" on the humidity pump. I like the idea of saving the $100, but also like dealing with humidity less. Especially with a few incubators running together at once.

That does put the Borotto at $385 though and Brinsea 56 EX to get the fully automatic humidity is $545. So a pretty big jump for that convenience.

Do you think the egg trays in the borotto would comfortably handle turkey eggs?

 

[TwoShepherds]

Sounds like 2 "no's" on the humidity pump. I like the idea of saving the $100, but also like dealing with humidity less. Especially with a few incubators running together at once.

That does put the Borotto at $385 though and Brinsea 56 EX to get the fully automatic humidity is $545. So a pretty big jump for that convenience.

Do you think the egg trays in the borotto would comfortably handle turkey eggs?

I might try the pump again someday with less expensive backyard eggs and update this thread. If I was dealing with multiple incubators I’d possibly be more motivated to tinker with it. If I remember correctly, problems arose when I was trying to raise the humidity, and I was hatching in November—while our humidity here in TN is usually unbearably high lol, perhaps the air in the late fall was dry?

I’ve never dealt with turkey eggs so probably best if I let others answer that question, but this is what the website says

“Successfully hatch eggs from: Chickens, pheasants, guinea fowl, quail, partridges and ducks. Eggs from some species of goose, turkey and peafowl may also be used. Very large eggs will NOT fit in the turner.”