Bread Box Incubator

[Cheryl]

Thank you! I know exactly what they are! Once I get my coop in order...maybe eggs will be my next adventure! It certainly wouldn't come as a surprise to DH...he thinks I"m nuts, but is very indulging to my new passion!

 

[MissPrissy]

I have had a set back. I am hoping that so early in the beginning of the incubation it won't prevent a successful hatch.

Our weather has been dry and hot. We have been in drought conditions for the better part of 3 - 4 months. It rained yesterday for the first time since July. This created a havoc in what has become the norm here. The humidity has changed, the temps are on the cooler side of 70 whereas usually it is a warmer 70. All of the changes have caused my cellar temps to change. The humidity is fluctuation and so is the temps.

I have had to move the incubators to another part of the house. I set them up in my husbands study where the servers are. That room now is the only room in the house with a constant temp that is generally on the warmer side.

When I checked the incubators this morning the temperatures had swung from 94.7 - 103.1 nothing was holding and nothing was regulating.

Since moving the boxes I am watching and now attempting to keep a constant temp and to regulate them again.

Keep your fingers crossed that this hasn't flubbed the hatch in either box.

 

[speckledhen]

Priss, I feel your pain! After trying numerous ways to get our fridge-a-bator to regulate, DH decided to re-do the entire thing. He turned it on its back, like a chest freezer, moved all the components and now, it's holding temps and humidity like a charm. We lost so much time and sleep over trying to get the thing to work. We even put the wafer thermostat back instead of the water heater one. The super-insulated body of the fridge and the double paned window DH put in seem to be great for holding temps in the horizontal mode. The upright mode just refused to do right for long no matter which thermostat we used.

 

[MissPrissy]

Since the weather change I have found it impossible to keep a steady temp in the water wiggler. Which is VERY odd because I can keep the air temps at 102.

I am going with the 102 air temp and see what happens by day 7 when I candle the eggs. I was up every two hours last night keeping a check on the eggs and the temps.

I am hoping and praying this hatch isn't a loss.

Dang weather patterns

 

[arlee453]

Good luck with it

 

[MissPrissy]

Today is day #5. The temps are holding. I am still nervous. Very nervous.

Humidity is low this morning but I added more water.

 

[MissPrissy]

I couldn't wait and I candled eggs tonight. I can see veins in the eggs in the potato box bator.

These blue orp eggs are so dark I just can't tell for sure. I'll candle them again in a few days.

I am so hoping these have a happy ending.

 

[speckledhen]

That's good news! I sure hope you have a great hatch with these-you're due!

 

[mamachick]

Hello all! I've only had my chickens just over 1/2 a year, and have been collecting eggs for a couple of months. I had sent in a concern about my poor rooster not fitting in with the slightly-older hens, but only this past weekend he has gone through some sort of puberty? And I do believe that within the next short while I can be expecting fertilized eggs! I'm sooo proud of my boy!!

Anyway, that being said, I don't know the first thing about incubating or raising eggs. Your incubator idea may just ease my husband's pain about the costs of my hobby. Can anyone give me a list of minimum essentials that I should have in place for an incubator? Also, as I collect my eggs daily, how can I tell each day which eggs are fertilized and which are not; and how long after a fertilized egg is laid will it be ok for before placing it into an incubator? Should I be concerned if the hen that laid it has left it after laying if it's only been a few hours?

Lots of questions. As I am coming at this from a completely new perspective, I'm open to any and all information that anyone is willing to share. Thank you so much!!

 

[speckledhen]

Hi! The Potato Box and Bread Box incubator threads basically tell you everything you need to build any bator, so peruse those all the way through.
When you gather eggs, you will not be able to tell which ones are actually fertile. You just have to incubate for several days to a week then candle them. Collect them for about a week, but no longer than two weeks before setting in the bator. Technically, you can grab an egg out of the nest and place it in the bator, but you don't want to do that till you have all the eggs you want to hatch and put them in as a group so they are on the same day of incubation.