Bread Box Incubator

[MissPrissy]

Julie, I should be getting 6 blue orp eggs from Cynthia in tomorrows mail and this is the incubator I built to hatch them in.

 

[MissPrissy]

I did a better demo of the wiring for those with questions. You can find it here

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=19643

 

[MissPrissy]

I am updating to document the operation of this incubator.

I managed to find another old cpu fan and have installed it.

I am finding with the wooden bread box that the temp in my water wiggler flunctuates from 99.3 - 101. The air temperature is remaining lower 96 - 98. The humidity is hovering at 40%.

I also expected this smaller box to be much easier to regulate but it was a real bear. I have 2 small lidded jars for a heat sink which help to regulate the temp flunctuations. They were really swinging the first day.

I have used 3 other thermometers and one probe to accurately check the temps. The air temp is lower than the water wiggler probe temp. I am using a 40 watt bulb. The 25 watt bulb was not doing the job in this box like it did in the styrofoam bator.

I believe I should be keeping my eye on the water wiggler probe temp and not the air temp.

What do you more expert hatchers think? Probe temp or boost the temp a bit to bring up the air temp?

My eggs from speckled hen arrived yesterday morning and have been sitting on the counter resting for 24 hours. I have not put them in the bator yet. I am going to at 12 noon.

 

[speckledhen]

I found with my wooden bator that it was wonderful for holding humidity, but the temps were at first a bit harder to control till we made the entire bator smaller, 8" high rather than 16" high. (it's 22 or 23" square). It could be that there is air leakage around the lid or somewhere making the temps swing.
My sense is that the water wiggler is a better judge of true temps. Egg contents will not swing in temp as rapidly as air temp which will go higher and lower than the actual eggs, while the eggs stay pretty much the same. You just dont want air temps to stay high or stay low, thereby changing the egg temps.

 

[MissPrissy]

The box doesn't have an air leak. I used window/door stripping to make sure the lid had a good seal. I drilled two vent holes and plugged one. I could not get the humidity up and steady with both plugged.

I am confident with the probe temp. It is seeing the air temps being lower that is making me crazy!

I want this to work. I want to give these eggs a fighting chance to produce little chicks.

As confident in myself and the things that I do - I am a complete wreck over these eggs! Especially Skye and Suede's 6 eggs.

Am I insane? LOL

I will need prozac by day 10 when I plan to candle.

 

[speckledhen]

Now, do NOT make yourself crazy over these eggs! Probably best to forget that air temp and watch the weasel thing. To make you feel better before you even candle, remember, Skye is young, a new layer, and isn't even a proven breeder yet, although Velvet is (darn that lazy girl!). If hers don't develop properly, it probably isnt even anything you did. All you can do is all you can do and there are more eggs where those came from-it isn't your only chance! So, did that psychology work, LOL? Relax! We do get so intense over these eggs, I know, especially when we've had some not-so-great hatches.

 

[skeeter9]

Miss Prissy - I am having the same concern you are - for some reason my air temp is reading lower than my wiggler temp. Never had that happen before, and it doesn't make any sense. I'm just watching my wiggler temp and hoping for the best. My hatch is due in 2 days!!

Lori

 

[silkiechicken]

Here's an idea. What color is your wiggler? If you ever did thoes experiments of color paper, ice cubes and sun, the color of the paper in the bag would affect how much heat from the sun would get absorbed. This could be very well the case here. Since you are using a light, the wiggler could be absorbing more heat than the air will read. Kind of like how you burn your hand on the hot seat belt clip in cars but you can stand sitting in it.... that has some other properties actually but I'll not get into it. "Shade" the wiggler and see what happens.

Edit: I noticed your wiggler was pink, I remember red being more adsorbent to heat from sun than black was!

 

[MissPrissy]

One is clear tinted pink. The other is whitish clear. I will shade them and if there is a change.

 

[speckledhen]

Good idea! I did have to put a deflector in front of the light bulb to dissipate the heat more evenly and not just be baking my eggs when we first built our wooden bator. Just a piece of bent metal in front of it helps, but you also need to put something to keep hatching chicks from being able to contact the lightbulb. I shaped a screen from hardware cloth; well, DH did.
BTW, my wiggler is medium orange.