Hi all, I'm new to the board, after reading some of the other threads around incubating, I've decided to try my hand as well. Can anyone confirm my logic for the electronics / heating for the 'bator?:
My electronics:
- Auber Universal 1/16 DIN PID (overkill but will use it for another project later)
- 100W 12V 60x60 DC PTC Fan with Heater (the picture is similar to the Incubator Warehouse unit at $50.00). Is 100W good wattage for a small to midsize box?
- Wire the fan to an old laptop AC adapter and then into 110V plug. The fan will run continuously. I'm going to point the fan downward, behind a false wall and then have the air come up from the bottom of the 'bator. The idea is not to have the fan blowing directly on the eggs and drying them out. The hot air would also pass over the water tray to maintain humidity. Living in the high desert, keeping humidity at the right level will be a challenge for me I think.
- Wire the 12V heater element to an old laptop AC adapter and then into the PID unit. The specs say that the controller has enough amps to run the heater, eliminating the relay switch.
- RTD PT100 Temperature Sensor wired to the PID Controller.
Any thoughts as to whether it is better to pull or push the air from the heating element?
Does anyone have experience using a 1/240 RPM motor and have the eggs being continuously turned? There's a YouTube video of a chap in the Philippines that built his egg tray from aluminum tubing that I'm going to copy.
Any guidelines on how much fresh air needs to be brought in and where the holes should be placed? I'm not certain if i will recycle a min-refrigerator yet but the preference is to build from scratch and avoid the retrofitting. The internal dimensions turning in my head (at 1/240 RPM
) will be 6 eggs wide and 6-8 trays long, for 36-48 egg total capacity.
I will locate the PID and turner motor outside the box to avoid any heat generation and then have a small hole for the timing belt to the motor/turner tray.
In case anyone is interested in what this is costing me:
PID Controller - $41.25 (there are less sophisticated controllers starting around $15)
1/240 RPM motor - $11.95 (i have a 1 RPM motor for $2.99 that i will use if i don't like the continuous turning, but will then need to buy a timer switch to turn on/off)
Combo Heater/Fan - $13.89 (a single PC fan is around $6-8 new, the incremental cost of going with the combo rather than a light bulb for heating is small and allows for a more compact build)
RTD Sensor Probe - $7.11
Timing belt for turner - $0.60
2 timing pulleys for the turner tray - $1.99
Aluminum for turner tray - $5.00
2 AC adapters - no charge
Box/insulation - TBD but estimate $8.00 for the insulation and $30 - 40 for the pine 1x's
Reliable Thermo-Hygrometer - TBD (suggestions?)
Overall, i thought it was a pretty inexpensive way to get a (hopefully) top-notch incubator.
Thanks in advance for any feedback or suggestions if there's anything I've overlooked.
My electronics:
- Auber Universal 1/16 DIN PID (overkill but will use it for another project later)
- 100W 12V 60x60 DC PTC Fan with Heater (the picture is similar to the Incubator Warehouse unit at $50.00). Is 100W good wattage for a small to midsize box?
- Wire the fan to an old laptop AC adapter and then into 110V plug. The fan will run continuously. I'm going to point the fan downward, behind a false wall and then have the air come up from the bottom of the 'bator. The idea is not to have the fan blowing directly on the eggs and drying them out. The hot air would also pass over the water tray to maintain humidity. Living in the high desert, keeping humidity at the right level will be a challenge for me I think.
- Wire the 12V heater element to an old laptop AC adapter and then into the PID unit. The specs say that the controller has enough amps to run the heater, eliminating the relay switch.
- RTD PT100 Temperature Sensor wired to the PID Controller.
Any thoughts as to whether it is better to pull or push the air from the heating element?
Does anyone have experience using a 1/240 RPM motor and have the eggs being continuously turned? There's a YouTube video of a chap in the Philippines that built his egg tray from aluminum tubing that I'm going to copy.
Any guidelines on how much fresh air needs to be brought in and where the holes should be placed? I'm not certain if i will recycle a min-refrigerator yet but the preference is to build from scratch and avoid the retrofitting. The internal dimensions turning in my head (at 1/240 RPM
) will be 6 eggs wide and 6-8 trays long, for 36-48 egg total capacity.I will locate the PID and turner motor outside the box to avoid any heat generation and then have a small hole for the timing belt to the motor/turner tray.
In case anyone is interested in what this is costing me:
PID Controller - $41.25 (there are less sophisticated controllers starting around $15)
1/240 RPM motor - $11.95 (i have a 1 RPM motor for $2.99 that i will use if i don't like the continuous turning, but will then need to buy a timer switch to turn on/off)
Combo Heater/Fan - $13.89 (a single PC fan is around $6-8 new, the incremental cost of going with the combo rather than a light bulb for heating is small and allows for a more compact build)
RTD Sensor Probe - $7.11
Timing belt for turner - $0.60
2 timing pulleys for the turner tray - $1.99
Aluminum for turner tray - $5.00
2 AC adapters - no charge
Box/insulation - TBD but estimate $8.00 for the insulation and $30 - 40 for the pine 1x's
Reliable Thermo-Hygrometer - TBD (suggestions?)
Overall, i thought it was a pretty inexpensive way to get a (hopefully) top-notch incubator.
Thanks in advance for any feedback or suggestions if there's anything I've overlooked.
