candling question

[TriskeleFarm]

My eggs are at 8 days... I am not an expert candler and it might take a while for me to see and mark them all...how long can I leave the incubator open safely?

 

[CluckNDoodle]

It should be fine while you're candling. It's better to be careful than to rush and have an accident while candling. When you look at a broody hen she will get up 1-3 times a day for 5-15 minutes to eat, drink, and relieve herself. Nature accounts for this and the eggs won't be harmed by short periods of cooling just for candling. I'm always careful to wash my hands thoroughly before I start so I'm not introducing any bacteria or skin oils to the eggs and I like to fold a towel in front of me for softness and to have something to rest an egg on if needed. Will this be your first hatch?

 

[TriskeleFarm]

It should be fine while you're candling. It's better to be careful than to rush and have an accident while candling. When you look at a broody hen she will get up 1-3 times a day for 5-15 minutes to eat, drink, and relieve herself. Nature accounts for this and the eggs won't be harmed by short periods of cooling just for candling. I'm always careful to wash my hands thoroughly before I start so I'm not introducing any bacteria or skin oils to the eggs and I like to fold a towel in front of me for softness and to have something to rest an egg on if needed. Will this be your first hatch?

Yes, first time! I've had broody hens hatch but I didn't have to do anything with those

 

[Kiki]

Don't leave the incubator open.
Take one egg out at a time.

 

[Braves06]

I agree with Kiki take one out at a time for no more than 10 minutes

 

[Braves06]

Happy hatching

 

[Kiki]

I agree with Kiki take one out at a time for no more than 10 minutes

One minute...or less.

 

[Kiki]

Candling should be quick...steady and quick.
Less than a minute for sure.

 

[hysop]

I’m only on Day 4 and I’m waiting impatiently haha. I did candle one today to give me some peace of mind. It’s growing, yay.

The built in thermometer is reading 99.5-100.2 (shifts throughout the day) but my separate one is showing 95-96 degrees so I’m confused which one to believe since they are growing and I don’t want to fry them by turning up the heat. So I may just wait it out and learn any lessons during my first hatch.

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Not to get in a debate, everyone does things a little differently and there's nothing wrong with that so if you carefully open the incubator each time that works too but just for informational purposes from my own experience, I leave the incubator open every time I candle and it hasn't caused any issues in the last 12 hatches with multiple species. It doesn't take long to candle an egg but it certainly isn't harmful for them to cool temporarily while candling either. Some incubators even have a daily cooling feature built in (I don't use this feature personally, but it's there).

@TriskeleFarm You may enjoy joining a hatch-a-long since it's your first hatching experience! There are usually many experienced hatchers as well as other new and it can be extremely educational and helpful to someone new to hatching!