Can't stabilize Brower incubator

[banter]

I can't stabilize the temp on my Brower incubator! It will shoot up to 104, the down to 95.
I've had it running for 4 days. My house is kept cool, but it's in a draft free bathroom.????????????
Help!
Banter in Maine

 

[ginasmarans]

Whwn my temps get like that, I find that changing the thermastat will fix it right up.

 

[Smitty's Farm]

What model Brower do you have? Do you have more than one themometer in there to compare the temps?

 

[perrym1962]

May need to get a new wafer. More than likely that is the problem...

 

[MissPrissy]

I agree to the suggested replace the wafer. If the temps still flunctuate you can add a sealed jar of hot water to help act as a heat sink. The water won't change temps as easily or readily as the air.

 

[Mrs MIA]

I'm having a similar problem. It's a brand new thermostat, but I don't think it's sensitive enough to keep the temps within 1-2 degrees. I also have 3 jars of water in the bottom of the cooler as a heat sink, and shielded the thermostat from the light, in hopes of evening out the temps. (It's a homemade incubator, following your design, Miss Prissy.)

My question is this... is it better to let the air temp fluctuate from 97-104°F if the "egg" temperature (inside a water wiggler or baggies with water) stays within 0.6°F of 99.5°F? I want to try to set a small number of eggs to test it out tomorrow, but if I can't get it to stabilize, I don't know what to do...

(The humidity is holding around 60-61%.)

 

[hypnofrogstevie]

I think thats fine if it says 99.5 in the wiggler. I never had any problems with my brower. this is my second time using it and I got 2 more sets comming next month

 

[Mrs MIA]

Thank you... I'm watching the cycles, and it looks like the light kicks on around 97°F and off at 105-106°F, but the temp inside the baggies doesn't change more than 0.5°F either way... I'll be patient and let it cycle through a few more hours before panicking.

 

[hypnofrogstevie]

lol! I hope everything goes well. How do you change the thermostat? I accidently threw out the manual because I really did not need it. I have the parts list still

 

[Mrs MIA]

It's just a simple water-heater thermostat from Home Depot. But I'm finding that it's not very sensitive. So far the T°-air range is ~ 97-106°F (avg 101.5°F). The T°-egg is up to 98.8 °F, and I'm assuming it will rise a little more over the next few cycles. Each cycle is approx 30 minutes. The thermostat just has a little screw in it that you turn up or down (very little!) but unfortunately I have to open the incubator to adjust it.

Here's a link that shows what the incubator looks like. http://picasaweb.google.com/K9Mom2008/EggTurner?authkey=7SdMVIn_O0M
If I ever build one again, the thermostat will go in the middle of the cooler, and not right above the light. I put some reflective insulation between the light and the thermostat, so hopefully it's reading a little more accurately.