Changing incubator mid incubation

[annabellaknits]

So I have been following this site for over a year now! Love it! I am now needing advice. This will be my first time incubating my own eggs. I purchased a Hova-Bator 1583 with turner from ebay about two weeks ago. I assumed because of the shipping information that it would be here by now....but its not. And I don't know when it will be? The issue is I have fertilized eggs that will be here tomorrow. My question is should I go buy the Farm Innovator Pro Series 4200, use it until the HB comes and then which the eggs over?
Should I just wait as long as I can, 7 days. Or just buy the Farm Innovator and use it through the hole incubation?

Thanks Guys!

 

[Ridgerunner]

That is a bit of a dilemma. I hate trying to time shipping things like that. It allows things out of my control to mess me up. I can do enough of that with things in my control. I don’t need the help from others. Anyway, you have a situation to deal with.

I don’t know when those shipped eggs were laid. When you get them they should rest overnight at least before you start incubating them and an extra day should not hurt. But you can’t wait indefinitely.

When you get an incubator, you should set it up and run it long enough to make sure the temperature is stabilized. A good calibrated thermometer can help you with that. The 1583 comes with the plastic tray with different reservoirs to put water in. It helps to fill different reservoirs with water and see what that does to your humidity before you start. That helps you know how to adjust humidity if you need to. That takes time because you need to totally dry out one reservoir before you check out the effects of adding water to others. You should do this, but several people don’t. They just crank it up, put eggs in, and learn this stuff on the fly. Sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn’t.

I don’t know how tight money for a second incubator is for you or how important or expensive those shipped eggs are. There is nothing wrong with moving eggs from one incubator to another during incubation. Some people that hatch a lot or do staggered hatches use one incubator as an incubator and at lockdown use a different incubator as a hatcher. You can approach it whichever way you want. I can’t say one way is better than the other, just don’t wait a real long time on starting those eggs.

 

[annabellaknits]

Thanks I agree I need to have time to watch the incubator before adding the eggs. I didn't want to spend more money but I think it might be what I have to do.

 

[annabellaknits]

What if I switch them over after a week when I candle them?

 

[Ridgerunner]

There is nothing wrong with moving eggs from one incubator to another during incubation. Do it whenever you wish.