Chicks in the incubator appear to be too hot!

[Shezadandy]

Thank you for all the great advice! Also, I thought it only fair to provide an update with almost all my sweet babies!! View attachment 2195578

I want to scoop them all up!!!

I've limited myself to mostly broody hen hatches, though I use my incubator often for the first 16 days before the hen is separated from the flock and introduced to her hatching crate. I like to let them have their freedom to go on and off the nest as they please until they're into their own lockdown phase. Can't leave hatching eggs in the coop because there are too many comings and goings and sometimes eggs are broken - or the broody switches nests and so on. If it's a first-timer and I don't want to be up all night making sure she's going to accept her new role, I'll hatch the first couple in the incubator and introduce them under controlled circumstances, then give her the remaining eggs back if all is well. So, I'm a frequent violator of lockdown convention. My favorites are the reliable broodies where I just check in in the morning and see if anyone hatched.

Thermometer wise, I use an Acu-Rite.

https://www.amazon.com/AcuRite-Humi...garden&sprefix=accurite,lawngarden,224&sr=1-2

 

[Stella2020]

Depending on your incubator, you could open a couple vents and see if that helps, or dial it back a degree or two and see if that helps. I'm far from a "purist" on the incubator remaining closed til the last baby hatches... I wait until they are dry and there are a couple/three them before moving them to the brooder so they've got company... grab them out … then close the lid again. Others will undoubtedly disagree with this method - not saying to go open and close it a bunch of times. Either way- if you have panting chicks it's too hot in there. Do you have a second thermometer in there with them to confirm what the incubator says?

I don't have a second thermometer to check, but I need to get one if I am going to hatch anymore. My first hatch I had so many get shrink wrapped and I assume it was due to me opening and closing the incubator so many times to grab them out and move them to the brooder. I have also realized that the humidity spikes up way high as a new baby chick zips and is about to hatch. I have found that opening the two "fill" vents on the bottoms helps keep the humidity down. The incubator I have came with instructions that say for hatching keep the humidity between 65% and 75%. I know a lot of people hatch at different humidities. What are your throughts?