im in central NH and after testing i have found a good number of my eggs fertile, i would like to incubate them but dont want to waste my time, i was wondering how long an egg can survive in the cold, my hens are not broody so the eggs are layed and left, sometimes its a few hours before i get to them, i dont think they are frozen as they are not cracked, just wondering if anyone had any input?
If they havnt frozen then give it a go they should be ok. Just make sure they are room temp befor putting them in the incubator , if its chilly outside that could take a bit so give them a good 12 hours or so . How many eggs do you get and how many are you wanting to set. Just out of curiousity?
If your coop is unheated, uninsulated, the temp is below freezing and the eggs have been in there for a couple hours you can probably forget it but down to freezing they should be viable.
as long as you hadnt let condensation at them and they werent frozen I would set them! Good Luck! https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/hatching-eggs-101 "IF THE EGGS ARE COLD Condensation can cause bacterial growth on the eggs!" Omphalitis, yolk sack infection is caused by a bacterium that enters through the porous egg shell and easily kills embryo's and newly hatched chicks. also this is a good read http://www.lohmann-information.com/content/l_i_46_artikel7.pdf
