Current eggs are at day 12. Can I add more eggs?

[Alliegeiger]

I started a batch a while ago and they are now on day 12. I just had an egg order cancellation due to the cold weather and I don't want to waste some of the beautiful eggs I recently collected. Will there be any harm to the newer eggs come lockdown for the older ones?

 

[sylviethecochin]

Humidity has more effect as an average than it does as a constant, so I'd thinkthat if you were careful, nothing would be hurt--you could just lower humidity afterwards so that the eggs catch up to where they should be.

That said, I let my hens do the hard work, so I'll tap @Pyxis on the shoulder.

 

[feedman77]

How old are the eggs you are wanting to set?

Can you hold them for a few days before you set them. The closer the eggs incubating are to lockdown the less effect the humidity spike may have on the late setter.

But I hatch/incubate in a cabinet set weekly. Have not noticed any effects of the swing effecting eggs. They seem to catch up.

So I would set them as you feel appropriate.

 

[Pyxis]

Humidity has more effect as an average than it does as a constant, so I'd thinkthat if you were careful, nothing would be hurt--you could just lower humidity afterwards so that the eggs catch up to where they should be.

That said, I let my hens do the hard work, so I'll tap @Pyxis on the shoulder.

Yep, humidity is more about an average over the entire incubation period. The raised humidity for the three or four days that the other eggs will need it boosted could be offset by running a lower humidity than you usually would afterwards to get the eggs back on track to losing the proper amount of moisture.

Turning will be the real trouble. If you use an autoturner, you'd have to remove it, so then you'd have to turn by hand. And while opening the incubator briefly while in lockdown isn't an issue, opening it up long enough to turn all the eggs by hand may cause issues if it causes the membrane to dry out on any chicks that are pipped or zipping.

So you might not be able to turn the eggs during lockdown, which may or may not cause issues. Some people say that you can stop turning eggs after day 14 with no ill effects, but yours would only be on day 6 when the first batch goes into lockdown.

 

[Alliegeiger]

Yep, humidity is more about an average over the entire incubation period. The raised humidity for the three or four days that the other eggs will need it boosted could be offset by running a lower humidity than you usually would afterwards to get the eggs back on track to losing the proper amount of moisture.

Turning will be the real trouble. If you use an autoturner, you'd have to remove it, so then you'd have to turn by hand. And while opening the incubator briefly while in lockdown isn't an issue, opening it up long enough to turn all the eggs by hand may cause issues if it causes the membrane to dry out on any chicks that are pipped or zipping.

So you might not be able to turn the eggs during lockdown, which may or may not cause issues. Some people say that you can stop turning eggs after day 14 with no ill effects, but yours would only be on day 6 when the first batch goes into lockdown.

Can I remove half the racks of the autoturner for the hatching chicks and leave the other side?

 

[Birdinhand]

make sure you mark them clearly so that you can remove the duds from this round after day 23 or thereabouts, don't want any eggsplosions messing up the second batch!

 

[JaeG]

I've done this many times with Button quail eggs. Never had a problem. I think turning them is essential in that first week and not quite so important after that. Otherwise put the second lot of eggs in a container that you can quickly and easily remove, turn all the eggs, then pop the lot back in, making sure your humidity is nice and high so it doesn't dip down too low as you do this. And if you can see the first batch pipping, just skip a day or so. Once your first batch is finished set the humidity to a bit lower to compensate for the few days the second batch were at a higher humidity. Good luck!

 

[lazy gardener]

I would not incubate them unless I had a separate incubator for them.

The discrepancy in needed humidity is only one issue.

You shouldn't be opening the bator during lock down to turn the other eggs. Even if you take some of the racks out of the turner so the new eggs can turn while the older eggs do not turn, that leaves the risk of chicks getting tangled in the turner.

Chicks are born with a knack for figuring out new and novel ways to commit suicide. "Hey, guys!... Watch this!" He says as he does a swan dive off the egg turner rack, while still dangling by half a shell attached to the umbilical cords.

Hatching is an incredibly messy process. The newly hatched chicks will be dragging their hatching goo all over the eggs which still have an other 10 days to go. They will turn the bator into a bacteria smeared mess. The air quality will go down, the younger eggs will be at huge risk of bacterial contamination which could kill them, or make them prone to omphalitis even if they do hatch successfully.

For all of these reasons, I'll not do a staggered hatch.

 

[Bryam]

Go ahead. I have had staggered hatches and no problems! I even forgot to raise the humidty and they still hatched!

 

[Alliegeiger]

I've done this many times with Button quail eggs. Never had a problem. I think turning them is essential in that first week and not quite so important after that. Otherwise put the second lot of eggs in a container that you can quickly and easily remove, turn all the eggs, then pop the lot back in, making sure your humidity is nice and high so it doesn't dip down too low as you do this. And if you can see the first batch pipping, just skip a day or so. Once your first batch is finished set the humidity to a bit lower to compensate for the few days the second batch were at a higher humidity. Good luck!

Good suggestion with the container! I would not have thought of that!