Day 19 -Quick help plz! Is adding a cut up sponge on top of the eggs..

[wjmccoy]

the right way to bring up the humidity? I cut one up into 8 large pieces and wetted it and placed the pieces on top of the eggs. It was completely dried up this morning. Since I know I need to be hands off the next two days, I want to make sure that I'm doing the right thing. This is a 4H thing with no humidity meter. Does this all sound okay? There's a water pan under the eggs, but the bator doesn't seem to sweat anywhere but near the pan at the bottom. With the sponges on top of the eggs, it sweats toward the upper part more, and I think that's what I've read is the correct look for hatching.

Thanks!
Jenny

 

[MissPrissy]

If you lay the sponge directly on the eggs you may risk those eggs absorbing alot of moisture and drowning the chicks if it condesates in the air cell.

Check your humidity with a digital hydrometer. If you are showing sweat on the window I think the humidity is far too high.

I had to raise my last 2 hatchlings to 80% and never got sweating.

You want about 70% humidity.

Too much and you will get birth defects earlier in the development and mushy chicks at the end. Too much humidity and they will drown in their shells.

Good luck with your hatch.

 

[Katy]

When I add a sponge to bring the humidity up I just add a sponge which I lay in a butter tub lid and then I wet the sponge. Helps keep the moisture in the sponge instead of it draining away right away, but there's no container of water that I have to worry about a chick drowning in.

 

[Tuffoldhen]

You do not want your sponges on top of the eggs...just on the wire and do like Katy says....

 

[wjmccoy]

So do you think since the sponges on top dried out overnight (day 18) and I've removed them that I'm okay? I keep checking for peeping, but that might not be until tomorrow anyhow. Surely any interior condensation would be gone by then.

Thanks for all the responses!

Jenny

 

[Tuffoldhen]

Just be patient...It's only day 19 for you...you will do fine...keep the humidity 60 to 70%....when they do pip it can take 24 hours for them to get out of the shells...

If you need help someone is usally here that can answer your questions....

 

[wjmccoy]

Bear with me! Day 20 today, the window is still sweating, which worries me that its still too humid. We live in the country and all 3 kids have had the flu, the last one started last night. So I won't be able to retrieve a humidity checker just yet. No peeping and so since I wanted to try to air out some of the humidity, I candled one being sure to not turn it and replace it in the same position it was in. I did see movement, but also a large air cell. So I checked another and again what seems a large air cell. The homemade bator I have on loan has stuff taped over almost all of the venting holes, I didn't realize that's what they were until I saw some info. The 4H person must not have realized what the holes were there for. So I am pulling the tape back to be sure it has good ventilation. Really the humidity has been fine until I put the sponges in, which have been removed.

So do you think its too humid or since the air cells are large maybe I should go back to adding the sponges but not on the eggs. I suppose it really could be either. I think they look a little small, they don't look like the picture of a 20 day old chick, maybe one extra day of growing. Sorry to have such little info on this process, I didn't realize the stress involved in hatching chicks! Thanks for all the support...

Jenny

 

[MissPrissy]

If your window is sweating opening the vents will help wick it away.

I would not add any more wet to it until some of it dries up.

If your temps and humidity (which are closely related) have been off you could have a hatch delayed by a day or two.

Close the bator and sit on your hands at this point. If today is day 20 you still could go 2 or 3 more days and have good results.

This part is always nerve racking for me too!

Good luck!

 

[wjmccoy]

Thank you for some quick words of encouragement! I promise not to open it until the hatch is done! My husband is getting ready to take the computer to work, thereby ending my internet access, so again thanks for the quick reply to help get me through the day with less worries ; )

Jenny

 

[horsejody]

Good luck.