Diary & Notes ~ Air Cell Detatched SHIPPED Chicken Eggs for incubation and hatching

[subhanalah]

So, can I send her some feed bags? Lol

 

[Bhmathews]

Is there anything is nerve-wrecking as incubating? I am worried about the moisture loss in my eggs, and am looking for advice. @Jbher and I are incubating together, and she has already asked for help with her babies. We both reweighed and candled yesterday (day 14). My average percentage of loss is 6.8%. I am incubating in a HB1588. I have a hygrometer which is calibrated. It reads different than the built-in gauge.

I had boosted the humidity at day 7 because my losses were close to 6%, but I must have over-boosted it. The humidity had been running at 35-40% prior to day 7, and I boosted it to around 50-60.

I would love some advice from you guys. The reservoirs were all empty, or near-empty when I checked yesterday. I put a small container of popcorn in to try to lower the humidity. The built in says 29% but the hygro says 40.

@Sally sun @Ozex

 

[ozexpat]

Is there anything is nerve-wrecking as incubating? I am worried about the moisture loss in my eggs, and am looking for advice. @Jbher and I are incubating together, and she has already asked for help with her babies. We both reweighed and candled yesterday (day 14). My average percentage of loss is 6.8%. I am incubating in a HB1588. I have a hygrometer which is calibrated. It reads different than the built-in gauge.

I had boosted the humidity at day 7 because my losses were close to 6%, but I must have over-boosted it. The humidity had been running at 35-40% prior to day 7, and I boosted it to around 50-60.

I would love some advice from you guys. The reservoirs were all empty, or near-empty when I checked yesterday. I put a small container of popcorn in to try to lower the humidity. The built in says 29% but the hygro says 40.

Sally sun Ozex

Something looks off. Even at 60% humidity, eggs will lose more than 0.8% in 7 days.

Make sure the vents are open

Dont go into lock down until you hear chiping from the eggs or see tthe first pip.

 

[Bhmathews]

Something looks off. Even at 60% humidity, eggs will lose more than 0.8% in 7 days.

Make sure the vents are open

Dont go into lock down until you hear chiping from the eggs or see tthe first pip.

Vents are open, have been since day 1 maybe my math is off? I'm using the same excel spreadsheet Jbher is. I can post the numbers so you can see it, but it will have to wait until Im done cleaning my house

 

[Bhmathews]

I knew I wouldn't be able to wait. Patience is not my strength.

I started with 39 but am down to 25. I redid all the averages for day 7,10 and 14 and the numbers are as follows:
Day 7: 4.20
Day 10: 5.744
Day 14: 7.3

The numbers were lower on day 10, but this time I only counted in viable eggs. There were some clears and blood rings, and I've lost 14 eggs since starting. Maybe it was those non-viable eggs that had messed with my numbers?

I ran a paper down down into the reservoirs and dried up any remaining water...there was a little, so my bad for not checking that. Hopefully humidity will start to fall now.

I should aim to lost about 3% between not and day 18, correct? I was planning on reweighing on day 16.

I'll be out of town on day 19, 20 and 21, but jbher will be coming over and checking my eggs. I'll wait for her to hear peeps before locking down for me if need be. So nice to have my chicken buddy so close!

Thanks for your quick response. I was freaking out a little.

 

[subhanalah]

If I had waited for an external pip to raise humidity on my last hatch,I would have lost more than three to shrink wrapping. That's my personal, limited experience so far

 

[ozexpat]

I knew I wouldn't be able to wait. Patience is not my strength.

I started with 39 but am down to 25. I redid all the averages for day 7,10 and 14 and the numbers are as follows:
Day 7: 4.20
Day 10: 5.744
Day 14: 7.3

The numbers were lower on day 10, but this time I only counted in viable eggs. There were some clears and blood rings, and I've lost 14 eggs since starting. Maybe it was those non-viable eggs that had messed with my numbers?

I ran a paper down down into the reservoirs and dried up any remaining water...there was a little, so my bad for not checking that. Hopefully humidity will start to fall now.

I should aim to lost about 3% between not and day 18, correct? I was planning on reweighing on day 16.

I'll be out of town on day 19, 20 and 21, but jbher will be coming over and checking my eggs. I'll wait for her to hear peeps before locking down for me if need be. So nice to have my chicken buddy so close!

Thanks for your quick response. I was freaking out a little.

you have a long way to go to get these eggs where you want them

you need them at around 12% on day 18 if you go into lockdown then. upping humidity will shut down evaporation.

please dont weigh again at day 16. the less handling the better,

If I had waited for an external pip to raise humidity on my last hatch,I would have lost more than three to shrink wrapping. That's my personal, limited experience so far

How often have you waited til first pip to lock down? How much weight had your eggs lost at 18 days? What is your ambient humidity?



In this situation we are dealing with eggs that are at risk of being too wet on day 18 to survive. They need every chance they can to evaporate off moisture.

When assessing risk versus benefit for actuins that veer from the norm, it would be better to have three shrink wrapped chicks rather than three dead in shell, swollen chicks.

the term shrink wrapping describes how a dry membrane looks - its not a powerful force that sucks down on the membrane like an imploding atmosphere. it occurs over hours. most shrink wrapped chicks I have seen pip early but cant manouver to zip - be it from being too swollen from not getting weights right, stuck because of delayed turning or some other cause of malposition.

In my display case hatcher I never add water. The hatching chicks give off plenty and normally the first pippers/zippers are the strongest and are out long before the drying out of membranes occurs. This method is in a high humidity environment. The only times I get shrink wraps is when someone opens the bator and there are slow progress eggs in there. my last hatch on shipped eggs was 115 hatched, 4 pip and die, 2 zip and die.

 

[subhanalah]

Oh, mine were the early developers. I didn't listen to the eggs and raise the humidity in the styrofoam I cubator when I witnessed the dip in the air cell and waited some hours. The late developers popped out just fine.

 

[chicksooner]

Sally Have you seen these?
http://www.eggcartons.com/Plastic-Incubator-Liner-for-Little-Giant-Incubator-p/lgl.htm

 

[Bhmathews]

you have a long way to go to get these eggs where you want them

you need them at around 12% on day 18 if you go into lockdown then. upping humidity will shut down evaporation.

please dont weigh again at day 16. the less handling the better.



In this situation we are dealing with eggs that are at risk of being too wet on day 18 to survive. They need every chance they can to evaporate off moisture. 

When assessing risk versus benefit for actuins that veer from the norm, it would be better to have three shrink wrapped chicks rather than three dead in shell, swollen chicks.
[/quote]

Ok, so need to get them 5% more loss by day 18. I have an extra day, I set mine a day later than Jbher, so I was at day 13 when I weighed. I keep thinking she and I are on the same day. Everything is dry and I'm trying to get humidity down. I won't weigh again, but am concerned about not knowing where they're at.

Temps have been holding nicely. Should I open the bator once or twice a day to let off humidity?