- Apr 5, 2012
- 51
- 14
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So, I made an incubator, using the ideas here. It's made from a styro cooler, has a fan, and a water heater thermostat. I've had it running this afternoon to tweak it and whatnot. There are issues and I'm not sure how to manage them.
I have three thermometers in there. An Essick thermo/hygro combo, a Taylor bulb, and a digital Acu-Rite that records max and min. using a probe. I also stuck a normal (for humans) thermometer in through a vent hole for an extra reading while tweaking. Each has different readings and I don't know what to make of it. The thermostat turns the light on at 96.9/96/94.5/94.5, respectively. It turns off at 105.9/100/100.0/103.5, also respectively.
It's maybe worth noting that I took the back plastic off of the Essick because it was taking 15 min to give "accurate" readings (like if I moved it from the house to the garage). Now it reads quickly, but that could be a factor in it's readings.
The fluctuation of temp from cycle to cycle is reliable, with the Taylor and Acurite being pretty much exact and the others being within a degree. After the light turns off, the temp seems to continue to climb about 1degree before starting to fall.
So, given that data, what do I trust, temp-wise? With such a huge variation, I'm not sure. Also, is the on/off cycle too inaccurate, with the air temp dropping so low? I know the eggs will retain some heat and I think I should find a place for a heat sink, so maybe that's fine? A cycle lasts about 9 min (3 on, 6 off)
I have a 60w bulb in there now. I imagine switching to a 40 would slow the warm up, but obviously not the cool down, so it would take longer to recover from the cooling part of the cycle. Going up to a 100w would red the warming and thus shorten the cycle. I'm not sure if that's good or bad. Would it be better to change over to a dimmer and find that "sweet spot" where it just holds at 100 without turning it off or on?
This is going to be my first hatch, which I hope to do in January. Any insight would be greatly appreciated.
I have three thermometers in there. An Essick thermo/hygro combo, a Taylor bulb, and a digital Acu-Rite that records max and min. using a probe. I also stuck a normal (for humans) thermometer in through a vent hole for an extra reading while tweaking. Each has different readings and I don't know what to make of it. The thermostat turns the light on at 96.9/96/94.5/94.5, respectively. It turns off at 105.9/100/100.0/103.5, also respectively.
It's maybe worth noting that I took the back plastic off of the Essick because it was taking 15 min to give "accurate" readings (like if I moved it from the house to the garage). Now it reads quickly, but that could be a factor in it's readings.
The fluctuation of temp from cycle to cycle is reliable, with the Taylor and Acurite being pretty much exact and the others being within a degree. After the light turns off, the temp seems to continue to climb about 1degree before starting to fall.
So, given that data, what do I trust, temp-wise? With such a huge variation, I'm not sure. Also, is the on/off cycle too inaccurate, with the air temp dropping so low? I know the eggs will retain some heat and I think I should find a place for a heat sink, so maybe that's fine? A cycle lasts about 9 min (3 on, 6 off)
I have a 60w bulb in there now. I imagine switching to a 40 would slow the warm up, but obviously not the cool down, so it would take longer to recover from the cooling part of the cycle. Going up to a 100w would red the warming and thus shorten the cycle. I'm not sure if that's good or bad. Would it be better to change over to a dimmer and find that "sweet spot" where it just holds at 100 without turning it off or on?
This is going to be my first hatch, which I hope to do in January. Any insight would be greatly appreciated.
