DIY Incubator with dimmer instead of thermostat?

[Bettacreek]

What is your approximate hatch rate with the dimmer? The heat control is the only thing holding me up from getting the incubator going, lol.

 

[BirdBrain]

Quote:
The wafer is the thingy that expands and in so doing pushes against a switch which turns the heat/light off. When it cools it shrinks and comes away from the switch, turning the light/heat off. There is a turn key that comes out the back that you can adjust how close the wafer is to the switch. Clockwise turns make it cooler, counter clockwise turns make it hotter. When you install a wafer thermostat you attach the wafer and turn the key until the wafer meets the switch and than back it off 4 full turns before turning it on. Adjust from there...

 

[Bettacreek]

Alright, thank you. I'm going to try to find a wafer thermostat locally (we live in a farm area with a feed store in all of the "big" towns), because otherwise it's closer to $30 to have one shipped in. I'm a little worried about the dimmer, because I have a bad habit of forgetting, and I think a manual turner will be enough for me to remember, but if I have to, I will try a run with the dimmer.

 

[Bettacreek]

Umm, wow. I called around to the feed stores, the feed/hardware store and Tractor and Supply. Guess what... NOBODY carries thermostats. There was one place that I was recommended to check, as they *MIGHT* have them in stock, but I didn't bother, that place is an hour and a half away.

 

[Three Cedars Silkies]

I used a dimmer initially but the problem is with ambient air temperature. If it goes up, the dimmer does not turn the light off...therefore the temp in the bator rises dramatically.

If your bator is in a stable air temp room...like a basement...then it might work well enough.

In Florida the air temp changes too rapidly. I too had some deformities due to dramatic temp changes during incubation. Put in a thermostat and it stays even now.

 

[shelleyd2008]

I tried making a hatcher with a dimmer switch. Just for the last 3 days of incubation, I would need to check it almost hourly, or the temp would go too high or too low.
Lowe's has some water heater thermostats that are low end temperatures. I had one, and sold it to a friend. She used it in her DIY incy, it works very well. I wouldn't worry too badly about temp swings +/- 2 degrees, the inside temp of the egg is what matters, and it takes a while for the temp of the egg to change.

 

[PandoraTaylor]

Double R doesn't ship to Alaska???



Shipping Quote

We are sorry, but there no available shipping methods for your order.

Possible issues are:

Shipping Weight of your order does not match any available shipping method.
We do not ship to entered shipping address.

 

[BirdBrain]

That's rediculous. I think I'll call them in the morning. When I was in Texas they shipped fast by USPS.

So I put in Akaska and got the same message but you know what? I entered my MiL's address in Texas and got the same message. Their site must be screwed up. Call them tomorrow and see if they can't ship you one. I am planning on getting some replacement wafers just in case.

 

[BirdBrain]

I just spoke with Michelle, the owner of Double R Supply and she confirmed that they do have a glitch in the system that does not allow them to give a quote but that the shipping is properly calculated at checkout.

Pandora, yes they do ship to Alaska. A thermostat would come via USPS.