Don't like my 2 Acurites I have. What can I get???

[ginbart]

The last time I had my bator running I had 2 Acurites and 2 other things in there to check the temp and humidity. Not one of them read the same.

Is there something better I could get and where could I get it.

I have silkie eggs and turkey eggs coming this week. My first silkies, I can't wait.

 

[AHappychick]

just split the difference, the temps and humidity alter depending on height in bator , and well as placement over the water trays (i think the evaporation cools the air directly above the water)

 

[ginbart]

The funny thing is I put them side by side with the cords right next to each other and they still say different things and their not in the bator. I could see if I had one on the top shelf of the bator and the other one on the bottor.

After reading your post I'm going to put them back in and see what happens with the evaporation.

 

[nhnanna]

did you try to calibrate them?

 

[Panther Creek Poultry]

How do you calibrate them, I would love to know?

 

[retiredwithchicks]

Found this on another post:

Here is a information on how to check the calibration of your hygrometer. It is helpful in that you then know how much to adjust for in taking your readings.

To calibrate a hygrometer you will need:
• 1/2 cup table salt
• approximately 1/4 cup water
• coffee cup
• hygrometer
• large re-sealable freezer bag
Place 1/2 cup of salt in the coffee cup, and add the water. Stir for a bit to totally saturate the salt. The salt won't dissolve in this amount of water; instead, the salt should have the consistency of wet sand.

Carefully place the salt/water mix in a re-sealable plastic bag, along with the hygrometer. Note: make sure none of the salt/water mix comes in direct contact with the hygrometer, or the hygrometer may be damaged. Completely seal the bag.

Place the sealed bag aside at room temperature for 8-12 hours. Pick a location free of drafts, out of direct sunlight, and away from heating or cooling vents. The temperature should be fairly constant.

After being in the sealed bag for 8-12 hours, check the reading of the hygrometer. It is best to read it while still in the bag, since if your house air is dry the reading may go down quickly once you take the hygrometer out of the bag.
The relative humidity in the sealed bag with the salt/water mix should be 75 percent. My hygrometer read about 72 percent.
If yours is the adjustable type, adjust the screw or setting so that it would have read 75 percent. You will have to do this very quickly, or remember how much you need to adjust the setting (e.g. for mine, it read 72 percent when it should have been 75 percent, so I would need to set it ahead by 3 percentage points). You may want to put the hygrometer back in the bag for another 8 hours to double check your adjustment.
If yours is not adjustable (like mine), simply make a note of how "off" your hygrometer reads. If it reads below 75 percent, you will need to add the difference to your actual readings. If your hygrometer read above 75 percent on the calibration, you will need to subtract the difference from your actual reading. Here are some examples to help:
Case 1: after sitting in the bag for calibration, my hygrometer read 72 percent.

It should have read 75 percent, so the difference is 3 percent. I will now add 3 percent to the readings I take on the hygrometer (e.g. in a tank) to get the actual relative humidity.
Case 2: after calibrating in the bag, a hygrometer read 80 percent. It should have read 75 percent, a difference of 5 percent. I would have to subtract 5 percent from readings when using the hygrometer to get an accurate relative humidity.
Remember: always give a hygrometer about 2 hours to stabilize before

 

[sunnychooks]

Great information!!!
Do you know if this will work with sea salt or do I need iodized salt?

 

[retiredwithchicks]

I don't know. Just found the info last night and saved it to use next week when I get my meter.

 

[ginbart]

Thanks for that. I need to go get some salt and bags but I will do it today. And for the temp I will just go buy a new thermometer.