I got a question for you @JaeG: I normally dry incubate as my ambient humidity is normally high. The other eggs I have brewing right now are running between 25-35% and doing great. I was reading about humidity with detached/wonky aircells and some say lower is better, and some say higher is better. These are also bantams (but so are the ones I have in the incubator already). What have you experienced? Thanks!
My last hatch had some tiny OEGB bantam eggs as well as huge Orpington eggs. I found their air cells grew at the same rate. I did a dry hatch for the first time because I had so many eggs in there. The humidity would have averaged probably 25%. But I've also run it at 30% and the eggs have done well.
I can't see any logic behind a certain humidity being better or worse for wonky or detached air cells. They won't lose moisture any faster or slower than usual as that all depends on the egg shells. Maybe if they were all very porous I'd go a bit higher.
I had a chick pip at 22%. The night before I'd checked and saw it was just starting to shadow at the low side of the air cell, so I thought I'd lock them down the next morning. I got up to find one already externally pipped and the humidity was only 22%! I just about had a fit, but the membrane was still white and it hatched just fine. I thought my tiny eggs would hatch first but it was actually my larger bantam eggs that led the charge.
I say stick with what you usually do and just keep an eye on them.
) and keep the low humidity. I normally do not add any water until day 18 or even 19 or the first internal pip. So I too will sometimes get external pips at lower humidities, before the water has been added, and they hatch no problem anyway.
Here's hoping for a 100% hatch of the fertile eggs!
