First Time Incubating!!!! What do I need to know??????

[brockj10]

this is my first time doing this i bought an octagon incubator and i was wondering what tips y'all had for a newbie like me???

 

[matlock585]

The best thing I can tell you is really monitor your humidity. The egg has to lose a sufficient amount of fluid for you to have a healthy chick. If you run the humidity too high, the chick will grow to large to position itself properly for the hatch, and if it does get where it needs to be, it will most likely drown as soon as it pips. Very heartbreaking to see the outside of the shell pipped and a dead chick inside.
Here in beautiful middle Tennessee, it's naturally very humid, so I don't use any water and try to maintain my humidity at 25-30%. If it get's below 25 I can usually close one of my vents and get it back close to 30. I don't add any water till lockdown, then I target about 45-50%. It will spike once the hatching begins. This works best for me.
Search the forums for air cell development and you will see how your eggs need to look at day 7, and if they don't seem right, you've got a week and a half to correct it.
Best of luck to you though! Mine are due for lockdown SuperBowl Sunday.