First time incubating

[vikkic08]

Okay, I am new to the chicken world. I have own my chickens for just a couple of months. I decided to try and incubate a few off my hens fertile eggs. I have 8 eggs that I put into my homeade incubator. I made it from an igloo ice chest. I put the eggs in there this morning, after letting it heat up for a day. they humidity was at 45% when I put them in there, so I added a little water. I have been told to keep it at 101.5 degrees bc its a still air, and 60-65% then up to 80-85% humidity the last three days. I noticed the humidty went up into the 60's. the temp was running from 97-104 (Thermastate would cut off at 104 and turn back on when it hit 97). When I went to rotate the eggs the humidity was up into the 70's , about 71 honestly, but temp was still the same. I noticed there was water in the bottom of the cooler, I quickly removed the eggs covering them with a towel to keep in warmth, dried the bottom from all water and changed out the container that I believe had a leak. Now my temp is staying between 59-64, but my temp is only going from 97-100. Is that temp fine? I was told for still air it had to be 101.5 degrees. The termostat is cutting off at 100, but earlier it was cutting off at 104. I did not touch the thermostat....can it change? What do i do? Do i bump up the thermostat? Thanks a bunch!!!!

 

[RWise]

Where is your thermometer located in the bator?

 

[vikkic08]

In the center of the eggs. Here's a photo I took to show you. Well I took this photo yesterday during the day, but the placement is the same now. When I went to bed (3am) I slightly turning the thermostat up about 30-45 minutes prior, it is letting it get up to 102 before shutting off the light now.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Temperature is extremely important and low temps can cause chick mortalilty and late chicks having other issues as well. Is the bator in a pretty controlled room temp wise?

 

[vikkic08]

Yes, I did bump the thermostat slightly last night before bed, as of today it has maxed at 102, and the light comes back on at 99.
As I was typing this I looked over at the light, the temp was down to 84 degrees! My idiot husband unplugged my incubator. I know it was on at 5pm, do you think this possible 2 hours of low temp could have killed the eggs? I am so mad at him now!

 

[fishermans wife]

I think you will be OK. I would bring the temp back up and candle on day 5 or 7 , if they are good you should see some veining, then you will have a good indicator that things will progress.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Yes, I did bump the thermostat slightly last night before bed, as of today it has maxed at 102, and the light comes back on at 99.
As I was typing this I looked over at the light, the temp was down to 84 degrees! My idiot husband unplugged my incubator. I know it was on at 5pm, do you think this possible 2 hours of low temp could have killed the eggs? I am so mad at him now!

I was freaking about this too! I posted signs on all doors, CLOSE QUICKLY QUIETLY, ductaped the plug put signs at the bator DO NOT OPEN!! pssss I have a housefull of kids!! big and little LOL

 

[marritimer]

Glad I found this thread. Here's a newbie question. I'm planning to start a hatch in about a month. I get between 7-9 eggs a day. I want to have up to 24 in my incubator. How do I keep the eggs I want till I get the right amount. I have no broody hens and my coop is too cold to let the eggs sit there. Do I put them in the incubator, marking them, possibly having different hatch times? That probibly wouldn't be good due to different temp and humidity requirements at different times? Would my best bet be to be happy with 6 eggs from one day? I don't want to screw this up!

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Glad I found this thread. Here's a newbie question. I'm planning to start a hatch in about a month. I get between 7-9 eggs a day. I want to have up to 24 in my incubator. How do I keep the eggs I want till I get the right amount. I have no broody hens and my coop is too cold to let the eggs sit there. Do I put them in the incubator, marking them, possibly having different hatch times? That probibly wouldn't be good due to different temp and humidity requirements at different times? Would my best bet be to be happy with 6 eggs from one day? I don't want to screw this up!

Here are my notes Hatching Eggs 101 ~ this is a paste from the hatching 101 ......

Collection & Storage of Eggs
Sources for eggs are to search the BYC buy sell trade section, Craigslist and eBay. Your local thread on BYC may be the best bet for local eggs! Look for your local site in the “Social section” “Where am I? Where are You!” on BYC.

Choose eggs that are of good size, not abnormally big or small. Do NOT set dirty, cracked, or porous eggs. Try not to wash eggs as you will disrupt the protective barrier. Avoid using cloths to clean eggs because this removes the egg's protective coating and exposes it to entry of disease organisms. The washing and rubbing action also serves to force disease organisms through the pores of the shell. Place the eggs upright in an egg carton with the FAT, air cell end of the egg UP! Allow eggs to sit in a moderately cool, somewhat humid place for storage. Basements are great. Moderately cool means 55-65 degrees. Rotate your eggs a 3 times a day to keep the embryo from sticking. An easy way to turn all of the eggs at once is to place a thick book under one end of the carton, and later remove the book and put it under the other end of the carton, 3 times a day. Before adding eggs to the incubator always WARM eggs UP slowly to room temperature. IF THE EGGS ARE COLD Condensation can cause bacterial growth on the eggs! You can collect eggs up until 10 days or so, but after the 7th day lower hatch rates may result. Stored eggs take longer to hatch (about one hour per day of storage).

It is important to ALWAYS wash your hands before handling your hatching eggs!

Omphalitis, yolk sack infection is caused by a bacterium that enters through the porous egg shell and easily kills embryo's and newly hatched chicks. Unfortunately, incubation conditions are ideal for breeding bacteria as well as incubating eggs.
For more information on storing eggs refer to Recommendations for hatching egg handling and storage



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Is it Fertile or Infertile?​

To check the fertility, simply break an egg in a bowl. Find the white spot on the yolk. If you do not, use a spoon to gently flip the yolk over until you find it.


If the egg is fertile, the white mark will be nearly perfectly round and in the center it will be yellow;
it will resemble a donut. If it is infertile, the white mark will not be very round, and in most cases, smaller than that of the fertile mark. If the egg is not fertile, the 'white mark' is called a "blastodisc". If the egg is fertile, the 'white mark' it is called a "blastoderm", and this means that cell division, because of fertilization, occurred. A link with more pics of fertile vs Non Eggs! https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/16008/how-to-tell-a-fertile-vs-infertile-egg-pictures
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and a few other notes in articles.... Guide to ASSISTED Hatching ~ Mushy Chick Disease ~ Cooler Bator

 

[marritimer]

great info! Thanks alot!