Many Folks Are Having Eggs Go Overdue For Hatch And Wondering If They Are Duds, Late, Or Have Had Some Sort Of Fetal Demise.... The Float Test Is Simple Yet Effect Way Of Checking Egg Viability.
I Normally Give Eggs A Full 24 Hrs Overdue Before Float Testing. It Works On All Bird Eggs- Period! Takes Very Little Equipment Or Time To Do And Is Easy To Perform.
Start With A Bowl Of Sufficient Depth To Allow The Eggs Your Testing To Float Freely Or Sink. Add 100 Degree Water To The Needed Level And Allow It To Settle( Quit Swirling And Calm Down)
Once Settled Take The Egg Or Eggs To Be Tested And Gently Lower Them Into The Water With As Little Disturbance As Possible. You May Need To Wait A Few Minutes For The Water To Settle Again After Adding Egg/ Eggs. Then Just Watch....
Eggs Are Judged By Observation With Results As Follows:
1. Sinker= Dud, Never Developed
2. High Floater (like A Fishing Bobber Without Weights) Say 45% Or More Of The Egg Above The Water Line= Dud, No Development Or Fetal Demise, Likely Rupture Of Internal Membranes Causing The Egg To Dehydrate.
3. Low Floater= Viable Egg, Development Full Term
4. Low Floater Rockin And Rollin! This Is The Live Embryo Moving Inside The Egg= Definate Viable Egg!
Once Test Results Complete Take Viable Eggs And Gently Pat Dry And Replace In Hatcher. Duds Are Best Discarded At This Time.
It Should Be Noted All Eggs Warrant Close Inspection Prior To Float Testing--- Any Pips In The Shell? Do Not Float Test! If The Shell Is Broken, Pipped Or Cracked In Any Way Water May Enter And Drown The Chick Inside
This Test Works Off Of Air Cell Development With Embryo Growth. Infertile Eggs Will Have An Underdeveloped Or Absent Air Cell That Isnt Large Enough To Float The Egg....thus The Sinkers. Ruptured Membranes Will Allow The Egg To Dehydrate.... Thus The High Floater. Proper Development Of The Embryo Will Cause The Air Cell To Develope To The Point Where Viable Eggs Will Float With Approximately 10-15% Of The Egg Above The Water Line--- These Are The Viable Eggs. Obvious Movement Of The Egg Shows Signs Of Life For The Chick Within. Works On All Bird Eggs From Hummingbirds To Ostriches
This is GREAT advice! First time I've seen it (I'm a newcomer to all this!) and have been struggling with the whole 'candling' thing to work out what I was seeing - this is much easier and now I'm all excited as the two eggs I just tried (due in 2 days) seem to be of the semi-floating variety
Thanks!
Many Folks Are Having Eggs Go Overdue For Hatch And Wondering If They Are Duds, Late, Or Have Had Some Sort Of Fetal Demise.... The Float Test Is Simple Yet Effect Way Of Checking Egg Viability.
all eggs that have lost the proper amount of weight to hatch are going to float. Even a infertile it would float if it was incubated for 21 days, as long as it didn't go rotten of course. If you see no wiggling or movement in the water from the egg then it is likely dead. Can you candle it and see any kind of movement at all? Do the contents slosh inside of the egg?Hi I just tried a float test with an egg on day 23. Every other egg has hatched except for this one, no pip, i candled and saw no internal pip or heard no chirping and saw no movement. When I did the float test just a bit of the air sack part stayed above water while the rest went under. Is the egg dead or alive? Any help would be very much appreciated.
