Forced Air Incubator Deaths

[abot87]

Howdy everyone

I was wondering, if any other forced air incubator users are experiencing deaths in the top tray?
I use a 352 chicken incubator. 4 trays, temperature and humidity control, egg turner and built-in sterilizing light.



My tray setup is as follows:
I set my eggs in carton (not a big fan of the supplied eggs trays), on top of a non slip mesh mat for protecting newly hatched feet.
The open handles are covered with duct tape and I finish off with by placing mesh over the tray.

My trays are permanently on the turner, which is why I use the cartons. Each tray is packed, closed, labeled and left to its due date.
I remove new chicks daily as some have died after 7 hours in the incubator.

The mesh is so the chicks don't fall out of the trays once the hatching begins. I've had situations where they jump out at full tilt, luckily none have drowned. And spotting them at the bottom is impossible. The only clue is a zipped egg.

Anyhow, I don't know if its the heated down wind from the circulation fan or just just bad luck. Tell me your story...

ABOT

 

[Everlong]

pics?

 

[abot87]

Hi there,

My apologies for they delayed response.
I only set eggs once a week.

Below are some photos for visual reference.

Incubator tray handle holes are covered with duct tape,
Bottom of tray covered with fine mesh to protect newly hatched feet,
Egg are set in cartons for more stability (King quail eggs are too small for industrial quail egg trays),
Trays are covered with mesh to keep hatchlings inside as they tend to fall out of the trays at full tilt (they stay in the turner until they hatch).

ABOT

 

[robdog]

Curious whats your hatch rate and how much did the incubator cost you?