Going into lockdown today!

[Bobby Joe]

Ok very excited but need some input do I leave them in the carton or take them out , if I take them out what do I put them on and how do I position them ?

this is what my incubator looks like inside.

 

[Baralak]

~~~~ Hatching Vibes ~~~~~


Very nice looking incubator!

 

[Inkheart]

I am not expert but it seems that some people leave in carton for hatching but alot take out of carton at lockdown time. The only reason it seems some dont like to take out as the hatching chicks play " soccer" with the ones that havent come yet and knock them around. Hopefully others will pipe in with their comments ! Good luck!

 

[GreenGoddess]

You can either leave them in the carton or lay them down on the wire... I would highly suggest you get some shelf liner (can get it at the dollar store) and put it on the wire because the gaps look pretty wide and their legs will go right through it resulting in injury... If you cannot get to the dollar store, you can use paper towel but it will not be as strong and they still may fall through...

Goddess

 

[Ridgerunner]

People do it both ways. Either just leave them in the carton pointy side down or lay them flat on the floor of the incubator.

That wire looks close enough together that their feet shouldn't have any problems poking through. Mine came with what looks like window screen for the surface to give them really good purchase but as long as the spaces are less than 1/4" what you have should work well. You do not want something in there that can be slick or they can slip and injure themselves. Dry newspapaer is not good because it is too slick.

One potential problem putting a surface down there, like paper towels or a rough shelf liner, is that you could block the water reservoirs and reduce your humidity because there is not enough surface area for evaporation.

I'm probably making it sound more complicated than it has to be. I think you will be fine with that wire.

 

[GreenGoddess]

The shelf liner has small holes in it and doesn't change the humidity at all... Paper towel had the potential of lowering the humidity but only for a short time and is a good choice in a pinch...

eta: If you look at the bottom of those cartons and know roughly how wide they are and then compare the slots of the wire, they are about 1/3 the size of the carton bottom... There is definitely a chance a chick or two will get stuck...

Goddess

 

[Bobby Joe]

I have some shelf liner with the holes looks kinda like its woven together , I was gonna use news paper but I wont. The wire is about 3/8 inch apart so I agree thats too much . OK now how do I make the time go by faster?

 

[GreenGoddess]

Quote:
Ummmm.... DON'T watch the bator!! Go to a movie, clean the garage, get the pool ready for summer, or rebuild the car.... But whatever you do, DON'T watch the bator!!!!

Goddess

 

[Bobby Joe]

Well they eggs have been in lockdown for almost 24 hours and I am very nervous, my DW seems to be getting a little excited too. I said to her at about 6 am this morning "OH LOOK A CHICK IS IN THERE" she called me my " your in trouble name ." So any way nothing else to report BTW I would love any tips as to know what to look for when they start to hatch , Sunday will be 21 days of development . there are 45 eggs in the incubator started with 47 those 2 had cracks

 

[terrilhb]

Good luck. I went through my 1st hatch last month. It was so nerve wracking. I am so thankful for everyone on here. They kept me sane. Here is some good advice a person on here told me. Sit on your hands.

And step away from the bator.

I lived by mine. LOL. Looking foward to some pictures.