going to borrow a octagon 20 any tips you would like to share?

[gimmie birdies]

Looking for tips on using octagon 20 I am borrowing, I think hers may have been one degree down, and maybe a bit too much humidity, any tips on that? Does it stop turning on it's own? Thanks you for your tips.

 

[sumi]

Make sure the temperature is set perfect and leave it as is. It holds the temperature very well in my experience (had one and loved it!)

Does that model come with a humidity pump? If not… Take a clean, unused cloth, like one of those flimsy looking cleaning cloths you buy in multipacks, and spread that over the water wells, dipping it a bit into each well. Then keep that damp. If you fill the wells right up and the incubator turns, the water runs out in my experience and makes a bit of a mess. The cloth worked very well to hold the humidity at the level you wanted it and it's easy to up the humidity by wetting the cloth more.

You'll have to take it off the turner when you lock down, but that is dead easy to do. Just lift it off carefully.

Look in the middle on top of the cover, you'll see a little ventilation hole there. You can fit a cool drink straw through there to top up the water on the cloth when needed, to up the humidity, so you don't have to take the lid off during lockdown.

What else…. When you place or remove those things that holds the eggs in place, it's easier to put them in position or remove them around the eggs. I removed mine when I locked down, so the eggs had wiggle room when they hatched.

I think that's it… Good luck with your hatch and enjoy!

 

[gimmie birdies]

Thank you so much for the tips! I am going to put in mail order eggs, rare pures, hopefully spitzenhauben, and Ayam cemani with others, and I hope to put in a few frizzles.

 

[feedman77]

The 20 your borrowing is an advance if set temp to 100. They are incredibly accurate.

You can remove the wire egg holders at lockdown. But I have left them in before with no ill effects. I hatch upright.

As far as humidity I found low humidity incubation works best for my situation. Keep it 20 to 30 percent for 18 days then fill water traps for lockdown and hatch 70 plus humidity.

Keep the hole in the middle top open the entire incubation. In the bottom there are holes in each corner make sure they are open and don't get blocked.

If your eggs are shipped give them 24 hours to get to room temp. Then when you put them in the incubator don' start turner til day 3. Gives air cell time to stabilize.
Ive had good hatches with shipped eggs but several 0 hatches.

Incubating is addicting. My 20 wasnt big enough now I use 2 cabinets.

Good luck

 

[gimmie birdies]

Thanks, I am used to hatching with homemade incubators, i wanted something that was less hands on. I may run both, see which hatches better.

 

[Snoozeys]

I have this incubator ... only thing i have to add is if you leave the dividers in the chicks get there stuck in the dividers ... happened to me a few times !!!

 

[gimmie birdies]

do you not put your dividers in at all?

 

[feedman77]

You can use them. But if you leave them out and put eggs in like blocks (offset) you can get more than 20 eggs in the bator.

If there is a space where they wobble cut down a toilet paper cardboard tube to use as a spacer.

@Snoozeys is talking about taking them out for hatch

 

[gimmie birdies]

I saw that tube thing on u-tube which seems like a good idea, I also heard you should not hatch in paper cartons.

 

[feedman77]

I have hatched in paper cartons and Styrofoam cartons.

Cut bottom of egg trough out so the egg gets good airflow.

Noticed no reduced hatch percentage.

Hatched quail, turkeys, pheasants, and chickens in them.