Hand Turning vs. Auto Egg Turner... Which is better??

[Chickie Mamma]

I'd be very happy with 90%.. mine is near that though, but I have to assist sometimes, which I do not like to do. I was using a Hovabator still air.. Temp around 100 degrees, and 45% humidity for the first 25 days then I up it to 75-85% at hatch time. I've just noticed that they pip and zip more in the center of the egg when I hand turn. I do not mist the duck eggs either, could that be an issue?

 

[FenDruadin]

I don't mist mine either, but I think it's probably a good practice. I'm just lazy. I found my hatch rates went WAAY up when I started running the incubator at a lower humidity. I pretty much don't add water at all until lockdown now, and the humidity is mostly in the teens and twenties. This causes the air cell to develop better and the duckling has more space to work with and less chance of drowning. What do your air cells look like at lockdown? Are they nearly 1/3 of the egg? That's what I strive for.

Misting actually helps accomplish that too--the evaporative effect of misting actually causes the moisture to evaporate out of the egg faster (I don't really understand it, but this is per Holderread, and he's nearly always right about stuff). So probably misting would help too.

I *do* help at least one or two babies in each hatch for various reasons. Sometimes they get stuck after pipping due to a humidity issue. One time, I had four eggs get stuck after zipping because several hatchlings decided to sleep on top of them all night long and they couldn't push the tops off. By the time the ducklings moved off, they were stuck. They ended up just fine, but needed help. Usually, the babies are just fine after being helped, but sometimes the reason for needing help is that something was wrong with them and they never thrive. I had one last year that was a cripple all his short life (he lived four weeks). Poor guy.

Anyway--I don't mind helping, though. We mess up the natural order so much by incubating artificially, that sometimes I think it's appropriate to step in and undo the damage we've done.

 

[Chickie Mamma]

Quote:
Good Points! I've become good at helping and usually it is because of a humidity issue. I did help one that I shouldn't have (large growth on its head) and had to put it down anyway. Couldn't tell it was deformed prior to peeling him out. Mother Nature has her way

I have helped a few that I still have in my flock for years now, so those assisted attempts worked. I guess you have nothing to lose sometimes. Thanks for all the helpful insight! Next batch, I will mist and see if there is a difference from this hatch due next week. I have 17 ducklings all forming nicely (hand turning) and 10 showgirl silkie eggs all doing nicely. Silkie eggs go into the hatcher on Thursday.

Lets hope I do not have to peel any out this time as I am not using the turner.

 

[AmyLM]

I'm on my fourth hatch with two incubators. The first three were with a turner and this one is hand turned and overloaded to the point of double stacking until the second candle. Frankly my first three batches (5 incubator loads) had many that pipped and didn't make it or pipped and zipped in the wrong spot. Hand turning I'm seeing normal pip/zip and also the chicks seem healthier from the start. I will hand turn from now on even though it's a pain.

 

[MeepBeep]

There are lots of other variables to consider... For example the number of turns a day, and how complete those turns are to name some big ones...

I personally don't like the auto turners that don't actually turn the egg but simply rock it back and forth... I believe it's best to actually turn the egg fully if not every time at least some times...

Also frequency comes into play, I would argue that hand turning 10 or 20 times a day is likely better than an auto turner turning 3 or 5 times a day, and vice verse... Someone here posted a university study that concluded that the optimal number of turns per day is 96 times, something to ponder...

I'm in the very early stages of designing my own incubator from scratch, and I plan to have it turn the eggs in a more random fashion, sometimes turning them some portion of a degree, other times turning them the full 180º also this turn will be done at a more random speed... Also the number of times it turns per day will vary from day to day... Might be stupid overkill in the end but it gives me something to do and a chance to be creative...

 

[calichicken]

There are lots of other variables to consider... For example the number of turns a day, and how complete those turns are to name some big ones...

I personally don't like the auto turners that don't actually turn the egg but simply rock it back and forth... I believe it's best to actually turn the egg fully if not every time at least some times...

Also frequency comes into play, I would argue that hand turning 10 or 20 times a day is likely better than an auto turner turning 3 or 5 times a day, and vice verse... Someone here posted a university study that concluded that the optimal number of turns per day is 96 times, something to ponder...

I'm in the very early stages of designing my own incubator from scratch, and I plan to have it turn the eggs in a more random fashion, sometimes turning them some portion of a degree, other times turning them the full 180º also this turn will be done at a more random speed... Also the number of times it turns per day will vary from day to day... Might be stupid overkill in the end but it gives me something to do and a chance to be creative...

I think your plans are VERY cool and will reflect more what the hen actually does in turning and caring for the eggs! Curious to see how it works and what your hatch rate is when you get it up and running!

 

[BobDBirdDog]

Incubating and hand turning Bob White and Coturnix Quail eggs.
I individually hand turn each of my eggs and in such I currently turn 133 in about 4 minutes or less.

 

[BobDBirdDog]

If you are having issue about deciding what to use with turning you might consider what I did, closet shelving at Lowe's. Makes hand turning easy if you leave one row empty. I cut and bent the backs to look like the front. Still looking for a work around on the sides. I also bought the rack track that the shelving hangs on (no brackets) and cut down sections of them down and made the guides/slides that support the racks.
I also had to bow/bends on the outside wires as the Cooler tapers in about 3/4 inch and was falling off the guides. I used spacers on the front screws to make the measurements the same widths/distance as the back of the guides.


I have 133 eggs in there and can hand turn each one individually (all) in about 4-5 mins. 2nd rack from the top, I leave 1 row empty and shift the eggs to the empty row as I turn them, replacing the other rows consecutively as the rows become available. Saves from having to lift them a like a football being kicked and giving them a spin. I have cracked a few doing that. Fumbles!~

 

[BobDBirdDog]

I Forgot! Some links depending on the type eggs you are wanting to hatch. They come in longer lengths such as 12 foot and 20 inches deep but these liknks should get you started if your interested.

Shelving for small quail size eggs- Lowe's- 1/2 inch grid spacing
http://www.lowes.com/pd_80089-315-1...L=?Ns=p_product_qty_sales_dollar|1&facetInfo=

Shelving for large Chicken size eggs- Lowe's- 1 inch grid spacing.
http://www.lowes.com/pd_246451-315-...L=?Ns=p_product_qty_sales_dollar|1&facetInfo=

Track used to make the rack guides
http://www.lowes.com/pd_105771-362-...L=?Ns=p_product_qty_sales_dollar|1&facetInfo=

 

[salsan20]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2622816

I did read an article about this and annoyingly I can only find the abstract rather than the study which means I cabt find the raw data to compare. Most autoturners tilt and I have heard this negatively affects hatches but people use them frequently so cant be too bad!