Hatchaholics Unite!

[Cerise1924]

Gardening? Hmm, I am going to try my hand at that this year too. I am locking my incubator away... Wait... no, Yes... N0... YES!!!

I have spring fever badly. I keep telling myself I will have PLENTY of baby birds to dote after here shortly (volunteer for a wildlife rehab facility). Wait, I might need my incubator for them... (NO, No you won't!)

"I am locking my incubator away... Wait... no, Yes... N0... YES!!!" You sound like me! Every month! I guess I haven't locked it securely enough.

 

[Cerise1924]

A new level of hatchaholism has arisen. I am now dreaming about hatching. Last night, I dreamed that all my eggs hatched two days early, and that my Sebright chick somehow got in the incubator with them to mother them.

Do you dream about chickens?

 

[CuzChickens]

You know the weirdest dream I ever had? It was during my first incubation and I dreamed they hatched early, in abundant amounts, there were hundreds of them, and they were tiny like bees and kept popping everywhere and would not stay in their tote and I kept on stepping on them and crushing them, but it didn't matter because I had hundreds. It was weird.

 

[Cerise1924]

You know the weirdest dream I ever had? It was during my first incubation and I dreamed they hatched early, in abundant amounts, there were hundreds of them, and they were tiny like bees and kept popping everywhere and would not stay in their tote and I kept on stepping on them and crushing them, but it didn't matter because I had hundreds. It was weird.

That is fascinating. Sounds like quail!

 

[ConnerRanch]

Guys! Help! I just received shipped eggs in the mail and the more and more I look into it the harder this seems. We have 23 laying hens that we bought as hens and 23 day ones that are now 4 weeks old. The eggs are setting for 24 hours and I don't know what to do from there. I can't find the air cell, I'm not sure how to clean the pro series circulated air 4200 incubator. Am I freaking out for no reason !? Is this that difficult ?

 

[Cerise1924]

Guys! Help! I just received shipped eggs in the mail and the more and more I look into it the harder this seems. We have 23 laying hens that we bought as hens and 23 day ones that are now 4 weeks old. The eggs are setting for 24 hours and I don't know what to do from there. I can't find the air cell, I'm not sure how to clean the pro series circulated air 4200 incubator. Am I freaking out for no reason !? Is this that difficult ?

Everything is going to be just fine. Take a deep breath, and just go step by step.

-Did you set the eggs big end up for those 24 hours? That's best for shipped eggs.
-Do you mean you can't find the air cell when you candle? I've found that's normal for fresh eggs. You will be able to see them by Day 3 or Day 5.
-How dirty is the incubator? If there's any residue, egg shells, just get those out and then wipe the incubator clean. I use Clorox wipes. You could also use a hot water/rubbing alcohol mix on a rag. Then air dry. Anyone else have special methods for cleaning an incubator?

Once your incubator is clean and dry (which should be quick work), get it up to the right temperature and humidity and then put your eggs in.
If you have the tray in the 4200, the eggs go big end up. If you are doing it without the tray, you can either lay them on their sides or make little rings from a paper towel roll to prop the eggs upright. Some people think shipped eggs have a better chance of hatching well if they spend a few days upright.

Generally, it's recommended to not turn shipped eggs the first few days of incubation, to allow any loose air cells to stabilize.

Don't worry if the temperature and humidity drop once you put the eggs in. Don't panic and start fiddling with the thermostat and adding water. Give it a few hours to regain the warmth and humidity.

There are so many people here who can answer your questions. I also like this site: http://www.raising-happy-chickens.com/incubating.html The day-by-day illustrated guide to incubation is really good.

 

[ConnerRanch]

The eggs are in the midst of setting for 24hrs.
Ok thank you for clarifying about the air cell. The hatchery sent instructions to candle when I received them.
The incubator has never been used. Just sitting in someone's garage.

I got dark colored eggs and they sent a note that they are harder to hatch and suggest 30% humidity for 18 days.


Is there anything else that I need to know/do? I keep trying to piece through these threads but the convos quickly get off topic because everyone is so wonderful and so much knowledge going around.

 

[Cerise1924]

The eggs are in the midst of setting for 24hrs.
Ok thank you for clarifying about the air cell. The hatchery sent instructions to candle when I received them.
The incubator has never been used. Just sitting in someone's garage.

I got dark colored eggs and they sent a note that they are harder to hatch and suggest 30% humidity for 18 days.


Is there anything else that I need to know/do? I keep trying to piece through these threads but the convos quickly get off topic because everyone is so wonderful and so much knowledge going around.

Are they dark like Marans eggs?
The Marans egg in my batch is the dark red-brown one. It's nearly impossible to candle, other than seeing the air cell. That is, you're probably not going to see the veining and movement with an egg that dark. That doesn't give the egg a reduced chance of hatching, really... it just makes it harder for you to know what's going on in there. If it's medium-dark, like the olive egg in my batch, you may be able to see development in a pitch black room with a good, strong, targeted light. LED flashlights and iPhone flashlight work very well for candling.

It can be good to candle when eggs arrive (as you were instructed), since it can help you detect hairline cracks you may not have noticed. You probably won't want to candle again until Day 5 or even Day 7.
The day you set your eggs in the incubator is Day 0, the next day is Day 1 and so on. Day 18 is "lockdown," which is when you stop turning the eggs and raise the humidity. Day 21 is your hatch "due date," but they can hatch a day or two earlier or several days later. (I'm assuming these are chicken eggs.)

When you do candle your eggs, you will want to take a pencil and mark the air cell. Generally, people mark at Day 7, Day 14 and then at Day 18. You want to see a certain amount of growth on the air cell - not too much, not too little. Here's a diagram of the ideal:

If you get to Day 14 and the air cell hasn't grown enough, the humidity needs to go down a bit. However, 30% is on the low side, so you probably won't have that problem. If your air cell is too big (and I find that to be more of an issue with shipped eggs), you will need to raise the humidity a bit. You can go up to 40% or even 50% if you have an air cell that is growing too fast. (There are much more precise ways of doing this, with weighing the eggs and so on. I don't stress over it, just do the best I can.) Once you get to Day 18, you raise the humidity up to 60%-70%.

Any egg that starts seeping or gets stinky must be removed, so that does not explode and contaminate your other eggs. I have never had a seeping/stinky egg. It's rare, but I thought I should mention it.

I believe that chicks want to hatch, and we tend to make this more complicated that it has to be, at times. Just make sure your temperature and humidity are in the right range, and steady. Wash your hands well any time you are candling eggs, to prevent transmission of bacteria. That's about it.

Again, we're all here if you have any questions! Good luck!!

 

[CuzChickens]

That is fascinating. Sounds like quail! 

I woke up at 2:00 am and ran to check on the incubator having a panic attack when I saw they were fine, I fell asleep next to the incubator.

 

[Cerise1924]

I woke up at 2:00 am and ran to check on the incubator having a panic attack when I saw they were fine, I fell asleep next to the incubator.

Awww. I am up at 1:00 am, checking on the incubator. Might sleep there, yup.