hatching problems PLEASE HELP!!!

[milliefleur]

hey im having some problems and not really shore how to fix it. i was off to a great start this year and know i'm fighting the the incubator. i set the bantam eggs in a 1270 gqf cabinet incubator and i just started to us my wifes bothers boy hova bator incubator to hatch. that i upgrade for him last with a fan. i start to hatch with the cabinet but i have eggs hatch every week, and doing that was casuing problems with my hatching after a few weeks. so i thought i would use the hova bator for the hatching. i know there would be 2 hatchings that would be good. but i;m to the 3rd and i am still having problems. i have my humdity at 80% and my temp moves up and down a lot from 99.5 to 100.5 im thinking the temp is moving to much and is causing problems but i'm not shore. my cabinet i have set at 100 degrees and 35-40% humidity. i didn't have any problems last with the using the same incubater for hatching as well and i hatch every week for a while. should i go back to doing that or should i keep working with the bator? anyone help me PLEASE!!! im losing to many peeps and im starting to get upset and frustrated. can i get a different thermostat that will keep the temp closer together? i was thinking a pre-set but not shore if it will be good or not. im just dumb founded any more with it. so please help.

 

[dbcooper02]

The temperature range you describe shouldn't really cause any problems. Is the thermometer you are using in the hova accurate? If you borrow the one from the cabinet and put it in the Hova does it read the same?
If you were having successful hatches in the cabinet at 35 -40% humidity maybe you should back down some in the hova to 60 - 65% or so.

 

[ChickieBooBoo]

If you were having successful hatches in the cabinet at 35 -40% humidity maybe you should back down some in the hova to 60 - 65% or so.

Ditto, if you are moving the chicks into 80% humidity on day 18-19 you could be drowning them in the shell. My humidity is only 60-65%, I have even forgotten the occasional hatch and added no water, the chicks hatched out just fine. I think there is a thought going around that your humidity needs to be as high as possible for the hatch, but that isn't always the case. I've had better hatches with lower humidity.

 

[milliefleur]

thanks for the ideas and help i will lower the humdity and try that and i will check the therm. i have for the bator with the one i use in the cabinet.