Hatching Questions

[MagpieDucks]

How would one go about calibrating a thermometer like this?https://www.amazon.com/IncuThermTM-Digital-Thermometer-Hygrometer-Memory/dp/B004XNMG4S

 

[MagpieDucks]

I'm considering putting a towel over the desk that the incubator is on, to make it less slippery. Would this affect the incubators temperature? Here is my setup:

 

[Laodicia]

Hello!

I prefer to hand turn my duck eggs. In a couple of weeks I'm going to start incubating 2 dozen Magpie eggs. What is the largest number of eggs you would hand turn, before you would switch over to an auto-turner?

Thanks!

well, it really is up to you how much time you plan to spend hovering over the incubator. I hand turned 36 chicken eggs last summer and it was averaging about an hour total a day of turning. (I was turning 5x a day)

 

[JaeG]

I don't think a towel would affect the temperature in any way. I always put a towel under mine to stop it rattling (it's plastic).

I found this about calibrating a digital thermometer if you haven't found how to do it yet:
https://www.doityourself.com/stry/how-to-calibrate-a-digital-thermometer

 

[MagpieDucks]

I don't think a towel would affect the temperature in any way. I always put a towel under mine to stop it rattling (it's plastic).

I found this about calibrating a digital thermometer if you haven't found how to do it yet:
https://www.doityourself.com/stry/how-to-calibrate-a-digital-thermometer

There isn't anything to stick in the water. I think I'm going to get a meat thermometer and calibrate that then compare the 2.

 

[JaeG]

There isn't anything to stick in the water. I think I'm going to get a meat thermometer and calibrate that then compare the 2.

Good idea - compare it to one that is calibrated and hopefully it's made to be pretty accurate. Otherwise you'll have to work out how much it's off by and adjust it in your head as to what will be 'correct'.