This was my first attempt at hatching chicken eggs. I bought a Hovabator and an egg turner. It was ridiculously fun!!!
Warmed up incubator for two days.
Set eggs on a Thursday night. Filled the egg turner with 41 eggs (I know this is not recommended but what the heck!) 12 Cuckoo Marans that we bought, and 29 home-bred eggs, about half golden-laced wyandotte and half wyandottes crossed with buff brahma - apologies to the breeding elite who would never think of such a thing...we want some chicks
Friday afternoon temp was 104.7. Removed lid to cool. Spent several hours getting temp to stabilize back to where I wanted it.
Checked water every three days.
Candled on day 8 with homemade candler..flashlight with toilet paper tube duct-taped over the lens. Found one blood ring and one unfertilized maran. Culled. 39 left.
Candled on day 14...found one more unfertilized maran, and two wyandotte or brahma with funny shadows. Cracked one with bad embryo. Cracked the other and it had a good embryo..whoops. 36 left.
Day 18, took out turner, added water and went into "lockdown" sorta. After 2 hours, humidity only 62%. Added more water, humidity 68%, good enough.
18 days 3hr, first pip! Yikes!
18 days 10 hr, first chick.
Bad foot. 35 left.
19 days 8 hr. Second chick hatched. Culled first chick.
34 left
19 days 20 hr. 3 more hatched, humidity increased to 73% 31 left.
20 days 8 hr. 7 more hatched. For the breeding impure, a GLW X Buff Brahma chick looks exactly like a buff brahma chick. 24 left
20 days 20 hr. 16 more hatched, 1 dead. Humidity jumped to 81%. Opened incubator and removed driest chicks and egg shells. Humidity back to 70% 8 left.
21 days 5 hr. 2 more hatched. 1 GL wyandotte seems weak. Removed dry chicks again. 6 left.
21 days 10 hrs. Removed all chicks, left remaining eggs in.
21 days 18 hr. 1 more hatching. Weak Wyandotte looking like it might get culled
Inactive eggs 5. I don't think they will hatch but I'll give them a few more hours.
Summary
Set 41 eggs, culled 5
Locked down 36 eggs, hatched 31, 1 dead, 1 culled, 1 probably culled soon.
Started 28 chicks.
How'd I do? Any constructive comments on my methods would be well received.
Warmed up incubator for two days.
Set eggs on a Thursday night. Filled the egg turner with 41 eggs (I know this is not recommended but what the heck!) 12 Cuckoo Marans that we bought, and 29 home-bred eggs, about half golden-laced wyandotte and half wyandottes crossed with buff brahma - apologies to the breeding elite who would never think of such a thing...we want some chicks
Friday afternoon temp was 104.7. Removed lid to cool. Spent several hours getting temp to stabilize back to where I wanted it.
Checked water every three days.
Candled on day 8 with homemade candler..flashlight with toilet paper tube duct-taped over the lens. Found one blood ring and one unfertilized maran. Culled. 39 left.
Candled on day 14...found one more unfertilized maran, and two wyandotte or brahma with funny shadows. Cracked one with bad embryo. Cracked the other and it had a good embryo..whoops. 36 left.
Day 18, took out turner, added water and went into "lockdown" sorta. After 2 hours, humidity only 62%. Added more water, humidity 68%, good enough.
18 days 3hr, first pip! Yikes!
18 days 10 hr, first chick.
19 days 8 hr. Second chick hatched. Culled first chick.
19 days 20 hr. 3 more hatched, humidity increased to 73% 31 left.
20 days 8 hr. 7 more hatched. For the breeding impure, a GLW X Buff Brahma chick looks exactly like a buff brahma chick. 24 left
20 days 20 hr. 16 more hatched, 1 dead. Humidity jumped to 81%. Opened incubator and removed driest chicks and egg shells. Humidity back to 70% 8 left.
21 days 5 hr. 2 more hatched. 1 GL wyandotte seems weak. Removed dry chicks again. 6 left.
21 days 10 hrs. Removed all chicks, left remaining eggs in.
21 days 18 hr. 1 more hatching. Weak Wyandotte looking like it might get culled
Summary
Set 41 eggs, culled 5
Locked down 36 eggs, hatched 31, 1 dead, 1 culled, 1 probably culled soon.
Started 28 chicks.
How'd I do? Any constructive comments on my methods would be well received.
