Hatching with turner...help

[kvmommy]

I gave up hatching about 8 months ago due to my absolutely atrotious last 2 hatches. But...I got the bug again and want to try again. This time I have an automatic egg turner. Ok...so heres what I don't get and can't find the answer to. Where are you checking the temp at? 99.5 at the top of the eggs? Also, when they go into lockdown, you take the turner out, right? So wouldn't the temp be lower on the screen than in the turners? Does the turner affect the temp inside the bator? I'm getting silkie eggs and I hear they are hard to hatch but I want some!!! So, any advice is greatly appreciated, desperately needed.

 

[KandiandJerry]

Does it have a fan?

 

[kvmommy]

Yes, I installed a computer fan.

 

[Gypsy07]

Yeah, my first question too.

If your bator has a fan, the temp should be 99.5F and it should be 99.5F no matter where in the bator you measure it at. Because a fan blows the air around, you should have a uniform temperature with no hot or cold spots anywhere.

If you have a still air bator, your temp should be 101.5F measured at the level of the tops of the eggs. And if you do have a still air bator, what you've asked about is dead right - the level the eggs will be at in the turner will be higher than the level they'll be at when you take them out of the turner and lie them on the mesh below.

I guess if that's the case then you'll maybe have to experiment a bit with adjusting your temp before you have any eggs in there, so that when you get to lockdown with a bunch of eggs you'll be able to make the necessary adjustments quickly and accurately without having to worry about it...

 

[kvmommy]

ooohhh..ok. I always had it still air and I didn't know the fan made the temperature uniform all around. thats great! i'm getting excited now.

 

[Gypsy07]

Haha. You beat me to it! You have a fan so your temps should be 99.5F and taking out the turner shouldn't cause any problems and you shouldn't need to adjust your temp when you do take it out. Might be a good idea to just check you don't have any obvious hot or cold spots by putting your thermometer in a few different places and at different heights. It should read the same wherever you place it.