Help With Homemade Incubator!?!?

[Lucky1]

Hello, I have finally got all the things i thought that i needed and built myself an incubator! It is a 48L plastic tub (the only thing that i could buy/find ) with 6 little mini mason jars tightly sealed (to try to keep the temp steady), and a 40W light bulb in a corner.

Right now i am not sure where to put the thermometer/ hygrometer, right now i have it in one end of the incubator and the light in the other, should i move it?

Also i have the lid on tight, but not air tight, (there is enough room to put a 1/4 inch electrical cord through without it squeezing on it.) do i need to put air holes in the top/ sides? And if i wrap the inside with tin foil, which side should i put it on, the dull side or the shiny side?

Kind Regards
p.s. i don't have any eggs in there right now, I'm just testing things out.

 

[Wyogirl]

I have my therm/hygro on kind of in the middle, I used a styrofoam cooler that food is delivered in. i do have 3 airholes, have you tried it yet to see if it holds temps??
Good Luck
Ayda

 

[Lucky1]

Thanks, i moved it to the middle Right now i have a 100W "natural light" in and tinfoil (the shiny side in the bator) on three sides of it, the back and the two sides. I will try to put a hole or two into it Thanx

 

[Wyogirl]

What kind of thermostat are you using??
Ayda
Pictures???

 

[Lucky1]

Its a 'BIOS weather, Indoor Thermometer and Hygrometer', and i will post pictures as soon as i can, my camera just ate through all of the AA batteries in the house, so i have to get some more when i go out today.
Lucky

 

[Baggagolers]

Do you have a fan in it or will it be a still air. Still air you should keep the thermometer at about the top of the egg height.

 

[Lucky1]

It is going to be a still air right now i have the thermometer right where the eggs will be when i get them, is that alright? Also the "temp measurer" part is about 1 1/2-2 inches off the floor, is that high enough, i am planning on using the pvc pipe method this time instead of turning every egg by hand.

Lucky

 

[moetrout]

What kind of thermostat are you using??
Ayda
Pictures???

This is a good question. You really didn't answer. A thermostat and thermomter are different things. So what kind of thermostat are you using. The thermostat is what you use to control the temp (in your case it would tunr the light bulb on and off as heat is required).

 

[Baggagolers]

It is going to be a still air right now i have the thermometer right where the eggs will be when i get them, is that alright? Also the "temp measurer" part is about 1 1/2-2 inches off the floor, is that high enough, i am planning on using the pvc pipe method this time instead of turning every egg by hand. Lucky

I lay my thermometer in on its side so the whole thing is close to top of egg height. Sometimes I just make kind of a table with cardboard and set in on there.

 

[Arielle]

I used a very large cooler also, and even with a very good fan, temps are not even thruout the incubator. Check your temps in a number of locations (where the eggs will be set) and see if you have the same issue.

I put fish tank thermometers (bc v cheap) in 4-5 locations and test for temp range. The fan also causes more are flow up the front and down the back (fan sits on bottom in the back, shooting air to bottom front). I suspect this could dry the eggs more so I try to protects the eggs , or roll so teach has an equal turn.