High Tech Bators

[yellowchick]

I created a post on here describing my startup problems with temp control and ended up buying a $50 ZILLA Temperature Controller 1000 Watt 3 Plug. I have 2 light bulbs plugged in (one will heat it, but the second is a fail safe). After having used it for a week, my temp swings are less than .2 degrees.(I had a home made water wiggler in the bator till yesterday and no matter when I looked at the temp on it, it never changed) I'm using a thick foam ice chest and it doesn't hold temp very long and this has wored great. It has a prob that stays inside the bator and a temp adjustment with the AC plugs on the outside of the bator. After seeing all the post here I'm supprised this isn't standard equipment for a bator. (at least a home made one)

 

[DANNY]

Dirt road you are right i guess we get side tracked. The electronic thermostat is about as high tech as you could get i think as far as heat control. I have got a homemade humidity injector. It has a digital readout controller. It has a water contained about a quart fed by a 5 gallon container. The quart wter container has a heater in it that basically turns the water into steam that is pulled into the bator by the fan . You just adjust the digital to what humidity you want and thats how much it heats. It will actually make the humidity 100% if you wish which is too much but it will do it.

 

[starryeyes]

Well hubby made me a cabnet style. What I found was the bigiest issue is I get a different temp on tray 1 tray 2 and tray 3. We searched high and low for a thermostat that would be in the range of 98 to 101 pffffffffffft none to be found in the stores here. So we will bite the bullet i think and get this http://gardendesert.com/products/?view=product&product_id=3677 Also we have a second bulb in there so when house temp drops to much i can turn it on I would now put it on a switch so I dont have to open bator. The humidity has been no problem as of yet pretty easy to controll. What i do have on my side is this http://www.coleparmer.ca/catalog/product_view.asp?sku=3563940
HUBBY is a home inspector so i get to use his gadgets LOL. So what I do is I check the degital temp then I point and shoot the eggs lets just say that degital can read 99 eggs read anywhere from 95 to 98 depending on which ones are closiest to the bottom were the heat source is. Thus far all eggs that were vital and have different readings are growing pretty much the same. If you think about it when a hen sits on 12 eggs or whatever the ones on bottom are more then likely cooler then the ones right next to her body. I am new to all this i dont claim to be a expert at all

All i can say is I would pay $$$ for temp to stay stable and humidity BRING on HIGH TECH. I have also tested eggs in the Hova bator with the infa red and they are in a turner and temp is 99 and even in there i get different readings on eggs not as much of a difference but a difference. I enjoy reading all the info and plan on making hubby read all of this thread Thanks for starting it.

Starry

 

[walkswithdog]

Quote:
What are you using for an air mover and where have you positioned it? Facing the eggs or facing a wall, gap between it and the wall? How much? What sized fan? What are the interior dimensions? Do you have a false wall or are you circulating the entire interior directly?

Good airflow should even out the temps. What are you using for shelving? Is it blocking airflow?

 

[Dirt Road]

KattyKillFish;Yellowchick;
I see more and more references to the solid state controllers used with reptile/herp environments. I assume that like anything, some brands or models are better and more dependable as well as some which might be of arguably lesser quality and price. It would be nice if more folks could offer some opinions or experiences. I also wonder if these can be used in some way with the software mentioned by Lensters.
Danny; Your automatic humidity controller sounds VERY interesting. I would love to see a picture, or sketch with a list of parts or links etc.

Jim

 

[starryeyes]

I have a small desk fan that has 2 speeds it faces up and is mounted on one side. The trays frame is wood the bottoms are hardware cloth. The trays are 24 x 24 eggs are in cartons with bottoms cut out. I have a lever at the top that allows me to tip the trays from one side to the other bator is 4ft by 2 ft. thinking maybe i need a defector on the light? Here is a pic sorry not the best but all i have right now . No false wall

;;;;

Chalk board paint allows me to write time and date of when eggs went in also keep track of tossed eggs

Starry

 

[kingmt]

I agree. Please post pictures & specs.

 

[kingmt]

Quote:
I would think that you should have a deflector over the light so that you get more even heat. The eggs on the bottom would get more inferred heat & the ones on top would be heated more by air temp.

 

[Lensters]

Quote:
Can you post links to the specs of a ZILLA Temperature Controller and a place to buy one? I would like to add that to what I'm looking at.

I finally talked to one of the engineers at Precon about the HS-2000 series humidity and temp sensors. To me it looks to be a great deal at $30. The issues with it are that a. it is only a sensor, the controller part of the thermostat has to be something else (a computer in my case, which I was already planning on) and b. the USB version has some "self-heating" issues so it needs to be powered down 90% of the time. It's initialization cycle is pretty fast so I could take readings once a minute and have it on only 5% of the time. My only concern is how long it will last constantly power cycling, most electronics don't like that.

Len

 

[Lensters]

Quote:
Hi Starry,

The GreenAir products do look very good however I the the GQF electronic would have been just as accurate for less money:

https://www.gqfmfg.com/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=149

Your problem with different egg temperatures is due to one of two problems (or a combination of the two). The more likely is radiant or direct heating instead of space heating. Try putting some sort of a heat shield between the eggs and the heater to solve this. The second would be inadequate circulation and adding fans to circulate the air more or removing objects blocking the air flow to the cooler eggs are the solutions to that.


Len

BTW I'm jealous of the toys you get to play with. It would be so much faster for me to do my testing with an infrared temperature sensor.

PS I just read the followup posts and it looks like you are already headed down the right track.