homemade incubator question-new question* update with pics

[kvmommy]

Ok...so its all built. But the light for the heat goes on and off every 2 minutes or so. Does this my insulation isn't working, or is this normal? I have an 11 inch flex watt heat tape...totally sucked. Got it up to 85 degrees. So I put in a 40W light and it heats it up just fine, its just that it keeps turning on and off so frequently. Thanks in advance! ohhh..and how do I update the title of this post?

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

Sounds about normal....

Editing the opening post give you the option of changing the title.

 

[kvmommy]

You are so awesome...thank you!!

 

[aprophet]

Quote:
I like redundancy instead of one 40 watt I would use 2 25 watt bulbs just in case one burnt out the thrift store is my best freind putzing around building thes small incubator I build lots of hair dryers space heaters coffee warmers etc can be salvaged for heating elements the standard hova bator incy has 23.5 watts on the label

 

[aprophet]

Quote:
google" thermosiphoning" pretty interesting reading. I look for air changes in my bators the CO2 needs to be expelled and fresh O needs to be brought in check the ventilation holes on a hova bator sometime on the bottom. air changes just like in a properly designed house's HVAC system

 

[GeoKan]

Hey KVMommy,

I've just recently made a homemade incubator. I've set mine up with a 2-bulb system like Aprophet suggested.

I went a step further. I constructed a heat chamber to maximized airflow and created vents that act as exhaust and intake.

Here's a photo explaining how my heat chamber works:

You can find a complete write up on the whole process here.

I moved my thermostat 4 times before I got it right.

Good luck!

 

[Clay Valley Farmer]

google" thermosiphoning" pretty interesting reading. I look for air changes in my bators the CO2 needs to be expelled and fresh O needs to be brought in check the ventilation holes on a hova bator sometime on the bottom. air changes just like in a properly designed house's HVAC system

Yes, in a still air set-up it would be good to take advantage of air currents created by the heating elements, but if it's a fan system the air currents from the fan are going to be orders of magnitude stronger than a thermosiphon which is dependant on the density change of air over a temperature gradient. Also the fan will mix the air up such that there will be so little temperature gradient in the incubator that the thermosiphon effect will be neggated.​

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

Unless you use the fans to put positive or negative pressure on the vents then even in a circulated air incubator the air exchanges is powered by thermosiphoning. Thats why I like the vents to be all on the same wall, some very high an some very low.

 

[aprophet]

Quote:
Yes, in a still air set-up it would be good to take advantage of air currents created by the heating elements, but if it's a fan system the air currents from the fan are going to be orders of magnitude stronger than a thermosiphon which is dependant on the density change of air over a temperature gradient. Also the fan will mix the air up such that there will be so little temperature gradient in the incubator that the thermosiphon effect will be neggated.

most of the styro bators I have seen /used hova LG etc have the fan blowing out of the top of the bator
blowing air out of the holes on top creating a vacuum that gets filled from the holes in the bottom of the incy LOL if anything set up like the factories do the thermsiphoning effect is increased with a fan LOL

 

[kvmommy]

I'm soooo confused. But heres my problem...my flex watt is on the back of the long rectangular box, light is on one side and fan is on the other. The fan is facing into the wall so as not to blow too hard on the eggs. The temp near the light is perfect, but the temp near the fan is cold. How do I fix this? I thought the fan was supposed to circulate the heat so it was proportionate throughout. I don't understand the thermosiphoning or anything.