Homemade incubator thermostat!

Date sort Score sort
I've heard of people wiring one lower wattage bulb to be on constantly then another to cycle, however i wired mine in line so they both switch on and off simultaneously. I just wired both lamp holders to the thermostat...that just seemed more simple to me.

Although maybe temps would be even more stable if one bulb was on constantly.....
idunno.gif
Maybe I'll try that next.
 
Quote:
Thanks! I take no credit in my incubator's design. I've pioneered nothing here. Just pulled what I saw as the best ideas from many different home-built incubators.

I am pleased with how stable of temps I was able to achieve. The water heater t-stat next to light bulb trick and a lot of thermal mass (paver stones in my case) in my box have really helped.

Do both of your bulbs come on/off together from the t-stat? Or is 1 always-on and 1 cycled?

I contemplated using 2 light bulbs... 1 always-on. I like the backup feature in case of a bulb failure. But I settled on the simplicity and ease of packaging just 1.

With all the thermal mass in my box... I wonder how many degrees it would lose in a worst-case scenario (8 hours overnight). Hmm... might be worth experimenting.

Cheers!

I would also agree that thermal mass is much misunderstood - and underused. It is really key in my opinion and I was doing it years ago after learning of it from Bill Worrell.
 
Quote:
Another version of this is wiring a push button to a light so you can see into the bator when the t-stat has cycled the lights off I am a big fan of at least 2-3 bulbs in case one burns out.......
 
Quote:
Another version of this is wiring a push button to a light so you can see into the bator when the t-stat has cycled the lights off I am a big fan of at least 2-3 bulbs in case one burns out.......

I was too lazy for that. I mounted another box and receptacle. It powers 12DC converter for the fan which is not controlled by the thermostat as well as a low-wattage night light with an electric eye which should come on when the bulbs for heating are not powered. I also wired two lights inline to the thermostat for a backup.

To be honest, I started with a wooden crate but I didn't like it. I thought it might absorb too much moisture and tend to get funky and be hard to clean up. So I built the new and improved out of rigid foam insulation.
 
Last edited:
Quote:
Sounds like mine, minus the extra t-stat controlled light.

I've seen a bunch of the wooden incubator boxes and they look nice. I would think if they were varnished or sealed somehow, they shouldn't absorb much. Foam is definitely a good choice. It's got very good insulating abilities. Wood has an R-value of 1 per inch. Styrofoam (molded expanded polystyrene, or MEPS... Styrofoam is a trademarked name from Dow) has an R-value of 3.5 per inch. So foam bators hold heat very well. Probably why many of the commercial small incubators are made out of it.

I'm currently trying to dial in the humidity levels on my homemade incubator and am finding the paver stones I've used for thermal mass are like sponges. My basement RH% is a steady 45% where my incubator is... but without any additional water in my box (trying to get a dry box baseline RH%)... the humidity in my incubator is around 25%. Arg! I'm betting glass jars with water wouldn't absorb much... hmmm. More experimenting to do. Plus my stupid hydrometers are all whacky... even after I "calibrated" them twice.

Cheers!
 
Last edited:
Something that always worked for me was a humidity wick.

I put a piece of 1/2" cotton rope into a bottle, and fed it out through the cap. Then I filled the bottle with water and the wick would supply moisture to the chamber via capillaryaction. Every few days, I would refill the bottle and wash the wick - it gets kinda funky.
The more rope you pull out or the larger you make it, the more moisture you could inject into the air mass.
Its worth a try.
 
Last edited:
@rickerra

Although I have some pavers laying around, I opted for the tiles b/c I was wondering if they might absorb moisture. I wonder if you wrapped the pavers in foil or something, if that would help? Maybe duct tape the seams so the wrap is fairly air tight.

I probably got have made the wooden crate work, I just wasn't feeling it. The wood was pretty old and had picked up some odor from what had been stored in it over the years. Even after I sanded it down, the stink was pretty strong. Since I wasn't really sure what the smell was from, I just didn't want to mess with it.

@Davaroo

I like the humidity wick idea. I may try that. Is there a marked difference b/t that and just using a pan of water? I like the idea though. I really don't want an open pan of water sitting in there. My luck, somebody will move it and spill it or worse.
 

Similar threads

Eldon956
    • Like
DIY Incubator Upgrades...
2
Replies
10
Views
2K
Eldon956
Eldon956
RememberTheWay
    • Like
Options for "Upgrading" a Wafer Thermostat System in an Older Cabinet Incubator?
Replies
8
Views
2K
RememberTheWay
RememberTheWay
Indio Gigante Lover
102 Temp Spike didn't kill Eggs!
Replies
1
Views
356
nuthatched
nuthatched
T
Urgent Help Needed
Replies
4
Views
403
Treasure2U
T
DIYGuy24
    • Like
Diy still air incubator
Replies
5
Views
635
BantyChooks
BantyChooks

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom