How hard is it really to incubate eggs?

[WVduckchick]

See, and there in lies my mistake I was using Wet bulb percentage for a regular Hygrometer. It's almost half the difference. Metzer Farms states the 78-90% but it's Wet Bulb not Hygrometer. I didn't realize there was so much difference.

Thanks

Good thing you caught that little tidbit! haha Wet bulb is expressed in degrees, like temperature, not as a percentage, so you just have to pay attention to the symbol to know which one they are referring to. I tried making my own wet bulb, and it worked while I had some water in there... but once the wick runs dry, its not longer a wet bulb! So you can't really use a wet bulb in a "dry" incubation. I have read that a wet bulb hygrometer is the most accurate overall though!

 

[AmyLynn2374]

Not sure what is the best thread for these questions, but here goes. I have an Brinsea Octagon. The cheapest model. I think it holds 12. I got it a couple years ago for Christmas, but have been "scared" to use it till now. I would like to hatch some of my pekin duck's eggs. two females lay daily. Should I gather each day until I have enough to go in the incubator? That would be about six days. Would the eggs go bad for incubating during that time for?

6 days is perfectly fine. Yes, you should collect them (store them in an egg carton around 50-60 degreesF and turn then daily) and when you have what you want set them all together. Most people set eggs that are a week old or less. Most articles recommend 10 days and under with the consensus being over two weeks the hatch rate declines significantly. The Brinseas are highly recommended and one of the most fool proof incubators, so you are off to a good start. Good luck on your hatch!

 

[dekel18042]

Could someone on here give me a step by step guide on how to use my octagon 20 advance? I read the instructions it came with, but I don't quite understand all of it. It doesn't show the humidity, so is there a special way to check it? And do I manually need to turn the eggs every 24 hours?

I have the Brinsea Octagon 20 advance and love it. I sort of need the Cliff's version with anything and I can use it so that is the acid test. If you have the incubator set on the cradle and the cradle plugged in, that does all the turning automatically for you. On day 18 you unplug the cradle or take the incubator off the cradle for lockdown.
The incubator has to be turned on and the control display shows both the temperature and humidity. You can raise or lower the humidity by adding water to the wells (I add a small damp sponge in a container at lockdown if I need higher humidity) or humidity can be lowered by removing water from the wells (I dip a sponge in and let the water be absorbed to remove some. Hope this helps.
Just wanted to add, checked the temps and found the factory settings to be spot on.

 

[scflock]

Thanks everybody for your help. It is the ECO which I realized after looking at pictures of them. I ordered a humidity and temperature thermometer and they should be here in two days. If I plug up my bator tomorrow, can I put the eggs in Thursday and then when the thermometer gets here put it in then? Or should I wait to or the eggs in till I have the meter and know the temp?

Go ahead and put the eggs in. Chances are that the incubator will be spot on from the factory. Just fill one water channel for now, then double check temps and humidity when your unit comes in and you can make adjustments from there if you need to. Everyone has a different sweet spot for humidity for their areas, but I am not too far from you, so I will tell you what has been my sweet spot. 40-42% humidity for the first 18 days, then 65+ for lockdown. The Brinsea is pretty much idiot proof, you will love it

 

[scflock]

I am sitting on the fence as to whether or not to buy an incubator. All the talk about temp, humidity, turning and all the stuff is pretty intimidating. So here is my question, how hard is it really for a first timer

$80 LG still air? Not very easy
$380 Brinsea? Idiot proof

This year was my first time. I started with the LG, and had horrendous results, but other people do just fine with them. What are your short and long term goals, and how much time do you have to babysit the incubator? If you are wanting to hatch a few for fun, or just run a few batches, spend a little less on the styrofoam, but I recommend the Hovabator over the LG. If this is something you will do over and over, and don't have time to babysit the incubator the first time, then a Brinsea is incredibly simple. Either way you go, practice makes perfect. You will learn more with each hatch

 

[csaiz100]

Off to look at different incubators. Guess my best bet would be Tractor Supply? Can you fit Turkey Eggs in an incubator?

 

[csaiz100]

Looking on e-bay - very confusing, so what is the best incubator to get looking at a budget of give or take 150 Dollars?

 

[dekel18042]

Looking on e-bay - very confusing, so what is the best incubator to get looking at a budget of give or take 150 Dollars?

What type eggs are you looking to hatch and how many at a time?

 

[csaiz100]

maybe 20 chicken eggs a yesr and maybe 10 turkey eggs a year

 

[scflock]

Then

maybe 20 chicken eggs a yesr and maybe 10 turkey eggs a year

Then no need to spend the money on a Brinsea. I highly recommend ordering from incubator warehouse rather than buying from TSC. The LGs they are selling this year have horrendous reviews, mine included