I have someone comign down on Friday or Sunday and at the most it will be 5 days the eggs will be sitting in my basement. I didnt want to put them in the fridge so i found the coolest place possible without it getting to cold for the eggs. I was wondering how long will they last down there before they wont be suitable for hatching? This is for this girls science project and i want her hatch to be great!
as long as you turn (lift one side or the other at least once daily) they say you can get good hatches up to a week or longer. But some hens lay for 3 weeks before starting to set.
I have had eggs that were kept cool that were out for 7 days that hatched. My understanding is that the longer you wait the worse your hatch rate is.
I had some that were 7 days old when they were shipped (she sent them as extras just for me to try and hatch). The "old" ones all hatched.
About a week old is optimal, but in ideal lab egg storage systems, up to 3 weeks can still give you about 50% of the chicks.
At what temperature should the eggs be while waiting? I know some people put there eggs in the fridge and will still get a pretty decent hatch (i have done this before) but i want the best quality hatch possible for these people. Would a 70-80 degree room work ok?
