I have silver sebright eggs arriving in a few days. I normally dry incubate large fowl but I read somewhere that bantam eggs need more humidity. What humidity level would you recommend for the first 18 days & lockdown? Is there anything else I should do different when incubating them?
Bantam eggs take the same humidity as large fowl, so if you have been successful with large fowl, keep doing what your doing. I have hatched both, & didn't change either heat or humidity. Bantam eggs are smaller, so you might have to adjust turning. The easiest way to tell is to put an "X" on one side of the eggs. Start with the "X" up & turn the "X" down (180 degrees)
don't worry too much about humidity until day 18, candle to check air sack if it is shrunk down, up humidity and stop turning, if not wait till it has shrunk or you might drown them.
If you have hatched LF at this time of year, start with that. I find winter to be dry, and I need to add a little moisture compared to the humid months of summer where I live. I am setting medium eggs, pullet eggs, and I expect to need a little more moisture as smaller eggs lose moisture faster than a larger egg. Do you have a chart to compare air cell size when you are candling. Try googling." air cell at 7th, 14th and 18th day" you should find a diagram to print off and use for comparison on those same days. THen adjust the moisture levels if necessary. For example, if the air cell is too large, add more water and keep the moisture level a bit higher.
I am not having problems either way, but day 15 for me and I see air cell getting larger but I have a few more days yet. I am not using dry method but I have been putting 1/2 cup water in incubator every other evening or so and then taking it out. This is not my first hatch but I seem to learn more every time.
