How to keep incubator floor clean during hatch?

[rascal66]

Hey all,

My next hatch is happing late this week.

My last hatch gave me a couple chicks with mushy chick disease and on top of that, the air just becomes very stinky in there, since the droppings fall into the water troughs.

Details about my incubator: its those yellow top incubators. It came with a plastic hole-y mesh for the chicks to stand/walk on, and right underneath is the water troughs.

When the chicks hatch, they of course have their first poops. Usually it falls through into the water and gets really stinky. I suppose I was just wondering some ideas to remedy that a bit, while still trying to keep the chicks belly from touching poop as well...

Would it be wise to try lining the mesh with paper towel? Or use other methods of retaining water for the humidity?

 

[sourland]

Hard to keep things clean during a hatch. I just used to clean and sanitize everything once the hatch was completed.

 

[Cyprus]

I lay down paper towels for the hatch solely to remove eggshells easier.