Humidity Issues

[kgilmore1]

I’m having problems keeping my humidity down. Only on day 5 and since day 2 the humidity keeps spiking. I usually dry hatch with the humidity in my incubator staying between 40-50 and that creates great hatches for me. Currently my humidity in my incubator is bouncing between 55-70. The humidity outside is 80+ lately. There’s no water in the wells since I dry hatch and I’ve opened all vents (nurture right 360). We have fans going in our house but my house was built in the 20s so no central air unit to help. How can I keep the humidity down more? 55 doesn’t worry me, but 70 does in the first week.

 

[julskinka]

I assume you have a dehumidifier otherwise you'd already have it running in the room. . .
You could try adding some dry sponges.

 

[Ebony Rose]

I assume you have a dehumidifier otherwise you'd already have it running in the room. . .
You could try adding some dry sponges.

Agree with the idea of dry sponges or a dish of dry rice. A dish of those desiccate packages that you get in some food products like jerky, new leather goods, etc., BTW these are non-toxic, they don't want people to swallow them because they're a choking hazard. If you use desiccate packages, open up the air vents again, as they're also called "oxygen absorbers" for a reason **winks**

 

[kgilmore1]

Thank you! I’ll try some dry sponges when I get home!

Our dehumidifier recently broke or we would definitely have it running. This humidity is miserable

 

[Fairview01]

I wonder how a broody hen setting on a clutch would control the humidity in this situation ?

Just saying.

 

[kgilmore1]

I’ve been busy so I just got around to candling today and the results are awful. I expect to have a few eggs not develop or stop for whatever reason, but half of this hatch had died. Almost all with blood rings. I opened a few to see what was going on and they all looked about a week into development. The eggs were very very watery compared to other eggs I’ve seen at that stage. The eggs that are developing have extremely small air cells. My humidity is staying high and nothing is bringing it down. My lesson is learned...don’t hatch in the Arkansas spring/summer humidity in a 100 year old humid house. I’m moving the chicken eggs to a hatcher next week and I’ll update if they do make it. I’m nervous about deformities. And the duck eggs will take a while longer so I’ll update on those later.

 

[Peachychicken1]

I wonder how a broody hen setting on a clutch would control the humidity in this situation ?

Just saying.

She plucks her feathers out ...

 

[Fairview01]

She plucks her feathers out ...

Chicken do not have sweat glands. Feathers are the best natural heat insulator available. Plucking feathers is an evolutionary adaptation that allows eggs to be held at the proper incubation temperature. Nests are lined with feathers for this purpose.

Those birds that did not pluck feathers or enough feathers to maintain the proper incubation temperature faced a genetic dead end since their eggs were never viable.