Humidity Outside. Dry hatch?

[KDailey]

I was contemplating doing a dry incubation for my first hatch. I had someone ask me my reasons for doing dry incubation. Of course it was just because it seemed easier, no constant checking and readjusting and adding water, at least until lockdown.

I was told that most people that are doing dry incubation are doing so because where they live it is very humid and that humidity plus adding water to the incubator is often too much.

I think it's really humid here in East Texas but my neighbor said something yesterday about how "not humid" it is.... So now I'm not sure if it really is that dry and I'm just sensitive to what little humidity there is or is she not sensitive to the humidity.

So here is my question: What does the humidity outside need to be in order to do dry incubation?

 

[Soli]

I don't think the humidity OUTSIDE is the issue, it's where-ever your incubator is. Air conditioners in the home do dry out the air to some degree even in high humidity climates.

I have my incubator in a partially insulated garage attached to the house, that receives no climate control, but does have some degree of coolness and temperature stability "leaked" from the main house. I live in Tennessee between Nashville and Knoxville, where it is quite humid throughout the summer (having lived in NE Texas, it's equal to or greater than the typical humidity there). For my first two hatches I added a small amount of water at the very beginning and then filled the bottom trays at lockdown, adding no other water. I kept one or both air hole plugs OUT during lockdown. Both hatches were successful with about 85-90% of fertile eggs hatching.

 

[saladin]

soli is correct. Outside humidity only matters if your incubator is in a building/shed/barn/garage that is exposed to that humidity.

I live in South Carolina. Spring and Summer humidity is normally 80% or higher (with exceptions). This makes a significant difference in the incubator that I run because it is located in the garage where the door is always open.

You might want to read thru the 'dry incubation' method. It is much more involved than you think.

 

[KDailey]

So here's another question:

If it's really hot outside and when we keep it really cold inside the windows fog up. This is during the day. I'm assuming this is because of humidity. So since the incubator will be 95 degrees and we keep it around 70-75 degrees, will this same thing happen? With water? without water?

 

[saladin]

Quote:
95 is way to low for an incubator.

 

[KDailey]

My incubator said it will be preset at 100 but I've been reading everywhere that it's supposed to be 95?

ETA: went to learning center: 99.5 degrees. I must have gone dyslexic for a minute and read it wrong.

 

[saladin]

happens to us all