Humidity

[RoseMarie1]

GOOD job!

 

[Suzierd]

Where is the light installed within the cooler? I wound up installing the candelabra light fixture through the short side of the Styrofoam cooler about midway up. Filled a small dish (about the size of a small cupcake) w/ a cut sponge and topped it off until saturated. Once my first chick pipped, I moved the light to the corner of the cooler lid. This affords the chick an opportunity to regulate its temp preference by moving closer/further from the light source - plus I wouldn't want an jumpy chick bouncing off a hot, low-hanging bulb. I also placed a doubled-over piece of aluminum foil (about 3/4 as tall as the cooler) btwn the eggs and light source. This redirected a fair amount of light back toward the water dish and prevented the eggs from receiving too much radiant heat. The previous poster was correct in the fact as temp goes up, relative humidity goes down - UNLESS more water is added to the environment. For me, keeping the sponge fully saturated resulted in a RH btwn 45-54%, with a temp btwn 99-102 deg. I punched eight equidistant, pencil-sized holes in the cooler lid and capped them w/ duct tape initially. I removed the duct tape on these ports to regulate temp & RH. On the days the bulb decided to run hot (spiked at 106 a couple times), I'd crack the lid long enough to pull temps back to norm. I used a wireless thermometer, so I could monitor temps while I sat in the family room. It all seemed to work.

Thanks for this info! I will show her this when she comes over. She said her temp dropped to 92 one morning, do you think she lost them?

 

[FenikT]

Temp drops are normal under a broody hen, so its no different in an incubator. Eggs are slow to warm and relatively slow to cool, given they are mostly water. The pine shavings are an insulator too, so unless you're talking a full day at 92, I wouldn't be too concerned.

 

[Suzierd]

Temp drops are normal under a broody hen, so its no different in an incubator. Eggs are slow to warm and relatively slow to cool, given they are mostly water. The pine shavings are an insulator too, so unless you're talking a full day at 92, I wouldn't be too concerned.

Good to know! Thank you

 

[Suzierd]

I noticed she is stacking the eggs on top of each other, is that a bad idea? She has a really small ice chest and stacked them due to lack of room. If that's a problem is it safe to move them to a larger ice chest?