*I give up! Am I killing my eggs?!*

[pulletmom#1]

i dont know if temp afects the humidity or not but, it sure seems like it does with mine. i finally got my temp set at 991/2 and holding,my humidity was at 4o% but its finally going down slow but sure to 38% hopefully that will be ok. iv hatched silkies and quil before at 60% and i didnt lose any. so, i thing it depends some on the weather and humidity too.

 

[Tripp16]

Well I FINALLY got my humidity down to 38% its down to around 30% maybe a little lower. Im going to let it run dry for a few days to catch up on those wet days. Ill add some though if it gets too low.

 

[kanolley]

fret not.... I've had problems also with humitity, I had trouble keeping it up..... the most critical time is the 16-21 days.... breath and it will be ok

all my hatches have proven about 50/50 and it's all with the temp and humitity..... nothing like the hen though !!!

hopes this helps alittle.

 

[Sharisr32]

I can't tell what state you are in but I have killed more then a few eggs -(those who know me stop laughing) First I stopped measuring humidity - Check temp - and location- I put eggs in now that I know my temp is good and look 21 days later We have even had a quake register and my eggs hatch which speaks to location the incubator is on a solid oak stand It doesn't shake when my 6 '2 dh walks or the dgd plays --hatching is individual science find out which rule isn't working for you and change it -Since i figured out that dry hatching is the only way i can hatch it is much easier no water at all - I do not move or shut off my turner and my hatch rate is 90% even on shipped and i have hatched more breeds and varieties then hatcheries have. It took a lot of eggs to figure out what worked for me - It is surpose to be fun ---

 

[Tripp16]

Quote:
Exactly this is why I started out! For fun. I just need to let them do their thing. It just stresses me out!

So does dry hatching work alot bette for you? I may just not add much water until lockdown?? If you do like dry hatching what do you keep your humidity at? OR do you not measure? (like you said... just maybe estimate?

)

Thanks!

 

[Sharisr32]

I have no idea what the humidity is - I Don't measure it --- It has to be right the eggs hatch --I am in Ohio dry hatching depends on home to home season to season but try it what is the worst that can happen a 0 hatch - I stopped having chicks rountinely die in shell and alot of other rountine issues --I have hatched Geese (still want to try an EMU) Call Ducks -Serama to RIR with this method there are no hatching Police --

 

[pulletmom#1]

hi, what do you keep your temp at? thanks!

 

[SA newbie]

I'm in South Africa, its our summer rainy season and the weather is hot and rainy so temp and humidity is up and down with the ambient temp and humidity, eggs are fertile, candled yesterday, but scared I'm going to fry them at 104F and then it drops to 95F. Humidity won't come down from 48%?? Should I take out the water bowl and let it run dry a bit? Now day 6.

 

[cmom]

To calibrate a hygrometer you will need:

1/2 cup table salt
approximately 1/4 cup water
coffee cup
hygrometer
large resealable freezer bag

Place 1/2 cup of salt in the coffee cup, and add the water. Stir for a bit to totally saturate the salt. The salt won't dissolve in this amount of water; instead, the salt should have the consistency of wet sand.

Carefully place the cup containing the salt/water mix in a resealable plastic bag. Place the hygrometer in the bag, away from the cup of salt and water. Note: make sure none of the salt/water mix comes in direct contact with the hygrometer, or the hygrometer may be damaged. Completely seal the bag.

Place the sealed bag aside at room temperature for 8-12 hours. Pick a location free of drafts, out of direct sunlight, and away from heating or cooling vents. The temperature should be fairly constant.

After being in the sealed bag for 8-12 hours, check the reading of the hygrometer. It is best to read it while still in the bag, since if your house air is dry the reading may go down quickly once you take the hygrometer out of the bag.

The relative humidity in the sealed bag with the salt/water mix should be 75 percent.

If yours is the adjustable type, adjust the screw or setting so that it would have read 75 percent. You will have to do this very quickly, or remember how much you need to adjust the setting (e.g. for mine, it read 72 percent when it should have been 75 percent, so I would need to set it ahead by 3 percentage points). You may want to put the hygrometer back in the bag for another 8 hours to double check your adjustment.

If yours is not adjustable (like mine), simply make a note of how "off" your hygrometer reads. If it reads below 75 percent, you will need to add the difference to your actual readings. If your hygrometer read above 75 percent on the calibration, you will need to subtract the difference from your actual reading. Here are some examples to help:
Case 1: after sitting in the bag for calibration, my hygrometer read 72 percent. It should have read 75 percent, so the difference is 3 percent. I will now add 3 percent to the readings I take on the hygrometer (e.g. in a tank) to get the actual relative humidity.
Case 2: after calibrating in the bag, a hygrometer read 80 percent. It should have read 75 percent, a difference of 5 percent. I would have to subtract 5 percent from readings when using the hygrometer to get an accurate relative humidity.

Remember: always give a hygrometer about 2 hours to stabilize before taking a reading, as changes in the relative humidity may take a while to register accurately on a hygrometer.

There are two methods that you could use to calibrate thermometers:

Ice Point Method - Fill a container with crushed ice and water. Ensure that the container have enough crushed ice to provide an environment of 32 degrees F, so you may need to add more ice into the container during the process. It will takes about 4 to 5 minutes for the mixture of water to stabilized. Then insert the thermometer which needs to be calibrated into the appropriate immersion depth. Hold the thermometer away from the bottom and sides of the container to avoid error. If your thermometer is not accurate at 32 degrees F, adjust the thermometer accordingly.

Boiling Point Method - Fill a container with distilled water and heat it up. After the temperature in the water has reached the boiling point, insert the thermometer . Be sure to leave at least a two inch gap between the thermometer sensing element and the bottom and sides of the container to avoid error. If your thermometer is not accurate at 212 degrees F, adjust the thermometer accordingly.

 

[stephanie1992]

i wouldnt add any water till day 18