I Lost Two Incubators Today...

[Robo]

Okay so it looks like I can't do any serious hatching for a while, but I saved 60 chicks today. My LG was going crazy today so I took the eggs out of it and put them in a homemade. It broke so I put them back in the LG. An hour later it exploded!

Literally, it actually blew up. The thermostat couldn't take the humidity of the bator and it just sparked a while and then went out. So I had to do something to keep the eggs warm. I set them in the brooder for about an hour while I made an incubator. I am in the process of building a cabinet so I took the thermostat, fan, and heating element out of it. Next I gutted the LG and put all of the parts in it. Set the eggs back, and then float tested. Almost all of them were right on track. So that means the eggies are safe. The new incubator holds a perfect temp of 100.2*, and adjusts easier. I am going to buy a wafer or hot water heater thermostat to wire into my old LG heating element since the thermostat is shot. At least all of the eggs are still safe after this, they are in lockdown so it was a very bad time for this to happen. I am just glad I had the cabinet incubator parts laying around.

Still mad at the LG for blowing up, it flipped the breaker too so I had to fix that before I put the eggs back in.

Now I am on standby.

 

[Cavendish Chickens]

Oh wow! Hope the babies are doing okay! What a time to have that happen! Wishing you lots of luck, and hoping for healthy happy babies!

 

[Robo]

I have a few pips so that is a good sign. I still wonder if the sparks hurt some of the eggs or not. It looks like the whole top burnt, but it works.

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

Good, quick, thinking & handywork!

 

[StevenW.]

I have another LG to get rid of if you need it

 

[Robo]

I mounted all of it with zip ties so I'm praying it stays.

 

[Robo]

Quote:
I'll take the base, but throw the thermostat away! I would take a wafer over that any day.

 

[RareBreedFancier]

Eek!

So lucky you had parts and the smarts to put something together fast! I'd have been doing a flat panic and ringing around to see if anyone had 'bator space.

Good luck, I hope those eggies all hatch for you.

 

[Robo]

Thanks, I have 60 quail eggs in it so it was too many eggs for my original cardboard box idea. I gutted that incubator in no time at all. It was payback for the last hatch it killed.

 

[rebel yell]

A water heater thermostat will not work very well with that LG heating element, but a wafer type works good with them.