I'm ordering an incubator NOW!

[cherylcohen]

Quote:
The Octagon 20 Advance EX - that's the top-of-the-line in the Octagon 20 series. It adds the automatic humidity pump module that completely electronically controls the humidity in the incubator.

Automatic humidity control is a definite advantage. Yes, the extra feature is nice, but you're going to get lazy if you don't even have monitor the humidity level!

true!!

Ok next best place to buy??

 

[Sweetfolly]

Quote:
The Octagon 20 Advance EX - that's the top-of-the-line in the Octagon 20 series. It adds the automatic humidity pump module that completely electronically controls the humidity in the incubator.

Automatic humidity control is a definite advantage. Yes, the extra feature is nice, but you're going to get lazy if you don't even have monitor the humidity level!

true!!

Ok next best place to buy??

I bought my first Brinsea straight from them, at the Brinsea website: www.brinsea.com - that's probably the best price you're going to find. I shopped around a LOT before I ordered mine. It took about 4-5 business days to get to me; it ships to you from their distribution center in Florida.

My second one I bought used here on BYC.

 

[verlaj]

Pretty sure I've lost my mind, too! Couldn't wait for a broody hen - ordered some chicks - NOW you've got me looking at at $400+ incubator! I want the Brinsea Octagon 20 Advance EX - looks almost as good as a broody hen! I see the basic model is available for $99. How much work is it to tend if you don't have the automatic features?

 

[cherylcohen]

No idea... Wondering on the advance are you able tothechicks hatch well? Looks like the motor etc are in the way

 

[cherylcohen]

Thx annarie

 

[bel]

I have a king suro 20 with the same features with the same feature as the brinsea and love it, its so easy to use.
Nice to push a button and have the temp show instead of turning a knob or dial and guessing. Plus you dont have to take out an internal turner, just lif the incubator of the turner and remove the slats, up humidity and you are set for lockdown.
Best of all its not styrofoam.

 

[Sweetfolly]

Quote:
The basic model (The Octagon 20 Eco) is what I have - actually, I have two of them, and one auto-turner.

I went with the Eco because I'm in college and I just couldn't spend an entire semester's worth of textbooks on an incubator. But, really, I've found that the Eco is all I need. You'll need a good hygrometer to monitor the humidity, but it's really straight-forward. In most cases, you just fill one of the water-channels in the bottom of the 'bator for the first 18 days, and fill both water channels to bump up the humidity for the hatch. If you don't have the auto-turner (I didn't until two days ago), you just turn the whole incubator an odd number of times per day - I have chicken eggs being auto-turned in one of my Octagon 20 Eco's right now, and duck eggs that I'm manually turning in the other.

Even the Eco is a "set it and forget it" incubator - you just have to check the humidity every once in awhile. Once you have the temperature set (adjusting the temperature in the Eco is a pain, and requires two different screwdrivers), it never wavers. I set both of mine when I got them (one was set about two degrees too low when I first got it and plugged it in) and then you don't have to worry about them or mess with them - they hold rock-solid at the temperature they're adjusted to.

HOWEVER - the very first time I incubated in my Octagon 20 Eco, I had the humidity too high - actually, the humidity in my house was just right, but I had water in one of the channels, which was making it too humid and didn't realize it until the humidity had been WAY too high for pretty much all of the second week of incubation. In that instance, I know I could have saved at least one of the chicks if I'd had automatic humidity control during the second week (I did get two healthy chicks though!)

 

[Madcap621]

Quote:
I went with the R-Com King Suro-20 because I got all the bells and whistles, including the automatic humidity controll pump for half the price. I couldn't be happier with it. I put my pricey eggs in it, plugged it in and plugged in the rocker. On day 18 I increased the humidity setting to 68 and took it out of the rocker. On day 21 the eggs hatched. The only problem was that there isn't really enough room for more than 8 to 10 bantam chicks to hatch in it without having to open it and take some out. Had I had fewer eggs and decided not to candle I would not have needed to open it or do a thing to it other than put eggs in, take fluffy dry chicks out

 

[Sweetfolly]

Quote:
I went with the R-Com King Suro-20 because I got all the bells and whistles, including the automatic humidity controll pump for half the price. I couldn't be happier with it. I put my pricey eggs in it, plugged it in and plugged in the rocker. On day 18 I increased the humidity setting to 68 and took it out of the rocker. On day 21 the eggs hatched. The only problem was that there isn't really enough room for more than 8 to 10 bantam chicks to hatch in it without having to open it and take some out. Had I had fewer eggs and decided not to candle I would not have needed to open it or do a thing to it other than put eggs in, take fluffy dry chicks out

I've heard good things about the Suro 20. It's very similar to the Brinsea Advance EX, but it's newer, and there aren't as many reviews on it yet. It looks very neat.

 

[cherylcohen]

Quote:
I went with the R-Com King Suro-20 because I got all the bells and whistles, including the automatic humidity controll pump for half the price. I couldn't be happier with it. I put my pricey eggs in it, plugged it in and plugged in the rocker. On day 18 I increased the humidity setting to 68 and took it out of the rocker. On day 21 the eggs hatched. The only problem was that there isn't really enough room for more than 8 to 10 bantam chicks to hatch in it without having to open it and take some out. Had I had fewer eggs and decided not to candle I would not have needed to open it or do a thing to it other than put eggs in, take fluffy dry chicks out

so it really won't hatch 20 chicken eggs comfortably???