Incubating turkey eggs? Any helpful tips or advice?

[bayvistafarm]

2013 I had horrid hatches, with everything. Humidity was too high, from what I read.

2014 I started dry incubating. I only added water when the digital readout said it was in the 20's. (I have a thermometer/hydrometer, that measures humidity in the room, OR put the probe into the hole in the top of the bator... I have the Brinsea Oct. 20) The humidity in the room was about 50-65%.

So... maybe added water, filling the reservoirs once or twice. (with turkeys too). Then at lockdown, raised the humidity with sponges in the reservoirs and felt on the 'floor', dipping into the 'wells'. Readout on hydrometer was about 70%. Of the fertile eggs left in the bator after candling, I had 85-90% hatch rate. ONLY one or two pipped and dead in shell compared to almost half in 2013.

 

[MeghanFaith]

Yes I'm def. going with the more dry method this time. I have tubing and basically cypher it in through one the hole in the top. I'm gonna look more into how often I should move the eggs around in the turner, I'm trying to handle and open the lid as little as possible. I was wondering if moving them around on the days I candle would be enough or not?

 

[AmericanMom]

I hadn't heard of moving the eggs around in a still air... I should have my Gen 1588 by the time the Turks start laying tho so I wont have to worry about that

 

[MeghanFaith]

I hadn't heard of moving the eggs around in a still air... I should have my Gen 1588 by the time the Turks start laying tho so I wont have to worry about that

This is my first time hearing about it too, although I can see where it comes from if the still air creates hot spots. I'm just planning on rotating them possibly when I candle and see how it goes? Although, I'm not sure if that will be enough to help much. I'm still a lil' pfft about my fanning biting the dust the day I put the eggs in. Oh well maybe it was a sign to forgo the fan this go around.

Oh and another thing I'm doing different this time around is that I AM NOT messing with the temp when I lay the eggs down to hatch. I turned it down a hair when it came to lock down on to end up turning it back up a hair because it dropped too low. I didn't consider how much farther away the eggs are from the heating element when the turner is taken out.

I'm also mostly going to judge humidity more by the air cells than the readings on the hygrometer. I did however calibrate EVERYTHING!

 

[AmericanMom]

This is my first time hearing about it too, although I can see where it comes from if the still air creates hot spots. I'm just planning on rotating them possibly when I candle and see how it goes? Although, I'm not sure if that will be enough to help much. I'm still a lil' pfft about my fanning biting the dust the day I put the eggs in. Oh well maybe it was a sign to forgo the fan this go around.

Oh and another thing I'm doing different this time around is that I AM NOT messing with the temp when I lay the eggs down to hatch. I turned it down a hair when it came to lock down on to end up turning it back up a hair because it dropped too low. I didn't consider how much farther away the eggs are from the heating element when the turner is taken out.

I'm also mostly going to judge humidity more by the air cells than the readings on the hygrometer. I did however calibrate EVERYTHING!

Let me add, I have incubated tons of chicken eggs in my still air and have never rotated them, I am not sure if I would want to be messing with the eggs that much, especially Turkey eggs.
I do turn my heat down by one half- one degree for hatching, but unlike most I don't jack up the humidity either.

 

[MeghanFaith]

Last year I found a lady that had BR turkeys in lay, she was selling the turkeys but I wasn't ready for adults so she sold me the eggs for $12. a dozen.. I bought each one that was laid until she sold, the first batch, 28 was set and I followed the directions from the porter site to the letter, a week after those were set I added a coupe chicken eggs... I had one chicken hatch, lost everything else, upon opening the eggs each and everyone of them was very wet so I came to the conclusion the humidity was way to high... In between this time the lady had been gathering more eggs and I bought another 15 before she sold the turkeys... I did an about face and did a complete dry incubation. Out of those 15 eggs I had 12 hatch without any issue. The only humidity I added was at lockdown and I wet three small sponge strips (from one sponge) they piped and zipped and hatched so fast it was awesome. I have three of those twelve, one tom and two hens. I have sinced practiced with chicken eggs and sure enough, my hatch rates have went thru the roof with dry incubation and the sponge strips at lockdown. I do not keep track of the humidity within the incubator anymore instead I track the air cell.

My first run only 4 developed to hatching stage out of 12, 2 hatched 2 died before hatching.

This time I got another doz. from the same lady who kindly gave me 5 Indian Runner Eggs to boot!

I followed your advice about trying a dry incubation. I only add water when my humidity drops pretty low and even then I don't add very much. Yesterday was day 18 & things are already looking a lot better! I had to toss 4 turkey and 1 duck that weren't developing. The remaining eggs have very good veining, many moved, and the air cell size looked dead on. Hopefully things continue down this path to lockdown. I am sort of curious about how you do your sponge strips?

P.S. I didn't rotate them either
Still this is a MAJOR improvement compared to my previous attempts

 

[AmericanMom]

My first run only 4 developed to hatching stage out of 12, 2 hatched 2 died before hatching.

This time I got another doz. from the same lady who kindly gave me 5 Indian Runner Eggs to boot!

I followed your advice about trying a dry incubation. I only add water when my humidity drops pretty low and even then I don't add very much. Yesterday was day 18 & things are already looking a lot better! I had to toss 4 turkey and 1 duck that weren't developing. The remaining eggs have very good veining, many moved, and the air cell size looked dead on. Hopefully things continue down this path to lockdown. I am sort of curious about how you do your sponge strips?

P.S. I didn't rotate them either
Still this is a MAJOR improvement compared to my previous attempts

Very cool!! Depending on where you live you might need a tad more humidity at lockdown and hatch... But I am so glad this is working (so far, don't want to jinx it!)

 

[AmericanMom]

My first run only 4 developed to hatching stage out of 12, 2 hatched 2 died before hatching.

This time I got another doz. from the same lady who kindly gave me 5 Indian Runner Eggs to boot!

I followed your advice about trying a dry incubation. I only add water when my humidity drops pretty low and even then I don't add very much. Yesterday was day 18 & things are already looking a lot better! I had to toss 4 turkey and 1 duck that weren't developing. The remaining eggs have very good veining, many moved, and the air cell size looked dead on. Hopefully things continue down this path to lockdown. I am sort of curious about how you do your sponge strips?

P.S. I didn't rotate them either
Still this is a MAJOR improvement compared to my previous attempts

I am sorry, I just noticed this question...

I take a couple regular cheapy kitchen sponges (like you buy at dollar tree) and cut them into a few strips, dip those in hotish water and lay them around the edge of the bator.. I have found I can control the humidity better, Every day until the first pip I rewet them. In my neck of the woods this was all I needed. If I find in the middle of the hatch and there is a slight lull I will rewet them but first I get a humidifier and get the room humidity up if its low. Again, a lot depends on the chicks, if I think they are struggling and they need more humidity I am not opposed to adding a jelly jar of water, but that's only if I feel their struggling to hatch or I will keep the humidifier going, keeping the room humidity up.
Every time I filled the channels in the bator I had issues so I just quit doing it all together.