Incubation failed...Help GOF 1588

[gogo10131]

I have a GOF genesis 1588 hova bator incubator, with a preset temp of 100 degrees and an automatic egg turner. My lost two hatches have gone horribly wrong. I hatched 3 of 36 and 4 of 33. I kept the humidity between 50-55 and increased it to 60-70 during lockdown. When i cracked open the eggs most of them had developed chicks in them, so I'm thinking it's my humidity thats the problem so any help is great especially if you have the same incubator.

 

[fatbassetvineyards]

I have the same incubator. My students would check the temperature and humidity every day with it being 99.5 most days with a humidity of about 45-55%. We (meaning I) messed up at lockdown and went to 80+% humidity for a day or so. Our hatch rate was at 78%. - Yes I teach math. These were my eggs, so no shipping. It was my first hatch so I am not that experienced. I will be trying eggs shipped this weekend. I am trying to learn about them quickly since they are on their way!

It sounds as if you did the right things.

Good luck!

 

[RGWright]

gogo10131,

Do you only have one humidity meter in your bator? Might try to calibrate the one(s) you're using now. Adding a second if you only have one will also help.

Any time you use a digital meter, they can vary during different readings. For example, if it's at 10%, it could be off by 5 -. If it's at 100%, it could be off by 5 +. Just the odd things from the digital age.

 

[gogo10131]

Maybe i should increase my humidity to 80+ lol. I only have one humidity meter, so I'm going to go and add another one. What do you think of my humidity? should i increase or decrease it......

 

[Zanna]

I have the 1588 with the fan and have had great hatches with my own chicken eggs, and eggs I have driven to pick up myself (98%), but not with eggs received in the mail (5% so only brave enought to try once so far)............ 98% hatches even with Marans which are notoriously difficult. I keep the humidity 35 -45% during the turning phase and 55-65% during lockdown. When hatching is going strong, the humidity sometimes temporarily bumps up to 85%, I have not worried about it. I have done about 10 hatches over the last two years, including quail eggs that came in the mail and had about a 75% hatch rate (99% on our own breeders quail eggs). I have left it at the factory settings and it runs slightly warm but I figure why mess with a good thing! My last recent hatch was a combo of 18 marans, 4 barnvelders and 2 buff orps. One of the buff orps hatched in the turner the day of lockdown (day 18) and the last marans hatched day 23. It was a long, drawn out hatch! I am no expert, this has just been my experiences so far and I have been really pleased. Hubby ordered the incubator and when it arrived and I realized it was made of styrofoam I had a laugh attack and momentarily thought he had played a joke on me

 

[RGWright]

Really, humidity depends on where you live. Has a lot to do with sea level, etc.

My best solution has always been: 60-65% for the first 18 days, 80-85% for the last 3 days.

Best way to really know is to watch the air sac. Make sure it's losing just enough each time you candle them.

Here's a link to a website with a excellent picture to view on air sac development during incubation:

http://www.eggincubator.biz/assets/images/photos-in-passage/Air Sac Development.jpg


Hope this helps.

 

[Meara]

I just had the same issue with my first hatch in my 1588

So if I understand this correctly, if the air cell is too big then the egg is losing too much moisture and one should INCREASE the humidity? These humidity issues are confusing me to no end!

Also curious about what other people using the 1588 are doing with their vent plug, leave it in, take it out and when?

 

[Gypsy07]

Quote:
Yes, you're understanding it correctly. And conversely, if the air sac is too small, it's becauser the egg isn't losing enough moisture, and you should lower the humidity.

Gogo10131: I'd say first of all to check that your thermometer and your hygrometer are actually accurate. You can do this by calibrating them, and you'll find instructions somewhere on this site. If you find out that your temps and humidity were what you thought they were, i.e. 100F and 50-55% humidity, then the problem was most likely either with your humidity, or with a lack of oxygen late on in the incubation.

Like RGWright says, ideal humidity depends on a lot of factors. Personally I'd say 50-55% was WAY too high. But for RGWright, it isn't high enough. This is why humidity questions can cause so much confusion. People usually just recommend what works best for them, assuming that it will also work best for someone else, and that really isn't always the case!

If you want a rock solid way of figuring out your ideal humidity, weigh your eggs. Chicken eggs should ideally lose 11-15% of their starting weight by day 18. This is due to moisture evaporating through the shell, and like Meara asked about, it's why the air cell gets bigger as the embryo develops. So you can weigh when you're candling, and assess whether they're losing too much weight or too little as the incubation progresses. You'll find out for sure if your humidity should be higher or lower. You should be able to figure yout your very own ideal humidity. And hopefully your hatch rate will start to improve!

People might be able to give you more advice if you could supply some more information about your hatches. Were they shipped eggs, or not? Did you open the bator at all during lockdown? What day did your successful chicks hatch on? Did they hatch by themselves or did you have to assist them? Was there any excess moisture in the egg shells? Was there any bits of membrane stuck to the chicks? Were the chicks at all crusty or soggy looking? Strong and healthy, or weak and sickly? Any deformities? Grown into healthy adults? All of this would help to figure out what's been going wrong...

 

[gogo10131]

Thanks for the helps guys. I'm going to set some eggs tonight or early tomorrow morning and implement these new ideas