incubator ideas! post your ideas for home made incubators, whether they work or not~

[RoosterRoo]

Here is mine: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...ng-fridge-freezer-into-a-nice-sized-incubator
I had a few things laying around that I could have used for an incubator so I started making one from a aficiando thermoelectric wine cooler and then I remembered that I had a KING fridge/freezer in the garage that was just a storage for my powder coating powder.. SO.... I ditched the wine cooler idea and started on the fridge! Not only was it larger, but it was already wired and connecting my 225w incukit would be a breeze!

I first took it all apart and cleaned it. I then took the door apart and took out the out crappy insulation and put in some double sided thermoboard to hold the heat in on the door. I then got some lexan and cut a sheet the same size as the door panel so it would be flat and not have the shelves on it for even more room! I am in the process of cutting out a opening for a window but I am having a hard time finding a saw blade for stainless steel..

After the door, I then started to work on the main unit and compressor. I took the unit outside and then started taking things apart. Good thing this was old and not working so there was no expelling of freon into the atmosphere. One thing I liked about this is that it has the switch in it for the light to come on when the door is opened so I will just have to drill a hole on the outside of the cabinet for a small switch so I can turn the light on manually without opening the door!

So as of right now, this is where I am at. My incukit stuff will be here tomorrow (4/20/13) and I can't really progress till I get the rest of the stuff. I have some chicken eggs I got from a friends farm and they have been in the basement for about 5 days now so I NEED to get this thing running and finished this weekend!! Not to mention I have ~150 quail eggs coming next week!!
The thing I like about this build is that I can have the racks for the incubation and then on the bottom can be for that hatchings

Here it is so far! INSIDE measurements are 20.5" deep, 21" wide and 26" tall ! Should make for a decent sized incubator! }








Here is the incukit I bought

Details about the Incukit:
This device lets you add a sophisticated control module to your cabinet (or larger-style) egg incubator. This is designed to control the temperature, air circulation and automatic turner motors in your incubator.
Key features
- Proportional thermostat - minimizes temperature swings
- Comes pre-set to 99.5 degrees F (easily adjustable, if desired)
- Electronically controlled
- Digital display
- Controls the heater, fan and egg turner motors (it is not required to use this module to control all accessories, if you desire not to)
- Controls the fan speed
- Hatch timer
- Thermostat is calibration enabled
- Designed to work with both 110/120v and 220/240v power input (you will need a plug adapter for international plug configurations)
- Remote sensor for accurate temperature reading
- Easily mounts into your incubator
- Maximum heater wattage: 300 watts

Here is a late night update. I am trying to get as much done as possible before the morning because my Incukit will be here AND I have some eggs that need to go in Sunday-Monday at the latest! I added an external toggle switch for the light so I don't have to open the door or shine a flashlight inside to see the eggs. I also cut a 10" viewing window in the stainless steel door so I can monitor the chicks at all times. After I cut the hole I then took out the insulation and applied some caulking to adhere the insulation to the inside of the door and also to seal up around the new window hole.

Other things done were where the fridge thermostat was, I put a piece of metal duct work tape to seal the holes and also trimmed the plastic around the light (so I get more light throughout the inside) and placed a piece of that tape behind the bulb to help reflect the light more and also to protect the exposed plastic from the heat of the bulb. After all of that, I noticed that the plus was a little shabby and well used so I replaced that also. }

More pics (HOPEFULLY of the finished product) will be posted tomorrow sometime! for now here is what we have.

 

[RoosterRoo]

Well, after a long night and an early morning FedEx delivery from IncubatorWarehouse.com, I was able to finish my incubator! Now I have all day to get it dialed in so I can get the eggs in there tomorrow sometime and start hatching.

Here are some finished pics.

 

[Chris2]

Hi. My name is Bob Christian. When I was young (many, many years ago) I had a house full of kids and little money so I decided to raise Chickens and sell some eggs. I didn't have the money to buy chickens or an incubator so I made an incubator. I made a box out of scrap wood about 30 inches by 30 inches and a wooden lid for it the same size. I drilled a hole thru the middle of the lid. I took four ceramic light bulb sockets with the two screw base and wired them together in parallel using an extension cord and put a wafer thermostat out of an old brooder stove in series with the circuit. I then screwed the four sockets to the underside of the lid and ran the control knob for the wafer thermostat thru the hole in the lid. then I installed 4, sixty watt, bulbs into the sockets. Then I glued aluminum foil, shiny side out, to the inside of the box and the underside of the lid around the bulbs and wafer thermostat. I then put two blocks of wood in the bottom of the box and set a short refrigerator rack on the blocks to hold the eggs. Under the rack I had a little bowl of water with an old rag in it to serve to give humidity to the home made incubator. I plugged it in and using a ordinary household thermometer; I adjusted the wafer thermostat to the proper temperature for hatching chicken eggs. I went to an old farmer friend who had hens and a rooster and bought 4 dozen eggs from him fresh out of the chicken nests. I placed the eggs in the home made incubator and turned them three times a day by hand. I had placed an "X" on the eggs so that I would know which side was which and I would put the X up then at the next turning place the X down. Anyway I hatched out 42 chickens the first time and we had made nests and roosts in an old shed on our property and surrounded it with used chicken wire with a home made gate and we were in business. I used that old home made incubator for about twenty years and it never stopped working. I hope that what I have written here helps some poor boy who needs to make a little extra money be able to hatch out some chickens to do it with.
Oh by the way, you can order wafer thermostats thru the sears farm catalog. They aren't expensive. Or if you can find an old brooder stove you can take the wafer thermostat out of it to use. Then after hatching out the chicks you can take the wafer thermostat off the incubator and put it back in the brooder stove and use it to keep the chicks warm. Other wise you can just put the baby chicks in a big cardboard box and suspend a 75 watt bulb above them about two feed and that will also keep them warm.

 

[Opticell]

Hi Incubating Peeps. Just finished a Crusinart Wine Fridge Incubator. No pictures yet, but have it tuned up, within tolerances maintaining 99.5 to 100.3 F. Almost all parts were free. Crusinart Wine Fridge, broken circuitry, nice front window. With cooling fins removed makes great access point in the rear for electrical access to inside:

Thermostat is from Hot water bed heater thermostat. It is similar to this picture found online, and is labelled old type thermostats, if there are any today, they are probably digital. I have two old ones I picked up at the 2nd hand store cheap.

Also have a 13watt fluorescent bulb supplies about 90 percent of heat, and in tests of completed unit with the other heat source off, temperature dropped 0.1 degree every 3 minutes. With the addition of one more 13 watt bulb with the thermostat sensor (copper piece above) weaved in the center of the bulb tubes provides the additional 10 percent. A small CPU fan supplies air movement when the 2nd bulb is on.

Next, I found a multitude of parts available in old microwaves. The Microwave turntable motor can cost $20+ new, but are being thrown away daily by microwave upgrades, old microwave tossed to the heap. I cut out the turntable floor also, but had second thoughts, just too big to fit inside the 9"Wx13"Hx15"D. At this moment the turntable is working good inside rotating at about 45 degree angle but is rotating at 2rpm. As you see in the picture, the motor runs on 21VAC (AC21V), but I modified a 12VDC adapter, cracked it open and added wires straight off the transformer just before the diodes, and got 12VAC. So one adapter runs the eggturner and the 12VDC fan or fans.

Unrelated to incubators: The microwave has a minimum of 3 microswitches (useful in making automatic chicken doors) and are worth about $10. Also are at least 2 relays to control 120vac with 12vdc control also used in auto door. The huge transformer has plenty copper that would be a shame to throw away. There are two magnets too.

Summary: I need to get home and take some pictures of my setup, until then these are the low cost components of my Crusinart Incubator, consumes about 15-17 watts to maintain 100F. Just now I can only fit a dozen eggs in clear egg cartons strapped to the turntable (pictures to follow.) Cheers, Mike

 

[Opticell]

A few notes, what is great with this turntable motor, just like your microwave turns food until stopped by hitting an obstacle, so does this motor, automatically reverses direction, perfect for rocking eggs vs complete rotations.

The fan I use is from cooling fan unscrewed from NVidia video card: it needs 12VDC to operate, placed behind the 2nd heat source, it draws air toward the back and up past eggs and front bulb, so air continually circulates throughout the enclosure.

 

[wesandsam]

i used a hot water heater thermostat in mine 13$ and 2 light fixtures 1.50$ each, i used 2 incase one dies and a cpu fan .99 cents on ebay. i made the box out of wood i had laying around some 1" insulation i got for free and an old 12 dv power adapter i found to run the fan. i put the thermostat as close as i could to the lights.

Just an up date. I had 6 eggs and got 5 to hatch. When I broke open the non hatched egg (after day 5) it didn't look like it was fertilized.

 

[quintinp]

Hi Incubating Peeps. Just finished a Crusinart Wine Fridge Incubator. No pictures yet, but have it tuned up, within tolerances maintaining 99.5 to 100.3 F. Almost all parts were free. Crusinart Wine Fridge, broken circuitry, nice front window. With cooling fins removed makes great access point in the rear for electrical access to inside:

Thermostat is from Hot water bed heater thermostat. It is similar to this picture found online, and is labelled old type thermostats, if there are any today, they are probably digital. I have two old ones I picked up at the 2nd hand store cheap.

Also have a 13watt fluorescent bulb supplies about 90 percent of heat, and in tests of completed unit with the other heat source off, temperature dropped 0.1 degree every 3 minutes. With the addition of one more 13 watt bulb with the thermostat sensor (copper piece above) weaved in the center of the bulb tubes provides the additional 10 percent. A small CPU fan supplies air movement when the 2nd bulb is on.

Next, I found a multitude of parts available in old microwaves. The Microwave turntable motor can cost $20+ new, but are being thrown away daily by microwave upgrades, old microwave tossed to the heap. I cut out the turntable floor also, but had second thoughts, just too big to fit inside the 9"Wx13"Hx15"D. At this moment the turntable is working good inside rotating at about 45 degree angle but is rotating at 2rpm. As you see in the picture, the motor runs on 21VAC (AC21V), but I modified a 12VDC adapter, cracked it open and added wires straight off the transformer just before the diodes, and got 12VAC. So one adapter runs the eggturner and the 12VDC fan or fans.

Unrelated to incubators: The microwave has a minimum of 3 microswitches (useful in making automatic chicken doors) and are worth about $10. Also are at least 2 relays to control 120vac with 12vdc control also used in auto door. The huge transformer has plenty copper that would be a shame to throw away. There are two magnets too.

Summary: I need to get home and take some pictures of my setup, until then these are the low cost components of my Crusinart Incubator, consumes about 15-17 watts to maintain 100F. Just now I can only fit a dozen eggs in clear egg cartons strapped to the turntable (pictures to follow.) Cheers, Mike

I can't wait to see pictures, this is really interesting. As for the microwave turner, I didn't know that the motor had a reverse on it!

 

[Opticell]

My Crusinart Incubator with 8 eggs on day 8, and one 98 gram layed this morning (2"by2.72"). The temperature has been varying from 101 during the day to 98 at night, am guessing it is room temperature variations that is causing it. I first had the thermostat switch at room temperature, with sensor at the heat source, but tried moving the switch inside (near the top as seen in photos) to keep it at a constant temperature. With the light on, resembles a roasting chicken, lol.

 

[Opticell]

With heat off it uses 6 watts for the fan, and 37 watts max with turntable Xmas string (13w) & Fluorescent bulb (13w) and fan. It uses 14 watts per hour averaged 24 hours monitored. Here is a picture of my 98 gram egg compared to another BPR egg of 56 grams.

 

[num1hogfan]

Here is my incubator. $1.50 for cooler. I don't have any vent holes. Where should I place those and how big? my manual egg turner. The handle is outside that I pull back and forth to rotate the eggs. Here is my heat source. I have the HW thermostat drilled out for sensitivity, 75watt bulb and a heat sink fan. It doesn't cycle very fast like I thought it would. Temps seem to hold around 100 by the thermometer at the bottom. The hydrometer seems to fluctuate by a few degrees. The fan doesn't blow very hard either. total cost HW thermo-$8, Hydro-$8, light socket $2. Fan free. I will have a couple of tubes at the bottom to fill two small trays for humidity. Any other ideas on how to keep the humidity up or lower it if it gets to high? I'm getting my chicks eggs this weekend. I hope all goes well.

I got my eggs in place but its only day 3. I had about 5 hrs that the temp maxed at 102. I adjusted it that morning and got it steady at 100. If it cooked them then oh well. I can get more. Humidity is around 55%. We'll see.