Incubator Questions...

[Johnn]

Im planning on getting a "Brinsea Mini Advance Incubator" and i have hatched chicks with a hen but not myself so i would appreciate answers to these questions, i would be really greatfull if yous can tell me instead of giving me a website.
1. how many times a day do the eggs need to be turned?
2. how do i control humidity and what does it have to be kept on? and does it need to be kept like that the whole amount of time to hatch. (I will be hatching ducks and hens)
3.how do you set the temp? will it explain it in the manuel?
4 How long can the chicks stay in the incubator after hatching?
5. I will have to open the lid to turn the eggs, does it matter how long it takes me to do it or do i have to do it as quick as possible?
Thankyou so much to anyone who could answer these for me!

 

[jtallant]

I just purchased this incubator with the auto egg turner. The manual says to weigh the eggs for humidity control (something I am still trying to figure out). They make it look very simple in the instructions and provide a lot of detail on it. They don't recommend a hygrometer though. Setting the temp was very easy since it is all digital and when I set it up to check how it holds temperature it did fantastic with no problems. The egg turning and angles are also digitally controlled with how you set it up and they have a very easy to read setting recommendations. The manual is available online, I downloaded it and read it through before purchasing to make sure that I could get the hang of it and here's the link, hope that works, if not just google Brinsea Mini Advance manual and it pops up first. I haven't used it yet for actual eggs, but hope this helps a little. ( I know you said no links, but this is the manual link and since it is a pdf I can't post it here for you.
www.brinsea.com/pdffiles/Mini%20Advance%20US.pdf

 

[Johnn]

the one thing i cant get my head around is all this hygrometre and the humidity! i just dont understand it!!!

 

[Johnn]

oh i sent you the wrong link, thats is the incubator but just not the automatic turn one!

 

[jtallant]

I think then you're looking at this one:

http://www.brinsea.com/pdffiles/Mini Eco US.pdf

There's the manual for it. It says to turn the eggs 3 times a day starting on the second day and stop turning eggs 2 days before hatch. It looks like it has a temp control that you turn manually to set. The manual has it all pretty clear as to what you need to do.

I still don't understand the humidity thing either but hopefully some of the experts here will see my other post regarding that and help me/us out!

 

[Jeanette56]

Hope this helps!

I'm planning on getting a "Brinsea Mini Advance Incubator" and i have hatched chicks with a hen but not myself so i would appreciate answers to these questions, i would be really grateful if you can tell me instead of giving me a website.

1. how many times a day do the eggs need to be turned?
Recommended is at least 3 times a day. I try to do 5 times a day when my schedule allows. You want to turn them an odd number of times so that the longest stretch of time (usually overnight) is different each night. I just looked @ what I think is the same machine you are getting and it looks like you may have an automatic egg turner in your unit. If so, you just let the machine do its job.

2. how do i control humidity and what does it have to be kept on? and does it need to be kept like that the whole amount of time to hatch. (I will be hatching ducks and hens)
Hopefully you will receive a manual/instructions with your incubator and it will have suggestions. However this is one question that is more difficult to answer because each incubator is different and the weather/conditions in your area may be different. There is also the controversy between "dry incubation" and "wet incubation". Generally the humidity that is recommended is 35-40% for the first 18 days (chickens) and 60-65% during lockdown. Ducks require different incubation times & humidity levels so be aware that you need a little more information if you are going to try hatching them together.

3.how do you set the temp? will it explain it in the manual? I believe this is the link to the online version of your manual. http://www.brinsea.com/pdffiles/Mini Advance US.pdf

4 How long can the chicks stay in the incubator after hatching? They can remain in the incubator for 24-48 hours but again you need to check your manual.

5. I will have to open the lid to turn the eggs, does it matter how long it takes me to do it or do i have to do it as quick as possible? I think you have an auto turner in your unit but if not there is no big rush to turn your eggs. In a natural setting a hen may leave her eggs for 15-30 minutes while she eats & drinks. So if you get it done within a few minutes you are safe.

Thank you so much to anyone who could answer these for me!

 

[Johnn]

do you have a thread asking about humidity too?

 

[Johnn]

Hope this helps!

Thanks it does but do you know the humidity levals for ducks?, i will be hatching ducks and hens but sepretley...

 

[Johnn]

I think then you're looking at this one:

http://www.brinsea.com/pdffiles/Mini Eco US.pdf

There's the manual for it. It says to turn the eggs 3 times a day starting on the second day and stop turning eggs 2 days before hatch. It looks like it has a temp control that you turn manually to set. The manual has it all pretty clear as to what you need to do.

I still don't understand the humidity thing either but hopefully some of the experts here will see my other post regarding that and help me/us out!

it wont let me open the link!

 

[jtallant]

I don't know why the link won't work for you. Try googling Brinsea Mini Eco manual. It pops up as the first choice, but it is a pdf format. If you don't have the reader you can click on "quick view" and it will open that way too. Here's a copy of what I am talking about (when you google it). I just tested the link again with the "quick view" below and it opened for me.

• [PDF]​
  
  Mini Eco high performance egg incubator User instructions
  
  www.brinsea.com/pdffiles/Mini%20Eco%20US.pdfSimilar
  File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - Quick View
  These instructions detail the operation of your new Mini Eco digital incubator. ... To register your new Brinsea product please visit www.brinsea.com and follow ... news and information such as advance notice about new products, special offers ...