Incubator vs. Hatcher . . . what's the difference?

[chicknjane]

I want to eventually get an incubator to hatch my own eggs. So I've been watching the threads in this forum and I've seen some people mention moving their eggs from the incubator to the hatcher.

Do I need to buy something in addition to the incubator? I thought I could just hatch them in the incubator and then put them in the brooder.

I'm worried I'm going to get myself into another expensive addiction . . . um, I mean hobby.

 

[Happy Chooks]

You can hatch them in the incubator.

I *think* some people use a separate incubator as a hatcher, so they can get the one dedicated to incubating full of eggs again.

 

[chicknjane]

Oooh, now I get it. It's all about hatching more eggs. Not necessarily about creating a different environment for the pipping. Thank you.

 

[ranchhand]

It's a good idea for doing staggered hatches.

 

[catwalk]

Yeah, you can start a new batch every five days or so, without worrying about turning vs. lockdown. If you think you can hold yourself back to just one clutch at a time, hatching in the incubator is fine.

 

[lavacaw]

Quote:
I manage to hold myself to one clutch at a time. I have the Brinsea Mini Advance which basically does everything for me. For all the ranting about not opening the incubator during the hatch, I have the brooder next to the 'bator and when there are three or more chicks hatched, I quickly open the 'bator and move them to the brooder. I find they don't dry very well when there are more than a couple hatched. I got seven out of seven last week!