Incuview Incubator

[Storybook Farm]

Thanks for the update.  I'm having a hard time regulating my RH level as well.  Purchased the humdikit to go along w/ it (so we're not supposed to add water to the tray) but if I let the water evaporate, then set the RH level to 45, it goes lower -- like in the upper 30s.  I hope I don't lose this hatch!!

I'm no expert, but would it help to give the incubator some kind of baseline if you did add a little water to the trays? You could always take it out if it was too much...? Just an idea. I haven't purchased the humidikit, so I really don't know what I'm talking about. What do the folks at Incubator Warehouse say?

 

[junebuggena]

I'm on Day 19. I readied my brooder last weekend~ So much fun! This is my first hatch so I'm hovering near the 'bator, slightly obsessing about the humidity. I think my eggs did pretty well from candling last night, but only time will tell!

I hope you have a great hatch!

Wow. I don't get my brooder ready until after the first pip. It's best to keep a few chicks in the incubator until the last chick is out. All the activity really helps to encourage the chicks still in the eggs.

 

[Storybook Farm]

Yes u to I candles last night also and found two non fertile ... good luck o how did u make ur brooder thanks

Out of 25, I had three quit very early.

My brooder is an old, plastic, 100 gallon stock tank that has a crack in it so it doesn't hold water. We simply suspended two lights from a board that we laid across the top. It's nice because it's deep enough that the chicks can't jump out, so we don't have to cover it. Also it has a lot of floor space to it when they are very young and more fragile, and they can choose how much heat they want by moving in or out from the bulbs. We have two bulbs so that if one fails there will still be heat.

 

[Storybook Farm]

Wow. I don't get my brooder ready until after the first pip. It's best to keep a few chicks in the incubator until the last chick is out. All the activity really helps to encourage the chicks still in the eggs.

Thanks for the tip!

Yeah, well, we live on a farm and all my feeders and lamps that i used last season were kind of scattered in our storage 'cause we moved/built barns last summer. I wanted to make sure that I had everything, and also to play with how high above the shavings to hang the lights for an optimal temperature. I plan to set a new hatch this coming week if all goes well, so the early effort won't be wasted!

 

[BDRanch]

I purchased the humdikit, so Ian told me I would not need to add water to the tray. However, if I don't, it goes too low.
May not be the incubator fault -- I live at 8600' in the mountains. It's very dry here and not much oxygen. And we have a lot of temp fluctuation in the house since we heat w/ a woodstove.

 

[Chicken Egg 17]

I just got a 30 gallon plastic tote and I don't know how in the heck to hook up the heat lamp and I want to put in a shelf like thing so when they are about a week old they can go up e ramp to there food and water so they have more space to run around down below and they will be outside in the chicken coop in they to toe so i need to come up with ideas to give them as much space as possible

 

[aart]

Quote: You're going to want to have a cool end of the brooder, so they can regulate their body temp.
You can use a dimmer extension cord to adjust output of heat.

Here's my notes on chick heat, hope something in there might help:
They need to be pretty warm(~85-90F on the brooder floor right under the lamp and 10-20 degrees cooler at the other end of brooder) for the first day or two, especially if they have been shipped, until they get to eating, drinking and moving around well. But after that it's best to keep them as cool as possible for optimal feather growth and quicker acclimation to outside temps. A lot of chick illnesses are attributed to too warm of a brooder. I do think it's a good idea to use a thermometer on the floor of the brooder to check the temps, especially when new at brooding, later I still use it but more out of curiosity than need.

The best indicator of heat levels is to watch their behavior:
If they are huddled/piled up right under the lamp and cheeping very loudly, they are too cold.
If they are spread out on the absolute edges of the brooder as far from the lamp as possible, panting and/or cheeping very loudly, they are too hot.
If they sleep around the edge of the lamp calmly just next to each other and spend time running all around the brooder they are juuuust right!

The lamp is best at one end of the brooder with food/water at the other cooler end of the brooder, so they can get away from the heat or be under it as needed. Wattage of 'heat' bulb depends on size of brooder and ambient temperature of room brooder is in. Regular incandescent bulbs can be used, you might not need a 'heat bulb'. You can get red colored incandescent bulbs at a reptile supply source. A dimmer extension cord is an excellent way to adjust the output of the bulb to change the heat without changing the height of the lamp.


Or you could go with a heat plate, commercially made or DIY: https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/pseudo-brooder-heater-plate

 

[PD-Riverman]

It's best to keep a few chicks in the incubator until the last chick is out. All the activity really helps to encourage the chicks still in the eggs.

This is why I feel I have great hatcher because ""I"" Leave All the chicks in till all the others hatch or day 22----threatening to break arms if anyone tries to opens my incubator at all during Lock-Down!

 

[Chicken Egg 17]

Yes mine are hatching on my first hatch about 6 months ago and I take the chicks out and then my mom comes in opens it my dad comes in opens it my sister comes in opens it it's like u can see them when they hatch

 

[Chicken Egg 17]

U need a spray bottle like people use with there cats to keep the, from clawing the furniture