Incuview Incubator

[pgrenna81]

So far the temp seems to be holding fine, I have to top off the second to largest tray daily to keep the humidity around 40% but all seems to be going well so far.
Day 11 and I have 11 active developing chicks out of 13 set, fingers crossed all goes well for the hatch!

 

[pgrenna81]

Going into lockdown on Thursday any tips for getting the correct humidity in the incuview?

 

[Finnie]

Going into lockdown on Thursday any tips for getting the correct humidity in the incuview?

For lockdown, I take the turner out (and turn the turner motor off) and put a clean kitchen sponge on the mesh just under where the air hole is. I pour about half of a 16.9oz water bottle onto the sponge, letting some drain down into the reservoir channels. That will usually get the RH up to 65%. If it starts to go down, I use a squeeze bottle with some fish tank air tubing attached to the tip to squeeze more water just onto the sponge. It never seems to need much added during lockdown. Not like during the whole incubation time. For some reason, it's easier for me to keep the humidity stable up in the 60s than it does at the lower RH I like to incubate at. Then I just add smaller amounts of water, but it seems like it needs it constantly, to keep it above 20%. (Shooting for mid 30s.)

 

[pgrenna81]

Thanks for the info, just to clarify do you fill the water channels too or just dampen the sponge? I've been running between 30-40% pretty much for the whole incubation, it does seem I add water at least once a day to keep it there.

 

[lpyrbby]

During incubation, mine will hold around 47% with 1/2 cup of water. When I went into lockdown, I think it took about a cup or 2 of water to get into range. Using tubing through the hole was a nice option to have to handle the humidity without opening the lid. On my first hatch, I did add like 3 cups of water at lockdown (humidity settled around 66% no matter how much I added), but once they started hatching, it SKYROCKETED. I have 2 weeks to go on my second batch, so I'm going to try adding way less water, enough to get it into range, and then go from there.

Point to remember is surface area matters more than depth of the water.

 

[Finnie]

Thanks for the info, just to clarify do you fill the water channels too or just dampen the sponge? I've been running between 30-40% pretty much for the whole incubation, it does seem I add water at least once a day to keep it there.

I usually only add water to the sponge. If you saturate the sponge, the excess will flow down into the channels. I did add water straight into the channels one time during the incubation, because it was evaporating out of the sponge too quickly. But it didn't really make a difference, I still had a hard time getting the RH up into the 30s and 40s. I think it was a case of us having a drier winter this year, compared to last year when I didn't incubate until spring. So I ended up running a humidifier in the room I was incubating in, and I think that helped a lot.

Point to remember is surface area matters more than depth of the water. 

That's why I like using a sponge, for more surface area.

Edited to add: I should clarify. It was hard to KEEP it in the 30s and 40s. If I added a lot of water, it would shoot way up too high. So it had to be a balancing act.

 

[lpyrbby]

I usually only add water to the sponge. If you saturate the sponge, the excess will flow down into the channels. I did add water straight into the channels one time during the incubation, because it was evaporating out of the sponge too quickly. But it didn't really make a difference, I still had a hard time getting the RH up into the 30s and 40s. I think it was a case of us having a drier winter this year, compared to last year when I didn't incubate until spring. So I ended up running a humidifier in the room I was incubating in, and I think that helped a lot.
That's why I like using a sponge, for more surface area.

Edited to add: I should clarify. It was hard to KEEP it in the 30s and 40s. If I added a lot of water, it would shoot way up too high. So it had to be a balancing act.

Yes! Any time the humidity got to around 42%, it didnt take long to start dropping like a stone. I've conceded that I won't be doing any dry hatches in the incuview lol. I don't have that kind of time to babysit the humidity.

I do like the sponge under the vent hole idea. I'll have to try that at some point.

 

[Finnie]

I've been meaning to post these pictures. I tried yesterday, but my connection was too slow and I guess it timed out and failed. Anyway, my first chicks of the year hatched on Thursday. I set 8 eggs, 2 were infertile, but if the remaining 6, I got 100% hatched!

 

[aart]

I've been meaning to post these pictures. I tried yesterday, but my connection was too slow and I guess it timed out and failed. Anyway, my first chicks of the year hatched on Thursday. I set 8 eggs, 2 were infertile, but if the remaining 6, I got 100% hatched!

Nifty basket!

 

[Finnie]

Thanks! It's one of these Https://www.amazon.com/Munchkin-Deluxe-Dishwasher-Basket-Colors/dp/B000RI8Y30
(I got mine cheap at goodwill.)

I took the top white part off. It barely fits in the Incuview, only in that one spot. But maybe other incubators would have room for more than one?

When I need to separate out more than one group of chicks, I have to use shorter baskets so they don't bump into the fan or the sloped part of the lid. @aart