INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[Chaneys Ranch]

Wanted to share some current photos of the SFH. Now I just need to get a not-too-closely-related boy

The younger kiddos @ 40 weeks.

This girl still isn't showing a lot of flowers.







I call this girl Sally (as in "Sally Sunshine"). She is the first to do everything...always the most curious and quite an enjoyable personality. She does not have any tan...only black with white flowering. Sally likes to stand on the water bucket.




I call this girl "Shay". She has tan on the neck. (FYI - the girl in the background is a BA/SFH mix; the roo was crested. She's a spunky little thing.



This girl (Emma) is 2 yo.

Lovely colors, just adore them!

I have put off setting my Emu eggs because of my incubator construction.
Well it's complete but I'm in desperate need of someone providing any feedback or advice!! Please! My goal is to have them set by Friday morning the absolute latest!

Pics provided. I know @birdman55 has built one or several. Not sure who else.

1st and most important at this time is the smell! I have checked over and over that it isn't something melting and it was there the moment I turned the lights and fans on. It surprises me how strong the smell is and makes me concerned that it will cause issues with the development of the embryos.

I know plenty of these coolerbators hatch chick's. Is it the cooler I got or is it truly Normal.




Temps are stable.

In the meantime I candle the shipped eggs. They are day 14 tomorrow and of the 15 NN shipped I have 12 alive and well. I do have 3 of those with funky air cells. They dip pretty far down on one side. I am going to turn the turner off at day 16 and hatch upright which I've never done before. 2 of the 8 set silkie eggs are still alive too which were pullet eggs.

Now one of those girls decided to sit so I stuck about 8 more silkie eggs under her!

Lol!

Turn it on, let it run and keep opening every so often, the odors should subside. Adding the heat, and it having been new there is all those chemical odors that need to air out. I noticed some when I did mine but they dissipated in a few days

Can't say enough about the help Leahs Mom has given me today! I really appreciate it very much!! Thank you!! and also it was a nice visit to kabhyper1's farm today I swear I saw a rabbit running across her floor!!

LOL I bet its her new bunny!

 

[flyladyrocks]

http://www.orschelnfarmhome.com/Greenfield/ctl16754/cp57870/si5166769/cl1/
Its like most of the other stores, has some products they don't carry also.

Lots of excitement here tonight. Ds came down about 2 hours ago and said "There is a bat in my room again" Yep - again. We used a fishing net to catch the last one. We go back up there and he did not get his door shut all the way. We can't find the doggone thing. Hoping it is still in his room. Both kids just went back to bed - DS on DD's floor. Hoping it's not in her room. The duct work in DS's vent is not sealed properly. The grate fell off last time, but this time it is still on. I just read that they can squeeze through holes as small as 1/4 inch, so it could squeeze thru the slots in the vents. Tomorrow we will be staple gunning hardware mesh over our vents. Won't that be pretty?

 

[flyladyrocks]

Wanted to share some current photos of the SFH. Now I just need to get a not-too-closely-related boy

The younger kiddos @ 40 weeks.

This girl still isn't showing a lot of flowers.







I call this girl Sally (as in "Sally Sunshine"). She is the first to do everything...always the most curious and quite an enjoyable personality. She does not have any tan...only black with white flowering. Sally likes to stand on the water bucket.




I call this girl "Shay". She has tan on the neck. (FYI - the girl in the background is a BA/SFH mix; the roo was crested. She's a spunky little thing.



This girl (Emma) is 2 yo.

 

[ellymayRans]

Congrats!  You've already figured out the hardest parts: the wiring & keeping stable temp.  Great job so far!

Mine did not have a plastic smell but I built it over time as I acquired the pieces.  Letting it "air out" usually gets rid of most factory-new odors.  Increasing air circulation by opening it up & using a fan may speed it up.  (before you start incubation of course.)  

Is your fan protected to make sure it doesn't get pecked?  Likewise are your light bulbs high & above chick level?  Think about & test how you're going to add humidity.  

Love the viewing window! (If you feel you're losing heat through it, a towel cover is a quick fix. After my 1st hatch, I added some of that expanding  foam because my cooler's lid did not have insulation between the layers.  After drying I cut away any excess & added a double pane.  Probably overkill, but now my incubator feels cool to the touch outside & exactly 99.5'F inside.)

I also like your simple heat sinks.  They should help maintain the temp.  If they may leak, just tape the lids in case of tipping.  Is the temp uniform throughout? Did you drill air vents?

Thanks. It's a 120 qt cooler. I realize the pics don't really allow a true visual of its size but there's quite a bit of space from the floor to the lights and fans. I could stand the quart jars up but I figure it would be about the same height as the emu eggs for placing a thermometer on them. I do need to move the thermometer around it more but I do have 3 different ones placed around it. Calibrated "check", Vent holes "check".. Oh small water container and stable humidity "Check, check!"

Emu eggs are different than chicken eggs though, Temps and humidity.

What do you think I should do about the smell then? Will they be ok? I had the top cut out of it and no plexiglass put in for 4 days at least cuz I had gotten ill... I don't like waiting any longer but I also don't like the thought of ruining incubation! Sigh...

 

[birdman55]

Did you decide on the GQF digital or the Dickies digital?
Dickies has more options includding a half and half model with 2 hatching trays. And I'm curious as to how well they work. Still its not in the budget right now. I need me a pair of your fruitful money trees.

the gqf both units....the 1550 and 1500 unit....

I have put off setting my Emu eggs because of my incubator construction.
Well it's complete but I'm in desperate need of someone providing any feedback or advice!! Please! My goal is to have them set by Friday morning the absolute latest!

Pics provided. I know @birdman55 has built one or several. Not sure who else.

1st and most important at this time is the smell! I have checked over and over that it isn't something melting and it was there the moment I turned the lights and fans on. It surprises me how strong the smell is and makes me concerned that it will cause issues with the development of the embryos.

I know plenty of these coolerbators hatch chick's. Is it the cooler I got or is it truly Normal.




Temps are stable.

In the meantime I candle the shipped eggs. They are day 14 tomorrow and of the 15 NN shipped I have 12 alive and well. I do have 3 of those with funky air cells. They dip pretty far down on one side. I am going to turn the turner off at day 16 and hatch upright which I've never done before. 2 of the 8 set silkie eggs are still alive too which were pullet eggs.

Now one of those girls decided to sit so I stuck about 8 more silkie eggs under her!

Lol!

i would say measure how far the lights are drilled out to the top...mine are 3 inches to the center of the bulb opening....from the top....it could be that your to high to the plastic cause a plastic burning like smell that would be my guess....also what size lights are you using...im using two 60 watt...if your using higher and there closer then bingo was his name o...lol...hope this helps

here is my new project...fridgebator

 

[birdman55]

on my forum below
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/940456/building-paradise-for-the-birds
there is a step by step on how to make a coolerbator...on pages 17, 22, 23, 25, 28, 29, 31, 32 and 44....

 

[Faraday40]

Thanks. It's a 120 qt cooler. I realize the pics don't really allow a true visual of its size but there's quite a bit of space from the floor to the lights and fans. I could stand the quart jars up but I figure it would be about the same height as the emu eggs for placing a thermometer on them. I do need to move the thermometer around it more but I do have 3 different ones placed around it. Calibrated "check", Vent holes "check".. Oh small water container and stable humidity "Check, check!"

Emu eggs are different than chicken eggs though, Temps and humidity.

What do you think I should do about the smell then? Will they be ok? I had the top cut out of it and no plexiglass put in for 4 days at least cuz I had gotten ill... I don't like waiting any longer but I also don't like the thought of ruining incubation! Sigh...

Those are QT jars!! Wow that's a big incubator! I thought they were baby food jars - which don't always seal well when reused. You'll have to take a pic of the giant eggs next to a ruler

It's a tough call you'll have to make There's a possible risk with the odor but the chance of success goes down as the eggs age. I've only hatched chickens.

To bad you can't slip them under her:

 

[Faraday40]

the gqf both units....the 1550 and 1500 unit....

i would say measure how far the lights are drilled out to the top...mine are 3 inches to the center of the bulb opening....from the top....it could be that your to high to the plastic cause a plastic burning like smell that would be my guess....also what size lights are you using...im using two 60 watt...if your using higher and there closer then bingo was his name o...lol...hope this helps

here is my new project...fridgebator

Good trouble-shooting ideas & awesome incubator.

 

[Faraday40]

Lots of excitement here tonight. Ds came down about 2 hours ago and said "There is a bat in my room again" Yep - again. We used a fishing net to catch the last one. We go back up there and he did not get his door shut all the way. We can't find the doggone thing. Hoping it is still in his room. Both kids just went back to bed - DS on DD's floor. Hoping it's not in her room. The duct work in DS's vent is not sealed properly. The grate fell off last time, but this time it is still on. I just read that they can squeeze through holes as small as 1/4 inch, so it could squeeze thru the slots in the vents. Tomorrow we will be staple gunning hardware mesh over our vents. Won't that be pretty?

Oh My. I bet that's a phrase you never thought you'd hear.

 

[ellymayRans]

the gqf both units....the 1550 and 1500 unit.... i would say measure how far the lights are drilled out to the top...mine are 3 inches to the center of the bulb opening....from the top....it could be that your to high to the plastic cause a plastic burning like smell that would be my guess....also what size lights are you using...im using two 60 watt...if your using higher and there closer then bingo was his name o...lol...hope this helps here is my new project...fridgebator

Thanks. I've followed instructions from "Sally Sunshine" and reviewed the basis from others to research improvements or found isues but found hers was a solid foundation. 60W My lights measure 5 inches from top of cooler to center of light. 9 inches from the bottom and 9 inches from each end.