Is weight loss during incubation linear

[zippy722]

I started with 16, and currently have 12 eggs in the incubator, on day 12, so just over 1/2 way. On average, these 12 have lost 8.55% of their starting weight, ranging from 5.88%-11.29%. I’m most concerned about 2 at the upper end of weight loss who have lost 10.95% and 11.29%. I’ve read that ideal weight loss is 11-13%. So my questions are
1). Is weight loss linear during incubation, or can I expect weight loss to slow down, or even speed up, towards the end?
2). What are the issues with excessive weight loss during incubation? I believe having low weight loss risks the chick drowning upon pipping, but I don’t know the risks of high weight loss.
3). Besides increasing humidity, are there any other variables I can adjust to minimize weight loss without impacting the entire clutch of eggs in the incubator?

I’m guessing I selected eggs that were more porous than ideal, which is what’s causing the extra weight loss. Temp and humidity have been pretty constant, at 99-100 and 40-50% humidity.

Any extra info would be extremely helpful. Science geek at heart here, can you tell by the data dump??!!

 

[Susan Skylark]

What a geeky question! I am so very proud of you, but sadly have no answer as I don’t weigh eggs (or baking ingredients).

 

[zippy722]

What a geeky question! I am so very proud of you, but sadly have no answer as I don’t weigh eggs (or baking ingredients).

I really am a data geek like that. Curiosity as well as learning. This is the 3rd time I’ve incubated eggs, but this time I live at 5500 ft elevation in Montana, where it’s quite dry. So it’s very different than when I lived in the humid Midwest.

 

[Susan Skylark]

My first hatch I thought my thermometer was off by 5 degrees as it said water boils at 207F, which it does at 3000ft, I moved from near sea level a decade ago and didn’t even think about local elevation as it was never an issue! We also have 80% humidity in the winter here, which is totally weird, back home it was no humidity at -30F, not so here, makes the cold even colder and usually it is very dry here as well.

 

[zippy722]

My first hatch I thought my thermometer was off by 5 degrees as it said water boils at 207F, which it does at 3000ft, I moved from near sea level a decade ago and didn’t even think about local elevation as it was never an issue! We also have 80% humidity in the winter here, which is totally weird, back home it was no humidity at -30F, not so here, makes the cold even colder and usually it is very dry here as well.

Thanks for raising the question. I have had to adjust my temp inside the incubator. On the incubator, I’ve had to increase the set temp after using 2 different thermometers to verify. Now it’s set at 103, but 2 other thermometers I’ve put inside, show it at 99.5-100. Am I misunderstanding your point?

 

[Sic]

Can be linear, but variables to consider are temp/humidity, egg size, shell thickness and porosity. For chicken eggs the 11-13% weight loss is approx from point of lay to lockdown (day 18) Shooting for an ideal of 15-16% total. When there's a large disparity as you have, you'll have to decide which end to err on. I currently have a batch in the incubator at day 15, all around 11% weight loss, however the larger white eggs have nice size air cells and the smaller brown eggs have smaller underdeveloped air cells. All my eggs are important to me, but I will adjust my humidity based on the larger white eggs as this breed is currently my focus. If it didn't matter, I would probably lower my humidity, but I actually can't do that as this is a dry hatch and I live in a rainforest, so the incubator humidity has been a steady 53%rh. You can weigh your eggs daily if you need to get an idea of daily loss. I'm not sure what the best choice is, but I think I would rather have a few that lose a bit more weight than some drowning in their shell. Tough decisions for sure.

 

[zippy722]

Can be linear, but variables to consider are temp/humidity, egg size, shell thickness and porosity. For chicken eggs the 11-13% weight loss is approx from point of lay to lockdown (day 18) Shooting for an ideal of 15-16% total. When there's a large disparity as you have, you'll have to decide which end to err on. I currently have a batch in the incubator at day 15, all around 11% weight loss, however the larger white eggs have nice size air cells and the smaller brown eggs have smaller underdeveloped air cells. All my eggs are important to me, but I will adjust my humidity based on the larger white eggs as this breed is currently my focus. If it didn't matter, I would probably lower my humidity, but I actually can't do that as this is a dry hatch and I live in a rainforest, so the incubator humidity has been a steady 53%rh. You can weigh your eggs daily if you need to get an idea of daily loss. I'm not sure what the best choice is, but I think I would rather have a few that lose a bit more weight than some drowning in their shell. Tough decisions for sure.

Thanks for sharing your thought process. I’m probably going to have to put a room humidifier in the room where the incubator is once I get to lockdown day. I’ve put in wet paper towels today and was only able to get it up to 51%. Since I bought these eggs with only the plan to eat them, and later decided to incubate, I’m not attached to certain eggs/breeds. I’m just shooting for the greatest hatch and survival rate at this point. I feel pretty good about having 12 of 16 viable at this point. Thanks again!!

 

[Artistickatt]

I was a database analyst many years ago so I loved your question. I have eggs in an incubator at the moment and I am trying to chart the weights so that I can adjust the humidity along the way.

How did your hatch go in the end? Did you see any data correlations?

 

[alisonnystrom]

I was a database analyst many years ago so I loved your question. I have eggs in an incubator at the moment and I am trying to chart the weights so that I can adjust the humidity along the way.

How did your hatch go in the end? Did you see any data correlations?

That’s such a great approach—love the data mindset applied to hatching. I’d be really curious to hear how it turned out and whether you noticed any clear correlations between weight loss, humidity, and hatch success.