LG Still air owners: lock down humidity ideas needed!

[Jeffross1968]

Apparently I have gone over the edge with hatching chickens, and growing chickens and keeping chickens and, well...chickens in general. I was going to wait until the set day for New Year's chicks, and realized I could get another hatch in between now and then. So...

Anyway, I have upgraded my hygrometer/thermometer for this hatch, but I'm desperate to find ideas for increasing and holding humidity during lock down. I'll be doing dry incubation, so keeping the humidity relatively low during the first 18 days. After that, it's up to 65 to 70%.

I had a pretty rough hatch last time out, and I'm 99% sure the reason was a mix of some of the eggs being shipped eggs, and the fact that my lock down wasn't much of a lock down because I struggled to keep the humidity up. I was using a wet washcloth folded up in one section. I had rolled up paper towel in the 4 canals, and I had a small cup of water placed randomly inside in a clear space. I was constantly adding water, much of it spilling out the air holes in the bottom. Because there are really only a couple vent holes at the top, I was never really able to keep all that stuff wet. I used a half gallon milk jug with straws connected together, allowing me to squeeze the milk bottle, and have water squirting onto the washcloth and paper towels.

Basically, it was a total mess. Because the straw thing only worked partially, I found myself opening the top often to add water, which of course defeats the whole purpose of lock down, causing wild temperature fluctuations as well as crappy humidity.

So...what I need is some hand holding through different ideas from people who actually use the LG Still air (or even if a fan has been added).

Do you keep the metal screen in there, with water sources underneath in the tiny inch or so of space between the screen and the bottom? Don't use the screen and have some other methods? The eggs have been set, so I have a couple weeks to figure out what I'm going to do for lock down, but I need to get on it now...any help would REALLY be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Shayna]

I placed tinfoil in the bottom of my incubator first, and pressed it to fit the channels in the bottom. Then I got really flat long sponges and placed them all around the incubator buttom, so one part of each sponge was curved into the water channels (to soak up and disperse any water poured into the channels)
I then put the metal screen thing over that, and put rubber shelf liner on top so the chicks had a nice floor to walk on.
I had zero issues holding my humidity. I made sure the sponges were all saturated. Then any time my humidity dropped close to 60% I took a large syringe with a tube attached to it, and squirted 1 syringe of very warm water into the middle of the incubator where the channels are. This way I didn't have to open my incubator, the tube can go through a vent hole.

 

[Jeffross1968]

Hrm...now how did the sponges fold into the channels...on mine, they are self contained. You mean up and over the rim of the channel, between the channel wall and the screen? And the rubber shelf liner...did it cover the whole screen, or did you allow room around the edges so the humidity could rise into the compartment?

 

[Shayna]

Quote:
The sponges I bought at my dollar store were really thin and I did just bend them up and over the rim into the channel. I think I cut the sponges in half if I remember right, making a total of 4 that I put on each side, top, and bottom, with a side of the sponge bent into the channel.
When I put the screen back on, I put the liner over the whole screen so the chicks couldn't stand on the screen at all. Just my personal choice because I think it's easier for them to hatch on. That rubber liner has little holes in it, not solid like a rubber mat or anything, so there was no issue with the humidity rising.

 

[cmom]

I put paper towel under my wire and I use 1 or 2 half pint mason jars with sponges with warm water. The sponges act like wicks. To give the humidity a quick boost I put a straw in the vent hole and wet the paper towel with a little warm water and if I need to add water to the jars, the air holes in the top corners line up and I can put water down them and it will go into the jar and I don't have to open the incubator.

 

[ki4got]

in my hatcher, i use an oreo cookie tray. I put paper towel over the top and get it wet enough to mold into the shape of the tray, and let it dry (couple days ahead of time). then when lockdown comes, i put the eggs in the tray (helps keep chicks from rolling the other eggs around too bad), fill the medium channel for water, paper towel covering the entire bottom, coming up the front wall a bit. then put everything back where it goes, and take some hot (as hot as the tap gets) water, and pour it along the front edge where the top and bottom halves of the 'bator meet. water wicks down the wall, touches the paper towel, and spreads across the surface to humidify the incubator. if the humidity drops too much, add some more. if it gets too high, i just open the 'bator for a sec and swap out a bit of air.

I keep mine anywhere from 65-85% this way... and with water in the tray, if the paper dries out a bit too much at least the humidity won't drop like a rock. the cookie tray is to keep the eggs dry even when the paper under the tray is soaked. (if the paper towel on the cookie tray hangs over the edge you can trim it with scissors to keep it from touching the bottom, or else it'll wick the water up under the eggs.

here's a pic of my last hatch (yeah it's circulated air hatcher but the theory holds)

sorry it's upside down, it's a screenshot from my webcam used to monitor hatching.

 

[MamaMarcy]

I do staggered & mix breed hatches, so my lockdown isn't much of a lockdown. BUT, my humidity with my LG tends to be 40% (ish) with all the bottom water troughs full, so for hatch I need to up it. I add a small dish of water, sometimes a paper towel folded & soaked, but recently I've tried using a aspray bottle on MIST severl times a day when it starts to dip. I just pop out one of the windows on top and spray 5-6 times and it goes right up to 60-70% (ish). It means a lot of tending, but it's working well for me. Temp seems to stay stabale this way too, by just popping window out for a few seconds vs opening the lid. Sprayaing lso helps bring humidity up quickly when I open the lid to turn the other eggs that are less than 18 days

 

[Faerytalefarm]

Quote:
I used this method and it worked great!

 

[Arielle]

Quote:
I used this method too. Easy with the jars starting full of warm water; I use 4, one in each corner. ( I was shooting for 90% as I hatched turkeys.)


FYI, be careful about covering up the ventilation holes; you don't want to cover these; these are the tiny holes on the bottom (and top) as the eggs truly need to breathe and actually need more air exchange at the end of the hatch, not less.

GL