Little Giant Incubator Tricks

[rlh1]

I have a question. I made a hatcher since I have staggered hatch dates. How do I lower the temp but keep the humidity? I know I need to put air holes for O2 but should I do anything else?

Thank you for any ideas

 

[cmom]

Here is my homemade incubator/hatcher. I mostly use it for hatching. I just had a hatch. Maybe it will give you some ideas. It works great. I put 2 - 15 watt bulbs in and a thermostat from my cabinet incubator when we changed it from a wafer thermostat to electronic thermostat and an AC fan. I put a pan of water in the bottom with a big sponge and fill it up with water and the sponge acts like a wick and the fan circulates the air and keeps the temperature and humidity steady. I put two 15 watt incandescent bulbs in, in case one should burn out which has happened. I line the bottom with aluminum foil for easy cleanup after a hatch. I do staggered hatches too. I put the eggs in my cabinet incubator and hatch in my styrofoam incubators and my homemade hatcher. Here are some pics. Good luck and have fun...

If I need added humidity I add some small sponges.

 

[rlh1]

Very nice. It been holding steady for a while and then when I put the eggs in the temp dropped. I wrapped it in towels to help hold in the heat a little better and protect it from drafts. It's on the table in the kitchen so the kids can watch. The temp is at 100 and humidity at 84%.

 

[cmom]

Very nice. It been holding steady for a while and then when I put the eggs in the temp dropped. I wrapped it in towels to help hold in the heat a little better and protect it from drafts. It's on the table in the kitchen so the kids can watch. The temp is at 100 and humidity at 84%.

Is this your first hatch? Are you incubating at 84%? If it is, it is way to high. My best hatches have been when the humidity is around 35% during incubation. If it is too high the eggs can't loose the moisture they need to loose when the chicks are developing and when it's time for them to hatch they drown from too much moisture in the shell. The last 3 days the chicks need the moisture so they can turn in the shells to pip and zip, then I boost the humidity up to around 75%. Wrapping the towel around the incubator is good and will help. The temp is ok around 100ºF. The temperature will drop some when the eggs are put in but not to worry. Let the temp come back up. Remember one thing, if you use a broody for incubating and hatching eggs, she will usually get off the nest every day to eat drink and poop. She may be off for 10 to 15 minutes up to maybe 30 minutes but the chicks still hatch. It takes quite awhile for the internal temperature of the eggs to warm up as well as cool down. Again good luck and have fun...

 

[Arielle]

Cmom-- have a question for you. I've been using my LG as a hatcher. Did that all last summer and this year too. Here is what I noticed.

WHen my chicks take a couple days to hatch, and I have 20-30, or more eggs in for lockdown. THe tempmight rise beyond the initial 99.5 temp when empty. It might go up 2 degrees, so I turn it down a hair.

THen as the days roll on, I have to remove the 24 hour poults/chicks, and by the end the temp has dropped to 97 or even 95.

Do you think this is a typical performance by the LG? THat it doesn't adjust to the changed, just keep putting out a set amount of heat?

Wondered if you had experienced this or had suggestion to get around this temp fluctuation.

 

[cmom]

Cmom-- have a question for you. I've been using my LG as a hatcher. Did that all last summer and this year too. Here is what I noticed.

WHen my chicks take a couple days to hatch, and I have 20-30, or more eggs in for lockdown. THe tempmight rise beyond the initial 99.5 temp when empty. It might go up 2 degrees, so I turn it down a hair.

THen as the days roll on, I have to remove the 24 hour poults/chicks, and by the end the temp has dropped to 97 or even 95.

Do you think this is a typical performance by the LG? THat it doesn't adjust to the changed, just keep putting out a set amount of heat?

Wondered if you had experienced this or had suggestion to get around this temp fluctuation.

I rarely touch the thermostat. My temperature also goes up but I don't touch the it for several hours and let it settle and then if I have to tweak it I do. When I hatch in my LGs the only thing I really notice is as the chicks hatch the humidity will go up some which doesn't bother my hatches. I use my homemade hatcher most of the time. It is more stable than my LGs. I do take the chicks out as a few hatch then they go into a brooder box for a day. I open the viewing windows and grab the chicks out. Is yours a Still Air or Circulated Air? I just set some eggs tonight in lockdown. I have a couple of more hatches left then I'm through probably for the rest of the year. Now to watch them grow and pick out the keepers. I am trying to breed for show quality. The next shows around here aren't until November. I'm hoping to have some show quality out of these hatches. I keep picking the judges brains for improvements I should make. I have been working on leg color, more yellow in the legs. Where are you in Mass? My husband is from Newburyport. We may be coming up for a vacation. It will be a short one for me but DH may stay longer. I have to get someone to care for my birds and right now I have about 350 in 9 coops. It takes me about a half hour or more to collect all of the eggs but all of the birds get treats when it time to collect the eggs. Sorry about my rambling. Good luck on you hatch. Isn't it fun...

 

[rlh1]

Cmom- this is my first hatch. I'm hatching now, so the humidity is up to mid 70's to 80's and temp is between 101 and 102. Should I try to get the temp down some? That seems high to me. I incubated at 30%. Trying to keep all this straight is making me dizzy

 

[rlh1]

Oh yea, I'm using a homemade hatcher. I have a 20 watt light bulb. I had a heat reflector but its still to hot I think. Has anyone used a reflector to direct heat away from the eggs?

 

[cmom]

Cmom- this is my first hatch. I'm hatching now, so the humidity is up to mid 70's to 80's and temp is between 101 and 102. Should I try to get the temp down some? That seems high to me. I incubated at 30%. Trying to keep all this straight is making me dizzy

If your incubator is a Still Air the temp should be around 101 and Circulated Air 99.5 - 100. The humidity is perfect. I just put some eggs in lockdown tonight. Good luck and have fun...

 

[rlh1]

Ok good! The temp is holding steady at 101.1.

I feel better. I'm terrified that none will hatch