Little Giant

[tia]

Hello - I am new here. I am a classroom teacher hatching duck eggs in a Little Giant incubator. I need tips on ventilation. Do i leave one red plug out and then take the other out during hatch? Also humidity.. should I fill the smaller water area for the first 25 days then fill them both??? I have put a very small computer fan in.... I'm thinking I should keep the temperature about 100 degrees. (that is if I can figure out which of my 5 thermometers are accurate) Any help any of you can give me that have had experience with the Little Giant would be appreciated. Last time I tried... I had eggs moving around.. fully developed... didn't pip, so didn't hatch... : ( Help!!!

Tia

 

[birdlover]

Hi Tia and

I'm not an expert but I have hatched several batches of chicks using a Little Giant. Did ducks just once and got one to hatch. I just now dusted off my LG which I haven't used in years and am about to try hatching some eggs. Little Giants are very very unreliable as I have learned since joining this site. Most people use a digital thermometer/humidity gauge now because humidity is extremely important. (I didn't know that for all the years I used my Little Giant and it may explain why some chicks developed but didn't hatch). I just got a gauge from Walmart for $6+ and am trying to get the humidity up to at least 50%. So far it's only reached 47 % but I haven't put the eggs in yet. In my case, I have plugged one hole, filled ALL the canals and even put in a wet sponge to raise the humidity. I don't know what the humidity is supposed to be for ducks but I think it's supposed to be higher than for chicks. Hopefully somebody here will be able to help you more with your questions. I would highly recommend you get a therm./humidity gauge because both are important and you need to know you are getting a reliable reading. Hope this helps a little! BEST OF LUCK!!!

 

[warmfuzzies]

Probably, from what I have read, your humidity was too high. How much water to add depends on how high your ambient humidity is. Here, it is very dry, and I have to add water in all three to keep it above 20-30%.

Your temps sound right. Glue a large button or something on your knob so it is easier to turn. A lot of people use a light dimmer switch form wal-mart or where ever.

And I just take one plug out and leave the other plug in, that is what the manual said. I have not heard any advice about that on here, so i will be interested in this also.

 

[duck&chickencrazy]

Quote:
first off if you are gonna incubate using the LG make sure you have your incubator in a room with a temp. that stays the same. Many people have problems with the temp because they put it in a room that changes temps often...So just make sure the temp. is stable in the room

Usually when i incubate in my LG i leave both plugs out days 1-25...it works fine for me...but the last 3 days i put both in to keep the humidity up...but when they hatch i take both out because with them hatching the humidity will get to high if you leave both in

fill all the small rings in the bottom you dont have to fill it every day just every 7 days or so

if you have a fan then it should be around 99-99.5 degrees

humidity should be kept 30-40% the first 25 days and 50-60 the last 3 days

make sure you get a thermometer that shows the humidity...

and just research some more on what to do...

o and if they are ducks make sure to spray them with warm water after day 4


hope this helps

 

[roxie03]

I just hatched my first hatch of ducks in an LG. (8 out of 10 hatched). I kept 1 plug in and the other out until I stopped turning. I never misted my eggs or did the cool down thing. I just kept the temp. around 100 and the humidity around 45% for first 25 days. When I stopped turning them I plugged up both holes, kept the temp. the same and upped the humidity to 75-80%. I would invest in a hygrometer cause just filling the water wells in the bottom will not be enough to raise the humidity. Good luck! I am loving my ducks more than the chicks I hatched. Not as smelly!

 

[tia]

Thanks for all of the advice. I've read quite a bit, but get different information from different sites... a lot of it is similar though. It is pretty humid where I live... and doesn't seem to take too much water to get that humidity up. I have a digital reptile thermometer that has temperature and humidity... but don't know how accurate it is... that is the problem... they all read something different... I guess you just have to choose one and go for the best. The thermometer that came with the LG reads a lot higher than the digital one. I feel like an expectant mother....

Tia

 

[duck&chickencrazy]

Whatever you do DONT use the LG themometer....its not reliable