Lockdown- Silkie Eggs in Genesis 1588

[EggSighted4Life]

Oh the bator does have a fan forgot to answer that.

Then your temp was off and your chicks SHOULD hatch early IF they are going to.

I would lower it immediately... aiming for 99.5.

@WVduckchick advice here?

 

[Lhubbard]

My aim has always been 99.5, but it has been difficult! This bator wants to avoid the sweet spot like the plague! So here is my hope, take out tray and add heat sinks. And keep fingers crossed it will settle at 99.5.

 

[Lhubbard]

It wants to run at 101.5-102.5 or at 97.0-97.5 with the adjustment of just .1

 

[Lhubbard]

@EggSighted4Life heat SYNCS makes so much more sense haha thank you just noticed that!

 

[WVduckchick]

I do recommend the shelf liner, mostly in case of open navels, I just feel it’s safer. But many don’t use it and don’t have problems, so it’s up to you really. But not paper towels. They can gather the moisture and you don’t want any dampness on the eggs.

Also, it’s better to err on the side of lower temps rather than higher, so when you have trouble with it fluctuating, cooler is better than hotter.

About the vents - they should be totally open. Let the humidity stabilize before you try messing with it too much. It make take a couple hours after you add the water, after removing the turner tray. But if you fill all the bottom wells, it should settle in a decent spot. Don’t fret over it too much. If you need to raise it more, you can always pop a wet sponge in later.

Good luck!

 

[Lhubbard]

@WVduckchick thanks for the tips! Do you think 70 should be my goal for humidity at lockdown wednesday?

I took turner out. I wanted to see if I could keep temp cooler without. Added 4 water bottle heat syncs to keep more stable. Eggs in the center of bator. So far I have been able to keep cooler, easier. If it rises up to 100 I just turn down .1 for a couple mins and it does the trick. Lots of babysitting still and im up all night checking but hopefully it will be worth it!

 

[WVduckchick]

@WVduckchick thanks for the tips! Do you think 70 should be my goal for humidity at lockdown wednesday?

I took turner out. I wanted to see if I could keep temp cooler without. Added 4 water bottle heat syncs to keep more stable. Eggs in the center of bator. So far I have been able to keep cooler, easier. If it rises up to 100 I just turn down .1 for a couple mins and it does the trick. Lots of babysitting still and im up all night checking but hopefully it will be worth it!

70% is usually in a good range. Anywhere from 60-75 usually works for most folks.

You are devoted to babysit it like that! I'm not suggesting doing anything differently for this hatch, but before your next one, I'd do some more experimenting to find ways to not have to be right on top of it all the time. Let the temp climb, and see how high it actually goes, and how long it takes to drop back down. Very high temps can kill the chicks, yes, but it takes a while for the insides of the egg to actually reach those temps. So a couple minutes doesn't usually hurt anything. Plus different meters read temps by different methods. Some digital ones average several seconds time span, then change the display. Some are instant. Some may not change for a minute or two. The instant ones are nice to see those drastic changes, but I also think they cause us more panic than is necessary. Average consistency without any huge spikes is the goal. So play with your meters and such, and I think you'll find a happy medium.

 

[Lhubbard]

Im not sure I will ever attempt again! I wasnt planning on it and its been so much more than I thought it would. Im doing this with my kids and its been great to show them the developement but in the future I think they would be just as happy with baby chicks! I have learned a lot though, and would do most everything different if I could start over. For now I just have all fingers and toes crossed we get a couple to hatch.

Oh and I have 4 therometers and 2 hydrometers in there haha

 

[Lhubbard]

Ughhh after everything and getting so close our power went out at 3am and still isnt back on. I covered with 2 blankets right away and havent peeked at all so no idea what temp. I dont think more could have gone wrong with this. We never have power outages! Im just keeping a slight hope that the 4 water bottle heat syncs are keeping heat up enough till they restore power. Ughhhhh

 

[WVduckchick]

Ughhh after everything and getting so close our power went out at 3am and still isnt back on. I covered with 2 blankets right away and havent peeked at all so no idea what temp. I dont think more could have gone wrong with this. We never have power outages! Im just keeping a slight hope that the 4 water bottle heat syncs are keeping heat up enough till they restore power. Ughhhhh

I know how frustrating that can be!
But you’re in lockdown now, right? The babies should be almost finished by now, and a short power outage shouldn’t hurt.
I’ve had broodies leave eggs for hours in the cold, to tend to earlier hatchlings, and they still hatch. So try not to fret too much.

Hopefully it comes back on soon.