Locked Down-Vanilla Pics - last Pics

[Buttercup Chillin]

So yesterday morning, lost electricity for 3 hours. I had wrapped the bator and didn't have to bad of a drop in temperature.
Cooked chicken eggs on the BBQ for breakfast . All was fine.

Last night again lost electricity. This time I wrapped the bator, the temp slowly cooled, added more towels, the temp kept cooling added wool blankets, it continued its downward plunge.

When the electricity came back on 3 hours later, the temperature had gotten down to I think it was 78 degree.s. Came back up nicely, but this morning when I got up Humidity was down to 25%.

Do you think there is any chance of a hatch? I set eggs Tuesday the 21st around Noon. I am supposed to put it in lockdown Tuesday or Wednesday. The little eggies may have thought they were in lock down last night, so I will watch for earlies, but I don't know.

This is the fault of a Squirrel. A squirrel got fryed and blew up a transformer down the street. Well that was what happened in the morning. Don't know about the evening outage.

Well I enjoyed my peanut butter and jam tortillas for dinner anyway.

edited to add: I set up 2 brooders just in case, am going to wait until Wednesday morning to lock down unless I see some movement before. Locking down now - humidity is easing upward.

Edited to add One is Pipping and a Popping. The larger greenish egg. What color?

 

[HorseFeatherz NV]

I am hoping and wishing for your eggs

 

[Stellar]

 

[Buttercup Chillin]

Usually one or two will start popping when I lock down so I am going to try to wait tell late day14 which would be Early Wednesday.

Dh wants to make a backup battery contraption for just my bator for these outages.
I'll have to check with GQF and find out the wiring set up is on my bator and turner. Then he can figure out what he needs.

We have new electric lines here since Hurricane Ike, but the transformers are old and are starting to pop more often.
Of coarse squirrels trying to stash their winter nuts in them, don't help a bit.

 

[shelleyd2008]

I've had the power fail with eggs in the bator, it seems to depend more on where the eggs are in development as to whether or not they'll hatch. If very early or very late, they should be fine. Though 78 in the incubator doesn't mean 78 in the egg, 3 hours isn't all that long. Don't give up yet!

BTW, GQF makes an adaptor for car batteries

 

[Buttercup Chillin]

Yes, but they were without power for 2 times yesterday for 3 hours and over 3 hours the second time. I have no idea how long the humidity was low.

In the Spring I hatched Buttercup eggs and electric was off several times during that hatch for remodeling.
I had a 50% hatch so I know it can happen.

I have 2 brooders ready and waiting, so we'll see.

In a few days I'll see if I have my Cinnamon, their cage is ready and waiting. Around here that is real early, DH is actually ahead of the game this time around.

Thanks for the GQF info. Definately going on my wish list. (I keep a GQF wish list going at all times, just in case someone wants to blow some money on my birding hobby). Hasn't happened yet, but I keep hopeing.

 

[shelleyd2008]

I never worry about the humidity, I'll bet it will be fine. Usually my coturnix and button eggs hatch while in the incubating bator, it runs 25%-35% humidity all the time.

 

[Buttercup Chillin]

Good, I'll quit worrying about that humidity falling so low. I try to keep it 45-50 normally, so just wasn't sure.

But I am still going to keep a close watch on them.
These little things have been through Texas heat and Humidity at the PO and now a cool evening.
I want my Cinnamon and Granddaughter wants her Vanilla's replaced. So hopeing.

I just want them hatched before something else happens.

 

[Rozzie]

Remember, they may take extra long to hatch as a result. I sure wouldn't give up on them for a few extra days.

Depending on how much power your incubator draws, you may be able to deal with future such occurrences by moving it into your car if there is a power outage and plugging it into an inverter hooked into the lighter plug. You can get inverters pretty cheaply now. This is my incubator plan if I ever lose power while eggs are going. Obviously, you can't leave it for too long, since you don't want to run your car battery down (and can't leave it on for hours). However, at least you could keep it warmer that way.

Another option might be to heat rice in a pan on the stove (if you have a gas stove, or even a gas grill) and pour it into a sock and lay it across the top of the incubator. I wouldn't OPEN the incubator -- that would let more heat out. However, you could (maybe) keep it a bit warmer this way. (Normally you'd microwave rice like this but obviously that wouldn't be an option in this case.)

If you have a SMALL incubator, like those of us with Brinsea advances, another option might be to set the whole thing down into an ice chest. Fill bottles with hot water and tuck into the corners of the ice chest (around the incubator, not in it). That should suffice to keep it warmer for quite a while, so long as you replace the water as needed. (My water heater is gas so I could replace it indefinitely. Plus, I have a propane camp stove and could heat water still warmer if needed.)

 

[Buttercup Chillin]

Those ideas work nicely in the day time when you can see what your doing. But not to great in the dark with no moon for light.

Normally when lights go out its just for a few hours and its during the day. They let us know how long to expect when we call it in. This time though it took longer. Its nice that they can figure out timing somewhat. We know to tough it out or get the generator out if its going to be over 6 hours.

Car is used for emergencies when the electric goes out or to go and get gas for the generator. I would never even consider running down the car battery for a hatch. Not with DH health. This is Hurricane country, we are prepared for true emergencies and go with the flow at times of inconvenience. This was inconvenient.

This is happening to often lately and is why the incubator and turner will get their own battery back up system. My hatches are just to important, this is our food. No hatch, no future meat growingout until there is a hatch. No I can't just run to the store and buy meat. Wish I could, life would be so much easier.

This hatch is important to me, but I have breeders laying eggs for a new hatch if need be. But I could have lost the other eggs that I have in there. I hope not and I don't think so.

Hatch smells good. Humidity is starting to rise just slightly. So its time to take them out of the turner and pump up the humidity. So far no pips but this is just the start of day 15. I think they are hanging in there.

Lets see, some where mailed in the heat that could speed them up and then this happens and they cool down, so this will slow them down. So yup, they could be right on schedule.