Looking for a good incubator that's not expensive

[Kidhenduckohmy]

Agreed!
The difference between a regular Hovabator, or any of the other styrobators, and a Genesis is night and day. I have one, and also a Brinsea Eco 20 and a GQF Sportsman. All 3 give great hatches and all are set and forget if you dry hatch and have enough humidity in your house. If you must add water, the small ones are a pain to fill, but other than that they are equivalent, IMO. I have 2 older styrobators and they sit unused because they are too much work to get even a mediocre hatch.

For the money, the Genesis is cheaper than the Brinsea and hold more eggs, while being just as good at hatching (but maybe not cleaning). Once you get to the point of needing multiple small incubators, the GQF Sportsman and Dickey cabinet incubators are the way to go - much cheaper and better on a per-egg basis.

So happy you have all three incubators I have been looking at! I am so frustrated with which one to buy. I do think I ruled out the brinsea as it is too small. Then the genisis; I have read reviews were it has temp. spikes, have you had this problem? And I am wondering, after you hit 18th day, do you take them out of the egg turner for lockdown? The price is good though. Do you find yours holding up? And then the sportsman 1502. I like everything I hear, except I feel it is a bit overkill for me. 270 eggs is a lot! But then again I like the idea of starting eggs at different times and the hatching tray. But then the 1000 price tag with egg trays and humidity bucket. But I only want to buy one incubator, and I want to do it right the first time. If you could go back, and order just one, which one would you get?

 

[dheltzel]

So happy you have all three incubators I have been looking at! I am so frustrated with which one to buy. I do think I ruled out the brinsea as it is too small. Then the genisis; I have read reviews were it has temp. spikes, have you had this problem? And I am wondering, after you hit 18th day, do you take them out of the egg turner for lockdown? The price is good though. Do you find yours holding up? And then the sportsman 1502. I like everything I hear, except I feel it is a bit overkill for me. 270 eggs is a lot! But then again I like the idea of starting eggs at different times and the hatching tray. But then the 1000 price tag with egg trays and humidity bucket. But I only want to buy one incubator, and I want to do it right the first time. If you could go back, and order just one, which one would you get?

If you are serious about hatch often, you will absolutely need a separate hatcher, so don't expect to buy 1 incubator and be done.

The Genesis has been rock-solid on temp control and since I dry hatch, humidity control is not a big deal. It also works great as a hatcher, with the caveat that it is hard to get styrofoam really clean. I do remove the turning tray and put the eggs into plastic baskets lined with rubber shelf liner on day 18 to help contain the mess. I favor the Brinsea Eco 20 for a small hatcher because it cleans much more easily. You would not need the autoturn cradle for hatching, so that saves some money.

If I were starting and on a budget, I would buy to hatch about 20 chicks per week:
1 - GQF Genesis with autoturner (new, from Cutler Supply)
1 - Brinsea Eco 20 (used from Amazon, if possible)
(expect each incubator to cost about $175, so around $350 total)
Incubate in the Genesis for 2 weeks, then move the eggs to the Brinsea for hatching and put 20 more eggs into the Genesis. The timing with the hatches might make this tricky if you want to always set new eggs on the same day of the week, but if you are flexible about that, then this would work.

I just ordered a Dickey to use a hatcher until I have time to build a proper hatcher, then it will be another incubator. It is considerably cheaper than a GQF and I suspect is better made. I will be able to give a better review in a few weeks.

If you get a cabinet incubator, don't bother with the humidity bucket unless you are in a super arid area. I never use mine. There are better/cheaper places to get egg trays too.

 

[kuchchicks]

I have had my Genesis for a year and done hatches nearly every month. I have never had one issue. No temp spikes. You do remove the auto turner at lock down but that is no big deal. I have mine rigged up with IV tubing (was able to get it from work, but you could just as easily use fish tubing) and a needless syringe (again got it from work but you could get one from CVS or really any pharmacy) and that is how I add water to increase humidity. It holds temp and humidity rock solid.

The only issue I have ever had was when I turned it back on this winter after taking a month off. When I plugged it in, it never heated up - heater just never turned on. I tried to goodle troubleshooting and could find nothing. I called the company (who has excellent customer service BTW, very helpful) and they got me through it. Turns out that it was all me... I had the bator in a room that was about 64F. If the bator is in a room that is "too cold" the heater sometimes will not turn on in the beginning. The fix was simple... adjust the preset temp from 100.0 to 100.3. Heather immediately turned on. Once the temp reached my goal temp, I turned the preset temp back down to 100.0. It is still in the same room and the temp is holding without issue.

The only thing I don't like it what was said earlier is the cleaning. I don't understand why these styro bators cannot be "dipped" or coated in plastic for easier cleaning. But honestly for the money I am not going to complain. I am actually going to buy a second bator this spring. I plan on buying another Genesis.

 

[dheltzel]

The only thing I don't like it what was said earlier is the cleaning. I don't understand why these styro bators cannot be "dipped" or coated in plastic for easier cleaning. But honestly for the money I am not going to complain. I am actually going to buy a second bator this spring. I plan on buying another Genesis.

I've wondered about that too. Could it be coated with something to make it easier to clean? Styrofoam is notoriously frail when it comes to painting and such, but there must be something. The included clear liner is a start, but why not make one that covers the entire bottom ? Planned obsolecense, I suppose. You can buy replacement bottoms at least.

 

[kuchchicks]

^^x2!!!! You know manufacturers know this is an issue. I mean seriously how hard would it be. I know I'd be willing to pay a little more. Like you said it could be as simple as making the water tray completely line the inside of the Bator.