Lowest-wattage incubator available?

[alpinefarm]

I am off-grid and looking for the lowest wattage incubator I can find. I know there is a non-electric incubator on the market, but it is pretty pricey.

Ideas??

 

[Baralak]

Well that depends on how my eggs you want to hatch... Sadly they all use a good bit of electricity due to they are really nothing more than heaters. However they do make 12 volt incubators such as the GQF Hova-Bator 1588..

That could be used with a couple of deep cycle batteries, a solar cell charger. I would fill any unused space inside of the incubator with baby food jars of water, baseball size rocks, or anything that will hold heat. This would allow the incubator not to cycle as much once it gets to temp. It only draws 3 amps at 12v... Or the wall wart that comes with it draws 1.5amps at 120v

The auto turner 1611N is 12v but it shouldn't draw much current.

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

You can build one that runs less than 5 watts. Just run a 1157 car bulb an a pc fan. A old mercury house thermostat can handle that wattage. That set up would have you a 12V incubator that's just under 5 watts.

 

[alpinefarm]

Thanks for your thoughts. I don't need anything large, just want to incubate sometimes w/o relying on my broodies!

I'll check into the Hova-bator, Baralak.

Rebel, I like the idea of making one myself. I have a small solar/battery set-up so I can "earmark" a little power for this. An accurate thermostat would be necessary, as my house temps fluctuate, let it get quite low at night when the fire goes out. Wonder what I could use for the box...something super-insulated.

 

[gumbii]

you can get a hovabator and put it in a room that is super stable but is around 90°F and it will only turn on a couple of times a day if any time at all...

 

[pascopol]

Quote:
You can not defy laws of physics. Heat is a result of power used. Power in electricity equals Volts X Amps.

Voltage or amperage alone has nothing to do with how much heat is dissipated, power a FUNCTION of voltage AND amperage (Ohms law).

Single 5W bulb is not going to power any bator unless it is a 3 egg little bator set in a very hot room of temperature close to incubating temperature.

 

[alpinefarm]

Quote:
Haha. No 90 degree rooms in *my* house (or even outside my house for that matter), not even in the peak of summer!

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

Quote:
You can not defy laws of physics. Heat is a result of power used. Power in electricity equals Volts X Amps.

Voltage or amperage alone has nothing to do with how much heat is dissipated, power a FUNCTION of voltage AND amperage (Ohms law).

Single 5W bulb is not going to power any bator unless it is a 3 egg little bator set in a very hot room of temperature close to incubating temperature.

Cant never could...

Here it is running an hatching eggs in a room that is around 60 degrees.

This incubator used a house thermostat, a 1157 bulb an socket(using the dim element), a pc fan, a cooler an a NesQuick box. It pulled just under 5 watts when the is light on. I hatched lots of different kinds of eggs in it then gave it to a teen I was mentoring so she could hatch egg.

Wish I still had it... It worked great. First incubator I ever built an probably the most stable too.

 

[alpinefarm]

Quote:
You can not defy laws of physics. Heat is a result of power used. Power in electricity equals Volts X Amps.

Voltage or amperage alone has nothing to do with how much heat is dissipated, power a FUNCTION of voltage AND amperage (Ohms law).

Single 5W bulb is not going to power any bator unless it is a 3 egg little bator set in a very hot room of temperature close to incubating temperature.

Cant never could...

Here it is running an hatching eggs in a room that is around 60 degrees.
http://a4.l3-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/101/b9eb4ced5756052ada1df6d0a01f0500/l.jpg

http://a1.l3-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/74/6ad0456abc40dc11b476944a2c9af283/l.jpg

http://a2.l3-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/90/fcd9c55975c54bc73d027b9ad34529d7/l.jpg


This incubator used a house thermostat, a 1157 bulb an socket(using the dim element), a pc fan, a cooler an a NesQuick box. It pulled just under 5 watts when the is light on. I hatched lots of different kinds of eggs in it then gave it to a teen I was mentoring so she could hatch egg.

Wish I still had it... It worked great. First incubator I ever built an probably the most stable too.

Man-o-man, I'm impressed.
Where to find an mercury house thermostat...?
What is the NesQuik box for?

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

The thermostat came off the wall of an old house. The new non digital ones should work too.

The nesquick box is a duct to push air across the light an then across the thermostat. Light is in the nesquick box.