Maine

[rottlady]

My first ever batch of eggs goes into lockdown tomorrow evening. I'm hoping to get the humidity up into the 70+ range in my square hovabator, and it will be torture to not open it up for the last three days or so. If anyone has tips for humidity or temp settings in still air Hova's in Maine, I'm all ears... errrr, eyes, etc.

I am in NH at 1800 feet. If I run the Hovabator with 1 moat filled it stays 40-55%. During lockdown I fill second moat and it runs 60-67% which is as high as I want it. and temp wise I aim for between 99.5 and 100.6 My last hatch of 6 from 6 eggs was starting to pip a day early but ended up hatching right on time

 

[islandgirl82]

@ islandgirl82 He sure is a pretty one! I hope you're able to integrate and tame him!

Thank you! As it turns out, his owners ended up tracking me down and came to take him home yesterday. They offered me a cockerel from a batch of eggs (all fertilized by him) that one of their broody hens is sitting on but I declined. I ended up rehoming the last cockerel due to the abuse he was putting a few of my girls through and I decided then that if I ever had another, I'd rather have one who's already mature so I have a much better idea of what I'm dealing with. I did tell them that if they ever decide to replace him, he'd be welcome here and then they told me that if he wasn't working out for whatever reason, to give them a call and they'll take him back any time. Then they told me all about him. I couldn't believe it but I'm so happy they left him here. I could tell he's gentle anyway, given how passive he was at my friend's house and how scabby his comb is...he'd clearly not been top rooster. They said he actually was - they had three roosters but it was the girls that picked on him so badly. My girls can see him from across the yard and they're all enamoured with him already. They can't seem to gawk enough and he's quite happy with all the attention. He ate three bowls of fermented feed yesterday and didn't touch anything today; he was just far too busy trying to impress them. Being patient through his quarantine is going to be a challenge for me as I'm getting the feeling he'll integrate quite nicely.

I've got a bunch EE eggs under her. They've been really hard to candle. I think I need a better flashlight. Also Had an egg explode under her while I was at camp Memorial weekend. Figured I would float test them to get the gunk off them as well. Read the directions wrong--thought the floaters were bad so I left them in the water for about 30 minutes before I realized my mistake. Dried them off and tucked them back under the hen. She's still sitting so I thought I'd leave her until Sat.

Best of luck to both of you on your hatches!

 

[Hiltonizer]

My first ever batch of eggs goes into lockdown tomorrow evening. I'm hoping to get the humidity up into the 70+ range in my square hovabator, and it will be torture to not open it up for the last three days or so. If anyone has tips for humidity or temp settings in still air Hova's in Maine, I'm all ears... errrr, eyes, etc.

Getting the humidity to cooperate is no issue with mine. I start out with a few drops to keep it in the high 30's/low 40's for the duration, and then fill all the moats with hot water for lock down with a sponge in the center.

Temp was another issue, I found the wafer based thermostat to be less than useless and was getting horrid hatches. So, I bought an inkbird thermostatic controller off Amazon (about $33) and have been getting 90%+ hatch rates ever since.

 

[buckabucka]

That's great islandgirl, that they let you keep the rooster! Did they tell you what kind of cross or breed he is from?

I think I only used a hovabator once, and I don't remember having issues with low humidity. If it happens though, add water through a ventilation hole (with a thin straw, syringe, whatever you have available so much ou don't have to open it.

 

[MainerChick]

So with the InkBird, you must set your wafer to max heat and let the external unit control the rest? Do you use a fan for cooling as well?

 

[islandgirl82]

@buckabucka , they did! Their son and my daughter are in the same class at school and have been since Kindergarten so we know each other but not well. They didn't know his breed/x as they had adopted him from the local animal shelter around 2 years ago. They were told he was found wandering as a stray in a town that's about 30 miles away and no one ever claimed him. He was one of three roosters there and until recently they had about 45 hens. They had lost six girls and him to either a dog that has been an issue for several flock keepers in their area or to a bobcat that's also been sighted (and photographed) around there but none of the girls have been found. They also said he makes beautiful and well tempered offspring. I have no doubt about that.

 

[MistyMae]

Hello again! I want to apologize ahead of time. I will probably have quite a few questions over the next few weeks as we finish up our run and get ready to put our chicks in. Is hardware cloth the only option/best option for the run?

 

[islandgirl82]

It's the most secure and in the long run will be the least costly. The spaces in chicken wire are large enough for raccoons to fit their little paws through and can kill a bird that's within their reach. It also rusts easily and will tear in no time meaning you'll have to replace it frequently. Not to mention predators can tear it without much effort.

 

[MistyMae]

Thanks, I think I found a good deal on it on Amazon

 

[buckabucka]

Thanks, I think I found a good deal on it on Amazon

Amazon sometimes has the best deal. I've also done well with this place: https://wireclothman.com/shop.php?cPath=41