Make an egg incubator

[SAIF_A]

Hi Everybody,
How are you doing?

I want to start a poultry project. What do I need to make an egg incubator?
Could you please provide full information and detailed guidance?

Thanks

 

[LaurenRitz]

Hm. I'd suggest lots of testing before you trust eggs to it.

Mine is extremely low tech, using an adjustable heating pad. I spent weeks making adjustments before I put eggs in, and then worked out other changes after.

Different blankets held the heat better. I had to cover the heat vents in the room to keep the room temperature as steady as possible. Insulation vs no insulation on the bottom. Turning the eggs around the humidity pot rather than turning them in place to avoid hot/cold pockets. Putting eggs round end out so only the air cell was against the bowl.

Oh, and the heating pad was on top, otherwise the eggs cooked.

Hopefully I'll never need to use it, but my last hatch 5 out of 7 hatched. 6 made it to lockdown.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Hi, welcome to the forum. Glad you are here.

There are all kinds of different ways to make an incubator. You can search online, ask your county extension agent if you are in the US, or maybe follow this link to incubators in the Articles section of this forum. I don't have any information to have an idea if what might work for you. I don't even know if you are talking about chickens, turkeys, pheasant, or emus. You have a tremendous number of options in regard to what to hatch as well as how to make the incubator or heat it.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/categories/incubators-brooders.27/

Some of the basics. The incubator needs to be held to a steady 99.5 Fahrenheit (37.5 C) where the eggs are. Hot air rises. If you have a fan in there (what we call a forced air) the temperature is probably the same everywhere in there but if there is no fan (a still air) the temperature varies according to elevation. You will need a thermometer to maintain correct temperature. Where you place that thermometer can be important in a still air.

You'll almost certainly need a thermostat to hold the temperature where it needs to be. Again the elevation of the thermostat can be important but it also needs to be relatively close to the heating element but not too close. This may take some trial and error. You want it far enough away to give the heating element time to heat but not so far away that you got a wide swing in how warm or cold it gets between cycles.

You need a way to add moisture to the air inside. If the egg loses too much moisture due to evaporation through the porous shell the egg can shrink-wrap. That's where a membrane dries out and shrinks around the developing chick so it cannot hatch. But if the moisture level is too high enough liquid does not evaporate and the chick can drown. I find a hydrometer to measure humidity very helpful.

The eggs need to be turned to prevent the yolk or embryo from settling and touching the inside of the porous shell where it can become stuck. You can turn them by hand or get an automatic turner.

You need a certain amount of ventilation, especially as the chick develops. This is not that important early in incubations but the more the chick develops the more it needs to take in oxygen and give off carbon dioxide. You don't want them to suffocate as they hatch. They need some ventilation so they can dry off after hatch but too much ventilation and you can have problems maintaining heat or moisture.

Good luck! Let us know what you decide to do and how it turns out.