Misting incubating eggs ?

[flower]

The bantam eggs were my chicks and the 10 other eggs were shipped in barred rock eggs. Very frustrating!! I hate the chicks dying and the not even pipping after anticipating their arrival for 3 weeks.

I have determined that both humidity and turning have not been adequate so I purchased an additional incubator with a built in hygrometer, thermometer and auto turner. I am determined to be able to have good hatches.

 

[croach510]

Bantambaby, I just hatched out some bantams. I have a LG still air. The first 18 days I kept my humidity at 25-30% and at lockdown brought it up to 60%. Had a good hatch with this humditiy. Good Luck on your hatches.

 

[suntex01]

I've been misting my hatching eggs on pipping, it helps prevent shrink wrapping and keeps the membrane soft.

 

[flower]

Well I have a large batch in my Brinsea on day five most look like they are growing. The humidity started out in the high 30's but is now in the 20's so I decreased the ventilation which may not be a good idea. I did buy another incubator with a built in Hygrometer and thermometer but the instructions warn that these are only a guide and may not be accurate. ha ha well what do you know ?

So If the embryos make it to the 18 day I will start to mist. I suppose that it is best to use warmed water ?

 

[croach510]

I kept my plugs out the whole hatch, never put them in. I also added 1/2 cup of warm water to one of the water wells if the humidity dropped under 25% during the first 18 days. I have also found that the more I handled the eggs, the worse my hatch rate was. This hatch, I candled at days 6/14/18. Turned them by hand 4 times aday and didn't handle them at any other times. My hatch rate this time was 75%, by best one so far.

 

[zekii]

I start misting my duck eggs tonight day 4, but I was thinking that misting at pipping might be
a good idea for other types of eggs.

I've been misting my hatching eggs on pipping, it helps prevent shrink wrapping and keeps the membrane soft.

 

[croach510]

I was wondering if you where opening the bator during lockdown to mist the eggs, and if not how are you doing it?

 

[zekii]

What I have read you mist 48 & then 24hrs before lockdown, then you don't open the incubator.

 

[flower]

I bought an additional incubator. The instructions that came with it say, first of all besides sanitizing the equipment before and after a batch is incubated, SANITIZE the eggs with the special eggs sanitizers that are on the market, and the third instruction that is significant is on the 18th day all the usual stuff plus do not open the incubator for 24 hours. So if your eggs have not started to pip by then I suppose it is possible to open the lid to mist ?????

Anyway since the eggs were vile from smeared poop I did wash about 6 with hot soap and water and since the most nasty ones are breeds that hold my interest, two of them went rotten. You could smell them through the incubator. The temperature and RH are more stable when the door to the room is kept closed so the nasty smell was bottled up.

So besides being more careful with the RH, I will never again doubt that hatching eggs need to be sanitized. Still don't know about the misting but I am sure that it will not hurt. But when i first started this thread, the artile that I had quoted suggested a complicated reason for misting but I will go over it again. sheesh

 

[suntex01]

Well, with the brinsea octagon 20, there's a hole on top of the bator you can use.

So I just put the sprayer right against the hole and mist into the bator.

BTW, I was hatching bantams.

I've experimented with humidifing the membrane. And a little extra humdity on the membrane does help keep it soft without the risk of drowning...