newbie...with a question

[aidensmomma]

I read these forums frequently to get answers but I don't have a lot of time right now so I'm just asking. I have a LG still air that hasn't had any temp issues at all for 2 full weeks. Yesterday I walked in to the room where it is, a laundry room (the dryer sometimes increases the humidity but only by 1 or 2%) and the temp on the hygrometer said 106!!!! I have 2 thermometers inside the incubator that have consistently been reading the same temp and a hygrometer with a probe that has stayed between 101 and 102 degrees. When the hygrometer said 106, the thermometers both said 100... I don't want to scrap the whole thing because I don't know what the actual temp was. there is a chance that the probe was really close to the heating element.
To add to my stress, I live in North Central Florida...this morning it was 65ish degrees so I opened all the windows and doors and threw a ceiling fan on just to have some nice cool air in the house...and my hygrometer said the humidity was at 57%...took me all of an hour to realize that I probably did that by opening the house up...it's Florida; our humidity is almost always at least 80%...
so i'm not sure what to do now or if I should do anything? I have 5 eggs that go into lockdown next Tuesday and the rest of them a week from then. am I going to lose them all? thanks for any help.

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

I too have a still air LG. I can NOT keep it anywhere near my laundry room (or windows or any place that has a draft, ect). Its too darn finicky. Anyway, if there's a chance that probe was too close to the heating element and the other 2 thermometers are reading correct and aren't close to the element, I'd go with them. Did you calibrate your thermometers and hygrometers before you started? It usually needs to be done, even if the instruments are new.
As for the humidity, a quick fix is placing a couple of dry paper towels inside the bator. They absorb some of the extra moisture in there. You may have to replace them a couple of times. If your humidity is high, which as you say you're in FL, you can probably get away with taking most/all of the water out. When we had around 80% humidity during the dog days I ran mine completely dry and still had 35-40ish % (I was doing a dry hatch and was aiming for 25-30, but it just wouldn't go down). Good luck, those LGs take some practice and watching. Mine has gotten me thru, but a better bator is definitely on my wish list. Have you read the LG tips and trick thread? Lots of great stuff there

 

[sumi]

Did you get the temperature sorted? Or was the probe in the wrong place? If you had a spike the embryos may be o.k. depending how long it lasted. It takes quite awhile for the core temperature of the egg to rise/drop, so if they were not exposed to higher temperatures for long they should be o.k. One way to check if they are o.k. would be to candle them quick and make a note of their development, then wait a day or 3 and candle them again and see if they developed any further. If you see movement while candling, you've got your answer, but don't worry if they don't move. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. The humidity was a tad high, but since it was only for a short period it's fine. I recently accidentally bumped the humidity in my incubator up to around 65%, a few days before lockdown, and only realised it after an hour after which I slowly lowered it to where it should be. The chicks were fine. Fingers crossed!

 

[aidensmomma]

thank you both so much for replying... you both made me feel a little better...I already felt bad because I was candling one of my first batch and dropped one I don't want to hurt anymore babies! That and the first batch is from my original flock which was wiped out in a matter of days by a really sneaky fox. took my rooster too, so these are his babies that I'm hoping for. anyway, I am almost certain the probe was too close to the element and I feel good that the other two thermometers were the same and only at 100. I did calibrate them all. once I closed the house up the humidity started dropping..duh. my laundry room has no draft and the humidity has been between 41 and 45% in there up until my dumb butt opened the windows!! thanks for the paper towel trick, going to do that right now. thanks again. i'm going to candle them too and check for progress.

 

[sumi]

Keep us posted!

 

[aidensmomma]

the incubator I had them in was a freebie that my trusted friend gave me. she had several successful hatches in it. I moved them from that incubator to a new one I bought that I made sure was staying steady at 101-102ish. why do the instructions say 99.5 as the temp when everything on here says 101-103?
the new incubator has them at a steady 101 with 44% humidity.

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

99.5° is the preferred temp for those that have fans in their incubator. Still airs are a little (ok, alot) more inconsistent. The temperature in those types may be a degree or two different in different spots in the incubator.
Good luck

 

[aidensmomma]

I'm officially obsessed. Seriously, my first hatch ever, and these eggs are kinda special. They are from the hens and roo that I lost the day before I set these eggs...and THREE of the five that I was able to get are wiggling around in the incubator!!!! I really really really REALLY hope those little babies get out okay. I have a steady 99 degrees, 64% humidity and they went in to lockdown at 5pm yesterday. I can't stop watching..am I normal?

 

[sumi]

I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. What happened to them? I'll keep my fingers crossed and don't worry, I'm exactly the same with all my hatches! I got so into the habit of checking the incubator every time I walked past it, I caught myself checking 2 days after the hatch was done, the chicks were outside with their chicken mom and the incubator was cleaned and ready for the next hatch to be put away in a cupboard where it can't tempt me!

 

[aidensmomma]

LOL that's funny...good to hear I'm not alone. My Roo and hens were taken by either a fox or coyote. We have a few dens around here but I never had a problem because they free range during the day and my pups watch over them, then at night they were in their coop. Unfortunately the predators compromised the coop. Needless to say, the new coop, AKA Ft. Knox, will be ready in a few weekends. It was very disappointing. My kids spoiled my hens and Brucster was the nicest RIR rooster you ever met. So, since these are his babies, we're really hoping at least 1 hatches and maybe it'll be another Roo. All 5 eggs are now wiggling around. I just hope they get past the hard part now! Thanks for the kind thoughts
p.s. how long do they wiggle around before they bust outta those shells? Is there anything I should be looking for? 21 days will be on Friday...