Ok, I finally broke down and bought an incubator-now what?

[Marion]

fowlweatherfriends,
I have a Little Giant but it has the fan... it came with a liner for the incubator... if yours did as well then I have found that adding water to the two inside rings gives me 50% humidity if I keep them filled and then for 75-80% in the final days I add water to the big outter ring as well... also one added note - don't open the incubator after day 18 unless you absolutely have to!! The chicks will be fine while the others hatch and opening it reduces the humidity a great deal more than you would think and can cause the chicks that are pipping to get stuck and die before they can get out of their shells. Good luck and happy hatching!

 

[fowlweatherfriends]

I read the directions, but am confused about the "plugs" included. Am I supposed to have one open in order to have fresh air, or am I supposed to leave it closed? I am so confused!

The Silkie eggs came today, purchased from ebay, and they arrived in perfect condition. I purchased 12 but she shipped 18 (love the extras).

The eggs have been sitting pointy end down since 4pm. At 12am I will be incubating them. I purchased a $7.00 digital humidity/thermometer from Wal Mart. Apparently there is a big demand for the ones with humidity, because several were sold out. I am hoping it will be accurate enough.

Charlotte has lost about 75% of her chest feathers, but refused to consistently set the nest I had made up. Guess I am glad I made the $50 purchase now! (I will be incubating several Old English game Birds with the silkies also.

 

[Marion]

The fan kit covers one of the red plug holes in my incubator but the other one is open and has been since I first set it up... there are little holes in the top and bottom of the styrofoam incubator as well but they are tiny. If you have a liner be sure to cut the tips off of the little projections according to the directions on the sticker that is stuck to it or the ventilation holes in the bottom of the incubator will be covered and useless. Good luck!

 

[fowlweatherfriends]

I don't see any ventilation holes in the bottom of the incubator at all. Is this normal? I have two red plugs at the very top and that is all I see. Can anyone tell me if that is the amount of plugs associated with the little giant brand?

Can't wait to get the "babies" in!

 

[setting_silkie]

I borrowed a still air bator from a friend and it took forever to get it up to the right temp. I basically had to do two complete turns of the temp gauge! Is that normal? AND, I put a thermometer in there and got the temp up to about 100 degrees, but when I put the hygrometer in there, which also has a thermometer, that thermometer said it was only 97 degrees! How can there be that much of a difference? And what should I do? This is my first time hatching in a bator and have so many questions.

 

[Marion]

The ventilation holes in the bottom of the Little Giant I have are very small and you probably can see them if you hold it up to the light, there are 5, one in the center and one toward each corner. There are two larger ventilation holes in the top that are plugged with red plugs. If you have a liner in the bottom of the incubator you will see little projections (one in the middle, and one near each corner), the tips of those projections have to be snipped off or you will not have any ventilation. I don't know if the instructions for still air are the same as for the one I have with the fan but it said to take out one red plug and that has worked fine for me.