Please help me

[Ebony Rose]

Get it higher than 60% and it'll be raining inside your incubator!

 

[Shamo Hybrid]

I successfully hatched my eggs at about 40% humidity from start to finish, all survived apart from one that pipped but died in it's shell.

 

[Shandarea]

I successfully hatched my eggs at about 40% humidity from start to finish, all survived apart from one that pipped but died in it's shell.

When I did that they didn’t loose enough weight and most didn’t hatch. I’ve read so much and the more I learn the worse it seems to get. Yet hens just sit there and tada babies. Haha. How long should I wait to break one open or is there any way to know if they are still alive

 

[Ebony Rose]

I usually put an egg to my ear and then chirp... I expect wiggles or giggles from egg. If the first time I don't get a response, I put it back in for a few more hours, and later I try again. If I don't get a response this second time, and they're two or three days late... I open them up, starting at the air sac... and gently... as if I'm going for a "Hail Mary" save... (just in case it really is alive but slow).

 

[ValerieJ]

When I did that they didn’t loose enough weight and most didn’t hatch. I’ve read so much and the more I learn the worse it seems to get. Yet hens just sit there and tada babies. Haha. How long should I wait to break one open or is there any way to know if they are still alive

My sentiments exactly.

 

[Shandarea]

I usually put an egg to my ear and then chirp... I expect wiggles or giggles from egg. If the first time I don't get a response, I put it back in for a few more hours, and later I try again. If I don't get a response this second time, and they're two or three days late... I open them up, starting at the air sac... and gently... as if I'm going for a "Hail Mary" save... (just in case it really is alive but slow).

Isn’t it bad though to open incubator? Internal humidity is 60% where outside is 45%. I thought about taking incubator to bathroom and running shower to equal humidity. Could do it then. I don’t want to be a bother but I’m more confused the more I learn and I hate cracking an egg after 25 days and finding a dead chick that should have hatched.

 

[Ebony Rose]

Isn’t it bad though to open incubator? Internal humidity is 60% where outside is 45%. I thought about taking incubator to bathroom and running shower to equal humidity. Could do it then. I don’t want to be a bother but I’m more confused the more I learn and I hate cracking an egg after 25 days and finding a dead chick that should have hatched.

Thing is this: If it's three days overdue and you know your incubator isn't on the cool side... then chances are good that the chick didn't make it. The information you'd get from opening the egg was outlined in Sumi's post that I linked earlier. If you find a live chick in a three-day overdue hatch... then you'd know your thermometers lie and adjust accordingly next time. If everything on your end was perfect, it still doesn't rule out bad genetics, or lack of a will to thrive. Hatching is easier the longer you have been hatching; mostly because it's easier to weigh the pros and cons of your actions... If a chick has been stuck on pip for over 24 hours, you'd try to help it out, you'd give it that 5% chance to survive, (and have a quality life) right? Knowing that if you do nothing, its chance of survival are zero. On the other hand, if you help it, it will be weaker, it may die anyhow, it might have genetic defects, it might be sickly... but for the love of life, you'd still give it the chance. When you put your choices on this type of a scale, it makes hatching easier.
On the topic of shrinkwrapping chicks due to a lack of humidity. The idea would be to open incubator, quickly grab the egg with the chick in distress, close incubator... proceed to help chick. Shouldn't be open more'n a hot second or two.

 

[Shandarea]

Thanks to all who helped. I think I found the problem. I set up incubator two full days before I set any eggs and calibrated everything. Checked for accuracy. I just put a thermostat in and two more hydrometers that I knew were accurate before because I tested them. Now the temp says constant but thermometer inside is reading 105 deg and the other two hydro says 85%. I’m pretty upset at this since I spent so much time testing. I had calibrated 7 hydrometers and 5 thermostats. And only out 2% and bang on with temp. However if temp was high then why were eggs all alive and proper weights for lock down? I’m frustrated even more now. Maybe tomorrow I’ll crack them open and see

 

[Ebony Rose]

 

[slordaz]

elevation can affect hatch rate too, I am high elevation and have to leave the plugs out or vents open from day 1.did conversion of temps online as we use Fahrenheit here and the incubator was in Celsius, and was 37.5 C for incubation to get the best hatch rate ran 25-30% humidity until lock down then upped it to 65-70%. It has them rolling on sides like they would naturally too, I found upright does not work at my elevation. just some things to think about.