Questions to peeps who use homemade incubators!!

[eeyore75]

OK who has built a homemade incubator on here? Can I polyuratane the inside of a wooden incubator/ hatcher? I think it would help with raising the air humidity (and if hatching out in it- ease clean up!!) If I can put a coat or two on it- how long should it air out before using? Will the heat cause fumes to occur after air out? Is there another product that is better to use to coat the inside?

I have a homemade cabinet "hatcher" that holds temps lovely, but the humidity it stays low with. Not a problem for using as an incubator (which is what I did last year with it- hatched out in styoform incubator). But this year I picked up a used sportsman (yah auto turning and not hand turning a cabinet of eggs!!) and I would like to use the homemade hatcher- as a hatcher (could keep batches from differant pens seperate easier)

 

[HatchCraft]

Yes use poly. It is a must to keep the inside of a hatcher clean.The oil base poly needs maybe 2 weeks to air out. ( I quit using oil based poly . Durable but I became worried about long term exposure.) Water base poly 3 days. I also use exterior acrylic paint. I would use 3 thin coats or more. Use high gloss. Finish will become slicker with each coat .