Really really fed up :(

[portiaari]

Hi, I posted a few days ago about my premature duckling Minnie, who sadly only lived 2 days and then passed on to the big duck pond in the sky. I had 4 more eggs in the ready to hatch incubator but no sign and so I decided to open the eggs and all of them are dead in shell including one that I moved over yesterday as there were no signs of life. I just don't get it, I'm doing it all by the book.
The eggs that are left are all looking good, blood vessels nice and bright, lots of movement inside, 3 of them are due in the next day or so, 2 of them aren't due until 7th april (i messed up and put them in at different times, hence the second incubator).
Someone suggested that as I'm new to this that the temperature is probably wrong etc as the incubators are probably cheap etc. My big incubator is an R-com 20 and the temp is set at 37.5C and the humidity at 55. The hatching one is a Brinsea Mini Advance, I keep the water topped up in the water thing in the middle and was advised to lightly mist once a day with warm water, the temp is set at 37C. What am I doing wrong. It was heartbreaking to open up 4 bad eggs with dead ducklings in.
Advice please

 

[portiaari]

Although it has just occured to me that the misting bottle used to have non toxic stuff in it, which I washed out lots before I used it, could this have maybe not have been as clean as I thought? Maybe I poisoned the poor little mites?

 

[ChickyLaura]

I wish I had more info to help you, but I had the same thing happen to me several times. I don't know how to hatch!

And I tried to hatch for 2 years... I just can't seem to do it!

But, I have been ordering from Ideal and have had good luck. They're not "show quality", but they are all healthy and I'm happy.

Sorry...

 

[Katy]

My only suggestion would be is that you can't always do it "by the book". Over time I've found what works best for me as far as humidities....and it hasn't always been what the instructions said.

 

[ChooksChick]

I leave my rcom at 40% the whole time. I suspect you aren't getting enough evaporation and the chicks are too big to hatch. An rcom is ideal at 40% NO CHANGE for the last 3 days except to turn off the turner.

 

[portiaari]

At 40 % humidity for the whole incubation period for ducks?

 

[portiaari]

I have 5 left to hatch, some due imminently and 2 not due for a while, so should I just turn the humidity down to 40% and then turn off turning apart from the 2 not due for a while which I could turn manually? What about the temp in the r-com?

 

[Buckeyes-R-Us]

i agree with "chookschick" on the 40% humidity.....but I use Brinsea Octagons NOT rCom's!

for temps I find my hatches are better with a slightly higher temp in ALL of my Brinsea's....I have 8 Octagon's running from Jan-June at 100.5-101F

finally, i keep a room humidifier running to keep the hatching room humdity around 40-45% as well....this helps reduce the water usage in my bators....i also used distilled water exclusively for my bators!

 

[portiaari]

It does make sense about the humidity as none of the airsacs were very big or had grown much. But as it's ducks and not chickens should it be slightly higher ie 45? I will be soooo grateful if this works and I can hatch my last 5 x

 

[Katy]

Quote:
If the air cells were not very big that means the humidity was too high and they didn't dry down enough.....the ducklings probably drowned if they internally pipped.