refrigerate duck hatching eggs?

[cbohn80]

i have a pekin who has been laying about 2 weeks and a male cayuga who looks like he's been mating a bit with the flock. i want to save up hatching eggs and was wondering if i should refrigerate them to keep them good until i incubate the bunch or just let them sit out. i've heard duck eggs can spoil after about a week or two without refrigeration. thanks guys, i guess my other option would be just to do small batches

 

[70%cocoa]

Keep them cool but not in the fridge. Fridges are too dry and too cold. You want somewhere about 14 degrees C or about 57 deg F.

 

[cbohn80]

ok thanks, i dont have a cool basement or anything so i guess i'll be doing some small batches, any tips for incubating duck eggs?

 

[70%cocoa]

Just try to keep them under 68 degrees F if you can. Put them in an egg carton and tip one end up about 30 degrees or so. At night turn the carton so the opposite end is up and then turn again in the morning.

I am using an automated incubator (RCOM 20 PRO) so I'm just using the settings it came with for duck eggs. For the first 25 days the temp is 37.5 deg C (99.5 F) and the Relative Humidity is 45%. It turns the eggs 120 degrees every hour, alternating turning to the left and right. For the last three days temp is 37 deg C (98.6 F) and the Relative Humidity is 60% and the eggs don't get turned at all.

Candle the eggs after they've been in for 5 days with a strong LED torch. You should be able to see development in the form of a network of red veins.

 

[cbohn80]

thank for the advice,