ReptiPro 5000 & 6000 Hatch-a-long Thread

[ReptiPro]

Got a Reptipro 6000 and just took it out of the box. For the life of me I cannot figure out how to get the cabinet door open. The latch will not budge. Is there a trick to it? Of course it is Friday night and the customer service number is M-F 9-5. I'm beginning to think I have a defective unit. I don't want to force it, but I would like to get the incubator set up and running!

I believe I got an e-mail from you this morning, but to anyone else who may be having a similar issue:
Sometimes the doors for the units can be a little bit tough (due to paint/weather/etc). The best practice is to rest the palm of your hand against the front of the door and pull outwards on the handle. It may require a little bit of force the first time or two that you open it, but after that you should feel less resistance. If you still are unable to get it open, let us know and we will help you out.

Hope this helps!
Thanks, everyone! We LOVE to hear about the success you are having with the incubator, and, as always, love to see pics of those cute little babies!

 

[MagicChicken]

Quote:
Thanks, that was me and you answered my email first thing this morning (Monday). I really appreciated that quick response. I managed to open the door by prying the latch with a screwdriver. Had to use the screwdriver several times, but the door is getting easier to open/close the more I use it and last night I managed to open it without the screwdriver. I still have to slam the door shut to get it to latch, though, and usually manage to slosh some water out of the tray when I do that. But closing is getting easier too, so hopefully by the time I actually put eggs in there the door will be working smoothly. I do like the unit so far.

 

[yinepu]

Hope this helps!
Thanks, everyone! We LOVE to hear about the success you are having with the incubator, and, as always, love to see pics of those cute little babies!

I STILL love mine!
So far it's been one of my absolute favorite incubators... lol.. i still need to get the 6000.. ah one of these days!

 

[elrn50]

If you buy the turners for the ReptiPro, you still have to "tip" them? Isn't there automatic turning? I'm trying to find out as much info. as I can; deciding between ReptiPro and Brinsea to incubate with.

 

[yinepu]

If you buy the turners for the ReptiPro, you still have to "tip" them? Isn't there automatic turning? I'm trying to find out as much info. as I can; deciding between ReptiPro and Brinsea to incubate with.

I'm not sure what you mean by "tip"

in the reptipro the turners turn the eggs for you... so unless you are hatching goose eggs or something like emu eggs you wouldnt need to turn the eggs any by hand if you have the turners.


as for a choice between Reptipro or Brinsea.. I have used both. the Brinseas all went to the dump.. they are just too unreliable and Brinsea's customer service is horrible if you buy a lot from them. Plus the location / placement of the fan in the Brinseas was the the dumbest idea they ever came up with.. instead of blowing air AROUND the eggs it blows directly on them.. so if you have a chick that makes a large pip then takes a break it stands a very good chance of getting shrink wrapped or stuck in the shell

The downside (if you want to call it that) of the Reptipro is that there are no vents.. but if you are hands on with the incubation and hatching then all you need to do is open the door a few times a day for air exchange.. so "lockdown" doesn't take place with the Reptipro.. chicks, ducklings, quail, geese and emus have all hatched just fine with my Reptipro without worrying about extremely high humidity or other issues at hatch. The humidity goes right back up to where it needs to be as within a minute or two when you close the door.. and because you can decide where you want the eggs in relation to the fan there isnt a worry about shrink wrapping or sticky chicks so long as you have been monitoring air cells during incubation.
With the Reptipro I incubate AND hatch most of them DRY.. which is something you CAN NOT do in a Brinsea

Ultimately the choice is yours.. but I wish I had bought my Reptipro BEFORE I bought the Brinseas (and I had a bunch of Brinseas).. i could have saved myself a lot of money instead of throwing it away on Brinseas

 

[EPetrilli]

Hello Everyone!
I am contemplating getting a Reptipro 6000 and I believe I have read through most of the threads on here but I wanted to ask for just a little more feedback before I go forward! I will give a brief description of what I would like to do and see how those of you with them feel it will work?? Thanks so much in advance for your opinions!!!

So my son is a chicken kid, he loves them and is very serious and passionate about everything he does. He is starting a small flock of rare birds and eventually when they are of laying age we will need to set all the eggs (they are just too expensive to try the current method of the Hovabator or the hen) but this will not be for a few months yet! He also does a project at his school for the 3rd grade where he brings in fertile eggs and teaches the students the growth cycle. He started this a few years ago in his own class as a science project and of the 3 incubators with 12-15 eggs each we got 2 chicks-lol! Needless to say even with pretty good supervision in one classroom after lockdown an upset classmate cranked the heat and baked all the chicks (127 degrees) over lunch recess, and in another class the power went out and the eggs perished. The 3rd incubator stayed consistant but I think that all the opening and such of the styrofoam bators caused issues and we only had 2 hatch! Then last year we tried again, with less eggs and a more controlled environment (after all my son uses these incubators at home and is successful with his silkies all the time) and this time we were able to hatch only 1!!!!

So.... That said, this has become a 3rd grade favorite unit and all the parents and kids would like to continue but I would like to lessen the heartache for the teachers and the students as much as we can! I would like to consider purchasing the ReptiPro 6000 and utilizing this one unit for all 3 classrooms by placing it in a common area. If I am understanding correctly the unit will come with 2 shelves/trays and I can purchase the auto turners and they will not have to open the bator ever except for adding water and in the early stages for brief candling??? Is this a fair assesment? The kids will be able to see the eggs turning and such thru the glass door or is the door solid?
Secondly, I read that some people leave their lock down eggs in the reptipro and others move them to a "hatching" bator. Could someone please explain the pros and cons of each and let me know which would be best for our situation! This will be a big investment that we will be donating to the school along with all the brooders and candlers we have already donated, I want them to have something they are comfortable with and can continue to use each year! Then of course I would also like one at home as well but we are most likely able to keep better tabs on our hatches at home!

Thanks so much for your opinions and sharing your experiences!! I have already learned so much from the forum
Erin

 

[yinepu]

Hello Everyone!
I am contemplating getting a Reptipro 6000 and I believe I have read through most of the threads on here but I wanted to ask for just a little more feedback before I go forward! I will give a brief description of what I would like to do and see how those of you with them feel it will work?? Thanks so much in advance for your opinions!!!

So my son is a chicken kid, he loves them and is very serious and passionate about everything he does. He is starting a small flock of rare birds and eventually when they are of laying age we will need to set all the eggs (they are just too expensive to try the current method of the Hovabator or the hen) but this will not be for a few months yet! He also does a project at his school for the 3rd grade where he brings in fertile eggs and teaches the students the growth cycle. He started this a few years ago in his own class as a science project and of the 3 incubators with 12-15 eggs each we got 2 chicks-lol! Needless to say even with pretty good supervision in one classroom after lockdown an upset classmate cranked the heat and baked all the chicks (127 degrees) over lunch recess, and in another class the power went out and the eggs perished. The 3rd incubator stayed consistant but I think that all the opening and such of the styrofoam bators caused issues and we only had 2 hatch! Then last year we tried again, with less eggs and a more controlled environment (after all my son uses these incubators at home and is successful with his silkies all the time) and this time we were able to hatch only 1!!!!

So.... That said, this has become a 3rd grade favorite unit and all the parents and kids would like to continue but I would like to lessen the heartache for the teachers and the students as much as we can! I would like to consider purchasing the ReptiPro 6000 and utilizing this one unit for all 3 classrooms by placing it in a common area. If I am understanding correctly the unit will come with 2 shelves/trays and I can purchase the auto turners and they will not have to open the bator ever except for adding water and in the early stages for brief candling??? Is this a fair assesment? The kids will be able to see the eggs turning and such thru the glass door or is the door solid?
Secondly, I read that some people leave their lock down eggs in the reptipro and others move them to a "hatching" bator. Could someone please explain the pros and cons of each and let me know which would be best for our situation! This will be a big investment that we will be donating to the school along with all the brooders and candlers we have already donated, I want them to have something they are comfortable with and can continue to use each year! Then of course I would also like one at home as well but we are most likely able to keep better tabs on our hatches at home!

Thanks so much for your opinions and sharing your experiences!! I have already learned so much from the forum
Erin

If you decide to hatch in the reptipro you will have to open the door several times a day during "lockdown" (I really hate that term since it's so inaccurate when it comes to these bators). So lets say the eggs are set on a monday or tuesday.. they would be due to hatch 3 weeks later on a monday or tuesday.. now if no one is there over the weekend in that last crucial week the chicks could all die in shell due to carbon dioxide poisoning since the Reptipro isn't vented like other bators. I routinely open mine several times a day anyway regardless of when it is during incubation simply because I know how important fresh air is for the developing chicks.

The doors have a glass window in them (pretty much takes up most of the door) so there is a good area for viewing. You would still have to worry about the kids messing with the temperature controls since they are right there on the front of the unit. I think the only way to keep them from messing with the bator would be to duct tape their hands to their heads.. but I don't think their parents would approve

Since there would be a risk of no one being present during a few days of that last week you would have to decide just how many eggs were being set and if there would be enough oxygen in the bator to last from 3 pm on a friday until whenever a teacher or someone could open it on a monday.. I doubt there would be .. so in your situation I would suggest a hatching bator that is vented (remember to leave the vents open regardless of what the instruction manual says that comes with which ever bator you would choose for hatching).

i believe the hardest thing for the teachers to grasp would be calibrating the temperature in a reptipro.. you can not go by the display alone since there is a temperature gradient (in the reptipro 5000 there is..and from what feedback I have heard there is also one in the 6000). IF you can train them to ignore the display and go by an accurate thermometer at shelf level then that's all the better.. You would also need to teach them to go by air cell size of the eggs (using one of your donated candlers) in order to determine if their humidity is correct and not to rely on a hygrometer.

The one thing I love the most about the reptipro is that it's very much a "hands on" incubator.. I get 100% hatches out of it which is something I can not say for the Brinseas.
"Lockdown" is pretty much nonexistent in a Reptipro too because you HAVE to open that door for fresh air exchange.. humidity bounces right up to where it needs to be once the chicks start to hatch even with opening the door.

 

[EPetrilli]

Thank You Yinepu!

I will certainly take these accounts into consideration! I was not sure that I was understanding the vent issue correctly but I now see that I am. So the doors must be opened several times per day...hmmm I was hoping to avoid that, however it sounds like with this incubator the temp does not fluctuate quite as much after opening? I do not think that calibrating temperature will be an issue but sounds like some of the air venting issues could be our biggest problem!

I will have to think about this for a bit! Seems like it would be simple to put in some air vents, I have an incubator in my clinic lab that looks almost exactly like these reptipro's and it has a little vent slot in the back that I believe was originally designed to allow us to plug a secondary instument (shaker or stir plate) in and run the cord out the back. I guess I figured these units would have a similar design!! I really appreciate your input I will be thinking about this for sure! There is really never an easy solution-lol!

I do however really like the duck-tape idea, or possibly we could sew them all a pair of "no-no's" like they have for babies not to put their hands near their mouths or eyes after surgeries-lol somehow I think your right about the parents thou!!!! UNLESS we were to offer them for take home use on the weekends-haha- we just might get the vote to pass then!

The kids are always just so amazed during this unit and it is such a great way to get them (well most of them) to experience and respect the fragility of the life cycle.

Erin

 

[yinepu]

Thank You Yinepu!

I will certainly take these accounts into consideration! I was not sure that I was understanding the vent issue correctly but I now see that I am. So the doors must be opened several times per day...hmmm I was hoping to avoid that, however it sounds like with this incubator the temp does not fluctuate quite as much after opening? I do not think that calibrating temperature will be an issue but sounds like some of the air venting issues could be our biggest problem!

I will have to think about this for a bit! Seems like it would be simple to put in some air vents, I have an incubator in my clinic lab that looks almost exactly like these reptipro's and it has a little vent slot in the back that I believe was originally designed to allow us to plug a secondary instument (shaker or stir plate) in and run the cord out the back. I guess I figured these units would have a similar design!! I really appreciate your input I will be thinking about this for sure! There is really never an easy solution-lol!

I do however really like the duck-tape idea, or possibly we could sew them all a pair of "no-no's" like they have for babies not to put their hands near their mouths or eyes after surgeries-lol somehow I think your right about the parents thou!!!! UNLESS we were to offer them for take home use on the weekends-haha- we just might get the vote to pass then!

The kids are always just so amazed during this unit and it is such a great way to get them (well most of them) to experience and respect the fragility of the life cycle.

Erin

When I got mine there was the option to have turners included or not. If you chose to have turners then Chris and his guys would alter the door frame (where the door closes onto the front of the incubator) by adding a few little holes for the turner cords to fit through. If you opted not to have the turners then the unit was pretty much air tight. Even with the little holes there isn't enough air exchange.. so some people have adjusted that by running an aquarium air pump (with airline tubing) through one of the holes that the cord for the turner would normally go through.. thus eliminating the need for the vents.The air pump would continue to pump in fresh air and the carbon dioxide issue wouldn't be a problem. If you go that route you would also have to go with less eggs to hatch since you wouldn't be using a turner. (not sure how many you were wanting to try hatching anyway.. so it may still be an option).

I didn't opt for the turners simply because I tend to stack eggs or hatch out eggs that would be too large (or in the case of quail) too small for the standard turner.

When the door is opened the incubator will start to heat up.. but it only takes a few seconds for the temperature to go back up to the set temperature.. so the eggs never get chilled. There are "vents" in the back.. but that's for cooling the fan motor and such.. the incubator itself is a sealed unit.

 

[EPetrilli]

So these can be built to suit to an extent? I am wondering (it sounds like you may know the company) would it be possible for them to drill and extra hole at an additional charge so I could use the turners and also put in an air pump?? I might just have to ask them!! And sounds like you are quite happy with your unit and have had success so I may just ping you when we first set it up if that would be ok? I am leaning towards ordering one and trying it out at home for a while to see what we can do!!!
I think we definately need the turners and I would like to be able to hatch out 20-30 at a time once my son gets his system down, so I would like to be able to use the full capacity if possible! And because he goes to school during the day and I work (sometimes odd emergency hours) turners and air pumps would be ideal so we could hatch on our hens schedule and not our work schedule!
Sounds like maybe I could put in a call to the company and try my luck

Thanks soooo much for all your help!!!