Reptipro 5000 Incubator

[knjinnm]

Quote:
I did read the post you are referring to but until then what are users to do, lose half their eggs?
I don't have a unit, can someone post a picture of the unit with two egg turners and "the door open"?

I'm curious, will one of the small fans from jameco fit and solve the problem until reptipro comes up with a replacement circuit board for the fan problem.

Joe

 

[Jonny]

Quote:
Hey Perolane

Thank you!! You must be excited, day 19! I can't wait to hear how it goes. Have you candled any eggs, do you usually do that?
I like your temp/humidity routine. Seems to work very well, and a very good advise to all us new eggs! I'll try to rotate the eggs from top/down every once in a while. I actually just put in about 10 more eggs after day 5.. I know.. but to my defense, I didn't order them and all of a sudden they were here. But I'll give it a try, and for the last three days of all the other eggs I'll try to keep them by themselves or something. I don't hope the increased humidity will do any harm to them.

J

 

[Jonny]

Quote:
How do you introduce the new chicks to your chickens? And at what age? Do you keep them in separate coops?

 

[BlacksheepCardigans]

I'm sorry, but hold on. When I was researching my first incubator purchase a few months ago I did a solid week of research on the ReptiPro, including talking with reptile breeders who use it.

The unit is a Princess International Mini Fridge, number MR-148: http://www.giftsatprincess.com/display.asp?CategoryID=177&styleId=96818&intAbsolutePage=1

Here's a picture of it: http://www.giftsatprincess.com/LineSheets/92BF8EF5-34C0-49B4-97B8-14B8610C82A4/original/Style96818.jpg
and here's a picture of the ReptiPro: http://www.reptipro.com/components/com_virtuemart/shop_image/product/ReptiPro_5000_Di_4c7f9a9ae6710.jpg

Same case plus a sticky label. Same fan, same Peltier heating/cooling unit, same window, same buttons, same capacity, same shelves.

It's designed in Hong Kong; the parts come from China. Princess is a wholesaler, not a retailer. There's no way they ripped off or knocked off ReptiPro; the unit being sold on ThinkGeek or any one of a hundred places is not a ripoff or a knockoff.

If ReptiPro means by "knockoff" that other companies are buying the Princess units and selling them as incubators, that's fine, but ReptiPro is not the originator of the case. They're retailers of a wholesale unit.

So are surehatch: http://www.surehatch.com/Repti-Superhatch-Digital-Reptile-Egg-Incubator.htm
and lllreptile: http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog/reptile-supplies/reptile-incubators/-/lllreptile-pro-mr148-incubator/

and at least half a dozen others.

The incubator may be the best thing ever put on this earth to hatch chicken eggs, but it wasn't their idea (I know the reptile people were using the ThinkGeek unit and talking about how well it was working for them months before the reptile-labeled units came on the market) and if it is changed at all from the Princess unit I can't see it (and neither could the guy at lllreptile, who ripped them both apart before he started selling the Princess unit direct).

I am NOT trying to diss ReptiPro. I think if they have great customer service and offer a good product at a fair price the idea of retailing a wholesale unit is GREAT. I buy Coke at Target, after all; I don't get mad at them that they're selling a product that's also made at the bottling plant.

 

[perolane]

Quote:
I did read the post you are referring to but until then what are users to do, lose half their eggs?
I don't have a unit, can someone post a picture of the unit with two egg turners and "the door open"?

I'm curious, will one of the small fans from jameco fit and solve the problem until reptipro comes up with a replacement circuit board for the fan problem.

Joe

Joe...picture of the unit here: http://cgi.ebay.com/Bird-Chicken-Duck-Quail-Egg-Incubator-2-Auto-Turner-/110583003518?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19bf42b97e

You won't "lose half your eggs"...at least I haven't. The eggs on the bottom will just hatch a day or so later than the eggs on the top...like a staggered hatch. I've had great success rotating the eggs from bottom to top every few days & then they all hatch at relatively the same time. Yes it's a little of a pain to do this, but I'm hand-turning anyway & it's worth it to me as I never have to worry about temp spikes & humidity is perfect. For me, the pros of this unit outweigh the cons.....and when they make a few adjustments, it will be the perfect hatching machine!

 

[perolane]

Quote:
Hey Perolane

Thank you!! You must be excited, day 19! I can't wait to hear how it goes. Have you candled any eggs, do you usually do that?
I like your temp/humidity routine. Seems to work very well, and a very good advise to all us new eggs! I'll try to rotate the eggs from top/down every once in a while. I actually just put in about 10 more eggs after day 5.. I know.. but to my defense, I didn't order them and all of a sudden they were here. But I'll give it a try, and for the last three days of all the other eggs I'll try to keep them by themselves or something. I don't hope the increased humidity will do any harm to them.

J

Jonny, I usually candle after day 10 & that's about it. That's when I toss non-developers. When this was all new, I candled just about every day!

I would keep those 10 new eggs on the bottom & keep your fingers crossed. If you keep your hatching humidity for the other eggs at no more than 65%, they may be just fine. The thing to be careful with for staggered hatches is when you up the humidity for the first eggs...too much can "drown" the chicks from the last eggs put in when they pip.

I keep the new chicks in rubbermaid totes with heat lamp for 2-3 weeks, then I move them outside to the coop with seperate heated pens. When I eventually introduce them to the "teenager" group @ 4-6 months, normally there's no problems as silkies are pretty easy going.

 

[perolane]

BlacksheepCardigans....I'll let Chris@Reptipro address your concerns as only he would have the answers.

 

[BlacksheepCardigans]

They're not concerns - just my knowledge of what the unit is, based on scads of research, correcting the assumption that people have that ReptiPro is "making" the units and that any other retailers are knocking off ReptiPro units. Nobody's knocking off. They're all selling a rebranded product. It's very much like what eggcartons.com does with LG incubators, selling them under the "Fall Harvest Products" brand. It's legal and fine.

 

[perolane]

Quote:
I stand corrected

 

[flgardengirl]

So does the ReptiPro 5000 actually come with a fan or do you need to add one?