Set eggs 3/5. Looking for others to hatch with!

[wholewheatchicken]

I put 12 RIRs and 4 silkie eggs in tonight. This is my third attempt. I killed the first two batches using the dry hatch method. It was WAY too dry for my guys. They were all shrink wrapped by day 21 and died in the shell. So here is to the old saying, the third time's a charm

I am going to use 50% humidity this time for days 1- 18 and 65% for days 18 - 21. I also have a cheat sheet to use as I have a broody hen who is on week 1 with eggs and I am marking the air cell on her eggs and I have a test egg I am keeping in the barn that I am marking also. I think I will drill it out and keep it as a reference guide. I am hoping to lose my nickname of Dr. Frankenstein with this round!!!!!!!

 

[mayberrygirl]

I set 33 eggs today:
13 EE
12 EE/NN
7 white eggs (cannot tell which are the EE/Minorca and which are the EE/Ancona)
1 Speckled Sussex

 

[wholewheatchicken]

How many times have you hatched in the past and what kind of incubator are you using?

 

[mayberrygirl]

I have hatched several clutches, but not for at least a year. I have hatched in a hovabator, a styrofoam cooler and this time I built a cooler bator with a nice plastic cooler. I can get up to 34 eggs in my homemade auto turner.

 

[NancyP1]

Hi, I set 35 this am. Not sure of the breed, just some eggs from my small flock. I am using a LG with no fan. I also have 30 in another LG using that as a hatcher. Trying ChooksChics cheat sheet. Hoping for the best.

 

[wholewheatchicken]

I tried the Bill Worrell dry hatch method my first two times and it was too dry. This time I have three systems going on. First, I researched more and decided to up my humidity to 50%. Second, I bought a food scale and weighed all the eggs and will do so weeks 1, 2, 3 and attempt to lose between 12 - 14% weight. Three, I have a broody hen and today marked the end of one week so I marked the air cells on her eggs and took out an egg I did not want to hatch and marked it roughly the same size and will do this on weeks 2 and 3. Surely with all this "scientific" planning going on I will at least have a better hatch rate. Currently my stats are: 1:16 and 0:12. Won't take much to give myself a boost

 

[Frost Homestead]

I set 26 eggs at about noon 3/5. 13 or so from my Ameraucanas and 13 from my EE.

I'm using a Brinsea ECO 20 with humidity at 30%. This is my first hatch, but a friend has hatched some of my eggs before, she used a Little Giant and only about 50% of the eggs hatched, there were some temp. spikes and I dont think she was monitoring the humidity at all. I hope to get a higher hatch rate, so far so good!

I thought ideally the humidity should be around 30% up until lockdown and then it should be raised to 70%?

 

[Cattitude]

I set eggs on Sunday the 4th: 6 Black Rosecombs and 3 Easter Eggers. I'm setting eggs again tomorrow, the 7th: 6 Blue Ameraucana bantams, 6-8 Black Rosecombs (depends on what the girls accomplish today), some of my project Silkie X (blue & green egg Silkies), and several EEs. I'm going to have chicks up to my ears, but that's okay... I'm going to hang a sign and see if I can sell some of them in the couple weeks before Easter.

It's been awfully dry recently for this part of the country, so I've been checking my incubators pretty often. I'm trying to keep the humidity around 30%. Most of the first batch of eggs (barnyard mix from my mom's flock, and not very well treated before I got them) are developing and moving around vigorously. I candled yesterday and discarded several clear eggs. I'm hoping to get a good hatch rate from the ones still in the incubator.

My sister bought a HovaBator styro and she's going to try hatching. I see already that there will be another hatchaholic before long!

 

[wholewheatchicken]

Good luck to everyone

I'm hoping to not go too far the other way and drown the chicks this time. I am trying several new ideas, including buying a scale and weighing the eggs. My humidity was a little high overnight, but I figured since it's just the first 12 hours that it may not have much effect on them. I thought this time I would try to keep the humidity around 50% and I have three vents open. What humidity are others using?

 

[mayberrygirl]

Right now it is at 37%