Should I be worried?

[spikennipper]

Sorry to hear about your hatch, what type of incubator are you using? it may be that rather than the roos, going down to 80 doesn't sound great, was it in a cold room? large fluctuations in temp and humidity will also kill chicks, how many eggs did you start off with?

 

[andieschicks]

It's a home made incubator (project for an internship to make a home made incubator and have successful hatches). I'll post pics and ask how to improve it later.

I pulled 9, only 3 were fertile. The other 2 look like they died when there was a power outage due to the state the embryos were in. (it also could have been bacterial... it smelled realllllly foul and there was this gunky residue all over the inside of the egg that looked like bacteria growth not decay from a dead chick.) It isn't in a cold room, it's in a closet that is usually really warm (warmest one in the house) and usually away from drafts. Only if the whole house is drafty will the closet be drafty and I drape a blanket over the incubator when that happens. Just it's an old house and well the old house couldn't keep the cold out when it was snowing. That was the first temp fluctuation I had had really. I do know the humidity was pretty constant and didn't get too high (it was really humid when reaching in but not like reaching into a sauna or pool. I'm getting something to read humidity next pay day so I don't have to guess.)

I'm pretty sure the snow and its dry air is the straw that broke the camels back. When it started snowing I was having huge issues with the humidity, it was like it was sucking the moisture right out of the incubator. I had to put damp cardboard and paper towels in to keep the humidity up, just the paper towels did almost nothing. I didn't let it fluctuate much and was keeping a close eye on it but the dry air just made it too hard for the incubator to keep humid constantly. I bet if the incubator is in a more humid room I would have less issues with it.

 

[chickenlver2013]

Update. It's hatch day! I got one already hatched and four that has pipped.

 

[andieschicks]

Lol forgot to congratulate you chickenlver2013.

Now my update, lol, took FOREVER, like 5 more attempts, and my father-in-law buying me an incubator for my b-day but 9 out of 11 out so far XD XD XD XD XD XD ^_^ Thanks everyone!!!!

 

[chickenlver2013]

Lol forgot to congratulate you chickenlver2013.

Now my update, lol, took FOREVER, like 5 more attempts, and my father-in-law buying me an incubator for my b-day but 9 out of 11 out so far XD XD XD XD XD XD ^_^ Thanks everyone!!!!

Practice makes perfect. Congrats.