Should I use a cool mist or warm mist humidifier in my DIY incubator?

[temple1612]

I am making a DIY incubator out of an old refrigerator, but I am not sure if I should use a cool mist or warm mist humidifier. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

 

[pineapple416]

I would think warm mist so you don't cool the eggs down too much but I'm not really an incubating expert. Hopefully someone else will comment that has more knowledge in this subject. I have never heard of making an incubator out of an old refrigerator but it sound like a great idea. Good luck hope this helps a little.

 

[Smuvers Farm]

Tagging @casportpony @Pyxis @SIMZ

 

[Pyxis]

Hi! Is there a reason you're using a humidifier and not just a container of water? I would really avoid using any kind of misting device if possible because if the mist lands on the eggs and then evaporates off, it removes moisture from the egg. Sounds counter-intuitive but misting is a common practice for duck and goose eggs to get them to lose moisture.

 

[temple1612]

Hi! Is there a reason you're using a humidifier and not just a container of water? I would really avoid using any kind of misting device if possible because if the mist lands on the eggs and then evaporates off, it removes moisture from the egg. Sounds counter-intuitive but misting is a common practice for duck and goose eggs to get them to lose moisture.

With a pan of water you can't really control the humidity levels. I am wiring the humidifier to a humidistat so it will automatically turn on when the level drops too low and turns off when it gets too high. My issue now is that I have a warm one and I have it set to stay within 50-51% humidity, but after the humidifier shuts off the level still rises to around 60%. I am thinking it is because the heat from the warm humidifier causes humidity to still be created so I am wondering if a cool one would stop making humidity faster.

 

[temple1612]

Hi! Is there a reason you're using a humidifier and not just a container of water? I would really avoid using any kind of misting device if possible because if the mist lands on the eggs and then evaporates off, it removes moisture from the egg. Sounds counter-intuitive but misting is a common practice for duck and goose eggs to get them to lose moisture.

Also, the humidifier is at least a foot away from any egg so it will dissipate before getting to any eggs.

 

[Pyxis]

With a pan of water you can't really control the humidity levels. I am wiring the humidifier to a humidistat so it will automatically turn on when the level drops too low and turns off when it gets too high. My issue now is that I have a warm one and I have it set to stay within 50-51% humidity, but after the humidifier shuts off the level still rises to around 60%. I am thinking it is because the heat from the warm humidifier causes humidity to still be created so I am wondering if a cool one would stop making humidity faster.

Humidity is controlled by the size of the surface area of water in the incubator, so you can control it with a pan of water by controlling the surface area. That may mean using multiple different sized containers, but it can be done. However, you can't really automate that, so you would need to get in there to fill up the water as necessary.

A cool mist wouldn't make the humidity lower any faster, since it's the surface area of the water that matters, not the temperature. Why it keeps going up even after the humidifier stops is that the water has settled onto a larger surface area of the incubator, thus bringing the humidity up. So doing a cool mist wouldn't do much except to lower the temperature in your incubator. If you do go with the humidifier, go with the warm mist, and try to avoid any water getting on the eggs.

 

[HatchCraft]

If the fridge is large enough place the water container inside an the water will be warmed by the incubator.Use a fogger controlled by the humidistat. I if the cabinet is to small you can use an external container connected to the incubator. I have seen this on commercial unit but have not tried it myself.

 

[Jude Gadimoh]

With a pan of water you can't really control the humidity levels. I am wiring the humidifier to a humidistat so it will automatically turn on when the level drops too low and turns off when it gets too high. My issue now is that I have a warm one and I have it set to stay within 50-51% humidity, but after the humidifier shuts off the level still rises to around 60%. I am thinking it is because the heat from the warm humidifier causes humidity to still be created so I am wondering if a cool one would stop making humidity faster.

Connect your humidifier to the humidity controller(humidistat) and also connect the humidity controller to an outlet fan. That way, you can reduce the humidity when the heat in the humidifier is still generating moisture.