I just received my shipped eggs and waiting for another dozen due to arrive tomorrow. So I just want to make sure of the steps here. After I let the eggs rest appropriately and stick them in the bator to start incubating. How full should I fill the reservoir? I have a Brinsea Eco 20. I read some people go 1/2 on one reservoir and when you go into lockdown fill both. I have a cheap hygrometer I bought off amazon http://www.amazon.com/Exo-Terra-Dig...KWYW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1317095045&sr=8-2. This should give me an idea of the relative humidity. Basically the question is, how much water should I put in there? This is the first time incubating and I don't want to screw it up. Thanks in advance, Russell
I am not familiar with the model incubator you mentioned. However, you are aiming for about 40% humidity for the first few days at least. So you can try to get close to that before you get the eggs in. Put in the amount the instructions say and then you can see where the humidity goes. What is your room humidity at the moment? THat also plays into how much water you need in the reservoirs (if any) It is always best to run the incubator for at least 12 hours before placing the eggs inside so you can deal with any temperature or humidity issues before you have eggs in there. I know there are plenty folks on the forum who will be able to help you with more specific details... but you could get it going and at least know the 'bator is getting ready for the eggs while you are figuring out the details. Good luck with your hatch!
I just read Pete55 post about this subject. It made it a lot clearer to me. My room humidity is curretly 38% according to the hygrometer. Which is about right according to the weather. I will have to play around with the reservoirs and air vent to acheive the proper humidity. Reminds me of adjusting the vents on my smoker. Ha ha. This is a lot like cooking it seems. Thank you
I have 2 of the same incubator- they work GREAT. I don't use a hygrometer, so my advice is just going to be based on my own experience. I fill each trough halfway for days 1-19 and leave the vent half open. On days 20 - 21, I close the vent down to 1/3 open and fill both troughs almost all of the way. My house is a bit drier than most because we use a woodstove to heat it, but it certainly hasn't negatively affected my luck hatching with the Brinsea. Good luck with your eggs!
Humidity is adjusted by changing the surface area of the water, not the actual amount of water. So if you're putting water in one trough, it won't matter if you fill it a quarter full or a half full or three quarters full. Because the surface area stays the same, the rate of evaporation stays the same. Brinsea's own advice says to use one trough for the first 18 days, then to use them both for lockdown. Careful not to over fill them though, or it'll be sloshing about the bottom of the bator when you turn it. And yes, I AM speaking from experience here. LOL! Be wary of closing air vents to raise humidity. Oxygen is every bit as important as humidity to a developing embryo, and in the last third of the incubation, the embryo needs more oxygen than it did during the first two thirds. Normal advice is to open your air vents fully for lockdown to ensure maximum oxygen is available to the embryos. Good luck!
Hi there i incubate with the brinsea eco 20, i fill 1 reservoir for the 1st 18 days and top it up every 3rd day or so and for the last 3 days in lockdown i fill both reservoirs and put a wet cloth in the bottom to achieve my 70% humidity. With out the wet cloth i only seem to reach 60% humidity. I also keep the vent open at least half way as that is what brinsea recommend with this model. Hope this helps and good luck with your hatch
Here is a great link on calibrating a hygrometer. http://exoticpets.about.com/od/herpresources/ss/hygrometer.htm
