Sportsman GQF Running WAY too hot?

[RememberTheWay]

I plugged it in. I think I feel heat coming from the coils. I'm assuming they don't get red hot. The fan works. The turner works on manual both directional tilts, not sure if that means it works on automatic though. I moved it to the level position to see if it moves on auto. I do hear a clicking (faint) when the turner is on auto. Is that normal?

Closer to the metal bar. I'll take a pic of one of mine tomorrow to give you an idea how close to it they should be as a reference.
Like said one of yours is just a back up so if the first fails the second one will kick off the heat to not overheat the hatch.
If one operates but one doesn't or the one has a too bent of a screw you can run it with just one. You'll just have to leave the nonfunctional one backed way off with any luck.
Just by the picks I can tell you the issue was they weren't adjusted correctly. Now they could also be non-working but honestly that set up usually lasts for years and years and ye

 

[The Moonshiner]

If the turner works on manual it should work on auto. Ya just run it and check the position several times throughout the day to see if it has moved is about all you can do.
I've had that exact model incubator but it's been 20 years since I parted with it so can't remember about the clicking or the wire but I thought I remembered mine got orange if it was dark enough to notice it. Maybe not though.
The thermostats have changed some throughout the years but are basically the same and operate the same. They were so reliable they're also what they put in their styrofoam hovabators until they started switching everything to electronic.
I still have 4 wafer thermostat hovabators and they're what I use in homemade builds because they're simple but reliable.

 

[RememberTheWay]

It should be a little ways away from the bar when off or below temp. The hotter the incubator gets the hotter it causes the wafer to get. That cause the wafer to expand until it then touches the switch. That will turn the heat off then when the wafer cools it shrinks and that causes it to back off the switch until it isn't touching it then the heat comes back on and it repeats the cycle.
You can back it off a bit and turn on the incubator. Watch your thermometer and when it hits say 101° or 102° then turn the screw until it touches it enough to click it and turns the heat off.
Then watch your thermometer and see what the temp is when it clicks back on. Not the temp when it turns on and when it turns off.
Adjust the screw to get both the on and off temp to the range you want.
Make small adjustments when it's close and let it cycle several times and watch thermometer. Once it's where you want it tighten down the wing nut.

Okay- the heat is definitely working and I can get it to switch on and off by moving the wafers . This is EGGciting!!!

I do think that the wafers should be replaced they both look a little warped but so far everything seems good. Not sure how long it takes the turner to make small adjustments. Think it's been 20-30 mins and no noticable movement?

Checklist:

Thermometer hygrometer ✓
Fan ✓
Power ✓
Manual turners ✓
Automatic Turner (juries still out)
Heating Element ✓
Wafers functioning ✓ (but slightly warped and should be replaced)
Wafers able to turn on and off heat ✓✓

I'm absolutely over the moon! Got it at a fabulous price. Pretty sure it could work in the condition it is as is. BUT I want my new baby to have a long life so I am going to do some minor repairs to it definitely. Probably will reseal the door (can't remember what that foam stuff is called) and maybe I will paint the outside. Haven't decided if I am going to put a window on the door or replace with the plexiglass full door yet. But honestly due to the way this built (too deep and tray racks don't move) it makes it a HUGE pain in the rear to properly clean! I can't reach and too many nooks and crannies. Knowing that, I really dont like the idea of hatching it too because of all the dust. Fantastic incubator though! I will stagger hatches through this and move them to my three styrofoam incubators for lockdowns. Which are still a pain to clean but at least accessible. And temps are as important through lockdown as they are for incubation.

Absolutely thrilled. I got it to 101 moved the wafers it turned off. I'm waiting to see when it turns back on now.

Is this proper for the thermometer hygrometer? Right hole? Where should the probe sit? I ran it down the front because there was no hole to drop through inside the cabinet and placed it in the middle shelf area. Is that right or should it be on the bottom?

 

[RememberTheWay]

Here is a short video. It's of the thermometer and I verbally say when it's shutting on and off. Temps seem to be around 100.5 when it shuts off and about 99.5 -99.7 when it shuts off. I'm going to move the probe to the bottom shelf in the back instead of middle front to see if it makes a difference though

edited to add when I moved the probe the temps were too low, like 95.5 so I'm still adjusting. Looking in just now, I think my second wafer is actually completely failed. It doesn't look to be expending and contracting at all like the front one is. I'm going to replace both of them though and probably get a couple more thermometers to put probes at three levels instead of just one.... Do you think I should do that? If they are all different temps how do you work that out?

 

[The Moonshiner]

Idk but it looks like someone built a whole new box for yours. Is the shelf a red painted plywood? If so that's what all of mine was made of.
Sure it makes no difference and from what I see everything internal is the same and set up the same. Just got me thinking when you mentioned the thermometer placement.
Mine had the thermostats in that location with the screws sticking through the side. Also had the manual turner switch on that side and a red light indicating it was running. Mine had a meat probe kind of thermometer also on that side that went through a hole so the probe part was just barely above the self out at the front edge of it.
The problem with cabinet incubators is with size comes an issue of consistent temps throughout. It just usually doesn't happen. With my homemade one I use now I put the same type of meat probe thermometers at different levels to see how much difference the temps were.
Back in the day when I had one like yours what we were told to do is rotate the trays when staggered hatching. Start at the top or bottom then each week when you started a new batch you move the previous trays up or down a shelf.
That way by the time they get through a hatch cycle they've been on each level. That gives them equal time at each temp variation that's going on inside.
If you just set them the whole time on the same shelf then the ones at top would get a tad more heat and could hatch a day or so early while the ones at the bottom a tad less and hatch a tad after 21 days.
In theory it keeps your hatches consistent on when they hatch and gives them an opportunity to be in the different heat zones to average out overall instead of consistent a little high or a little low.
Of course you need it to be in an acceptable range at the top and bottom. Ive hatched for a long long time and accepted it as it is what it is for the longest time. Nature of the beast with a old style cabinet.
I've built some over the years and tried different things. My current one I had hoped to get it more consistent and in the end it was pretty close. My heat source is at the bottom and my temps were just a bit off at the very top. I ended up adding a light fixture in the top and a small wattage bulb. Have to give credit to my boy for the idea and it worked perfectly.
You can chase perfection but I've learned the bigger the incubator the harder the chase to achieve those perfect hatches like possible with the small tabletop incubators.
I feel your pain with the cleaning chore also. Been there done that. Seperate hatcher or hatchers is the way to go. I remember used to try using a shop vac with my cabinet. Pita. Now days every now and again I use a leaf vac and just blow the hell out of the inside of my cabinet. That works a lot better.

 

[RememberTheWay]

Idk but it looks like someone built a whole new box for yours. Is the shelf a red painted plywood? If so that's what all of mine was made of.
Sure it makes no difference and from what I see everything internal is the same and set up the same. Just got me thinking when you mentioned the thermometer placement.
Mine had the thermostats in that location with the screws sticking through the side. Also had the manual turner switch on that side and a red light indicating it was running. Mine had a meat probe kind of thermometer also on that side that went through a hole so the probe part was just barely above the self out at the front edge of it.
The problem with cabinet incubators is with size comes an issue of consistent temps throughout. It just usually doesn't happen. With my homemade one I use now I put the same type of meat probe thermometers at different levels to see how much difference the temps were.
Back in the day when I had one like yours what we were told to do is rotate the trays when staggered hatching. Start at the top or bottom then each week when you started a new batch you move the previous trays up or down a shelf.
That way by the time they get through a hatch cycle they've been on each level. That gives them equal time at each temp variation that's going on inside.
If you just set them the whole time on the same shelf then the ones at top would get a tad more heat and could hatch a day or so early while the ones at the bottom a tad less and hatch a tad after 21 days.
In theory it keeps your hatches consistent on when they hatch and gives them an opportunity to be in the different heat zones to average out overall instead of consistent a little high or a little low.
Of course you need it to be in an acceptable range at the top and bottom. Ive hatched for a long long time and accepted it as it is what it is for the longest time. Nature of the beast with a old style cabinet.
I've built some over the years and tried different things. My current one I had hoped to get it more consistent and in the end it was pretty close. My heat source is at the bottom and my temps were just a bit off at the very top. I ended up adding a light fixture in the top and a small wattage bulb. Have to give credit to my boy for the idea and it worked perfectly.
You can chase perfection but I've learned the bigger the incubator the harder the chase to achieve those perfect hatches like possible with the small tabletop incubators.
I feel your pain with the cleaning chore also. Been there done that. Seperate hatcher or hatchers is the way to go. I remember used to try using a shop vac with my cabinet. Pita. Now days every now and again I use a leaf vac and just blow the hell out of the inside of my cabinet. That works a lot better.

Gotta say- after thoroughly scrubbing the inside of it, I'm certain someone else had been hatching in for a while. The layers of green that rinsed off in my sink rinsing the rag had to of been baby chicken poop residue I don't see Any other explanation for that color. My arms are probably short, being a woman, I would guess maybe it was designed by a longer armed man. If it were up to me I would of probably made it wider instead of deeper and made it to where the racks were either completely removable for cleaning or much eàsier to maneuver around. I cut my knuckles several times attempting to maneuver through the racks and into nooks.

As far as the box- funny thing is the original sticker is on it? But I had thought the exact same thing that maybe someone replaced the cabinet but in my research (haven't seen any photos yet) but I have seen people talk about a VERY old model that actually wasn't painted and was just plywood. I believe the next model that came out was the one that was painted red? Like what you're describing.

I have seen the models that had a hole drilled through for probe placement on the right side of the cabinet, along with the wafer adjustment screws. But there is no such hole on this one. There is a big Hole on the other side which I believe is for the water reservoir (it has a five gallon bucket that sits on top) that goes to a tub that sits on the top shelf with a float valve on it. That is where I have the probe for the digital thermometer pushed through now. Btw- should the reservoir have a lid on it? If so that's an easy enough fix.

If I drill holes into the side for each level just big enough to fit a probe through (like a meat thermometer) will that mess up the ventilation or air flow/temps at all?

The entire cabinet does seem to have some kind of clear finish on it (inside and out) I imagine to keep it together because of the high humidity environment if it wasn't sealed it would surely fall apart pretty quickly. It's plywood of course.

Here's another question - I know hardly anyone ever cleans out the back part (the compartment in the back where the fan and motors are) and if it was used as a hatcher I would think it's probably pretty bad back there which could cause the Incubator to fail eventually. Is there any way to easily access that part of it? So far it's looking like I would have to dissemble the top at the very least. Which, if I'm being honest makes me very nervous to do for fear I will mess up the integrity of the machine. But with this being as old as it is surely it needs to be cleaned back there, right?

Have you ever seen a candler like this? I think that's what it is supposed to be? It came with the Incubator. Looks homemade maybe? But I need to replace the bulb inside it. The plug on it looks just as old as the one on the Incubator so it made me wonder if maybe when GQF started they sent these with the Incubators?

The plug that is in the red extension cord goes to the Incubator. It says "Phillips Industries" on it. I don't think they are called that anymore? The other one is to the "Candler" and has a capital cursive L on it that has a little plug as the tail of the L.

You know- Looking at the cabinet now- the side that the thermometer hole should be on actually looks like maybe it was replaced. Like maybe it got damaged and instead of building an entire cabinet they just swapped wood for this one side? It looks different slightly and has a different finish on it kind of. All of the hardware on it looks right for GQF though

Actually now I'm wondering if Maybe they just resealed the edges? And the wood is all the original wood? That looks to be more plausible actually because the other side (turner switch side) has the same weird finish around the edges. But it also looks like something was taken off of the side that had been there for a while because the wood is two toned. What do you think might of been here? It appears to have once had something screwed in there?

I think maybe someone was preparing to paint it maybe and went around filling holes. There appears to be two places on the side of the wafers that look like holes that were filled? Does either place look right for the thermometer hole? Or did they used to have two one for a hygrometer and one for a thermometer maybe?

The hinges and latches appear to be original. There are some "star" screws (probably not the actual name) screwed into the back panel. Thinking those may not be original? There is also a screw on the door right under the label, maybe they had something hanging from it?

 

[RememberTheWay]

@The Moonshiner Do you have a brand of wafers you prefer? I'm shopping for replacements right now.

What about thermometer/hygrometers?

 

[RememberTheWay]

So I ordered the timer and switch as well as two wafers and new brackets for wafers (GQF said I needed them but I'm not so sure I did now that they are installed ) Anyways. This cabinet is old and I suspect people have done some modifications to it over the years. I am not seeing a hole for a thermometer probe anywhere. Of course I can drill a hole myself but I want to make sure I put it in the right area. I only see a hole for the water tube. Does the thermometer go there? I can't imagine I'm supposed to take the temperature on top although that is what I'm reading? What temp should I start with up top, bc of course the bottom will run much cooler then that. If I put a second and or third probe where should I place those? Just drilled through the main side wall? Or can I place them on the door?


Please help!!!

I'm so ready to start this bad boy up!!!! But don't want to make a mistake in doing so. I'm super nervous to drill a hole in it!!!!!!

 

[The Moonshiner]

Mine had a hole in front of the thermostat adjustment deals on the side. The probe just poked through the hole and on the inside it was up at the top a few inches above the shelf that the water pan sat on.
I don't think it would matter if you poked holes all over the thing for thermometers but with my homemade cabinet I didn't want to do that so I just use the probe thermometers inside it. Mine has a glass door so I just pointed them towards that so I can read the dial through the door.
I wanted to know the temperatures throughout so I put one at the top one at the bottom and then space two more out in between those two.

 

[HatchCraft]

So I ordered the timer and switch as well as two wafers and new brackets for wafers (GQF said I needed them but I'm not so sure I did now that they are installed ) Anyways. This cabinet is old and I suspect people have done some modifications to it over the years. I am not seeing a hole for a thermometer probe anywhere. Of course I can drill a hole myself but I want to make sure I put it in the right area. I only see a hole for the water tube. Does the thermometer go there? I can't imagine I'm supposed to take the temperature on top although that is what I'm reading? What temp should I start with up top, bc of course the bottom will run much cooler then that. If I put a second and or third probe where should I place those? Just drilled through the main side wall? Or can I place them on the door?


Please help!!!

I'm so ready to start this bad boy up!!!! But don't want to make a mistake in doing so. I'm super nervous to drill a hole in it!!!!!!

I'm no expert on the older GQF cabinet incubators, but I recongnize that OSB wood cabinet model circ 1980. It looks original to me. They ran two dial thermometer up top, one was used as an hygrometer and the wick was dipped into the humidity water pan. They run 2 thermostats because the micoswitches tend to stick in the on position when they fail. The newer thermostat switches are more reliable. One thermostat is primary the other a backup set a degree or so hotter. There is usually several degrees difference top to bottom. As far as the thermometer placement, I guess GQF figured it was best to take temp reading at the hottest spot. I glad you rescused the old incubator and are putting it back in use.