Starting to think LG Therm is Wrong..

[Ban seabhag]

First - DON"T PANIC! There are a number of things that make chicks late. I asked this very question and people here have assured me 22-23 days happens, sometimes more. I had a SERAMA hatch on day 22. They are supposed to take 19 days. Alive and well at 1 month. Give it a few days. ( I have to remind myself that the little dudes don't have a calendar in there, I'm the one freaking out looking at it)

 

[MakNat]

I'm going to Walmart and Home Depot this A. M. and getting like 4 different therms and hydgros. Not that it'll help this hatch at all. But for next time! Day 21 will not be officially over till 3;30 this afternoon. I thought for sure something would have happened over night. Like I slept any. When I did I had dreams they were hatching only to wake up dissappointed.. When is it safe to open the bator to see what is going on? Will it be safe to sneak my new meter in there just to see how off everything is. Will it be to late to fix the problem if there is one? My sweet DH thinks I'm panicking.... I just feel like something isn't right. We saw 3 diiferent eggs wobble yest. Then nothing, no sound at all..... Last spring I borrowed my neighbors bator. The same one I just bought brand new. He had a store bought therm in it. Not the one that came with it, but only one. I ran the thing 3 times with pretty good hatch rates... He got half the chicks... So I figured I'd buy my own and start doing it all for us.. Sorry I'm babbleing................. I really stressed out and feel bad.. If the humidity is off are they just in there helpless suffering, when shoud I start helping? Just sit on my hands right.. I'm gonna be so upset if nothing happens...........

 

[The Sheriff]

I predict you will be back soon to report pipping and zipping.

 

[MakNat]

Ok... I'm very bad... And broke the rules. I got a therm/hygro meter. I snuck it in. It said 97... %38 humidity. AUGH..... I did something worse..... really I feel horrible....... Some still are alive.... Some look very young tho. Stupid bator therm said 100 101 this whole time. I still have hope for the remaining. Late hatch. But now HOW do I et the humidity up?????? The chambers are full, two half cup jars of water and 2 soaked paper towels in there.... Do they have a chance??? I feel I really was irresponsible... I thought could trust the equipment sold with the bator...

 

[The Sheriff]

Quote:
I am not understanding. Did you crack the eggs open?

 

[MakNat]

I candled a couple of the questionable ones... They were VERY questionable on day 16..... There were 9. I took then all out and cracked them. 7 were dead at various stages. 2 were still alive

They looked very young... Like maybe only halfway to 2/3 grown. These were all set on Dec. 18th. I guess I should NOT be incubating...... So sad..

 

[The Sheriff]

First of all, don't be so hard on yourself. Their are plenty of us to do that for you.

Many of us have been there, done that. Your temps were low so your eggs did not develop properly and timely. They were not at a normal growth for Day 21 due to low temps. They can also develop deformities if incubated at too low a temp and they can die in the shell. I made the same mistake with my first incubator, a still air LG. I did not crack open the eggs but I had a late hatch rate because i trusted the little thermometer I couldn't even see to read.

Are the two remaining still in the shell or out?

 

[MakNat]

There are 32 in the bator... They all looked good and alive on day 18. The two I was speaching of before are gone..... Sadly. I think all the 32 are ok or at least were 3 days ago , but don't know if or how they'll hatch. I ran the same kind of bator 3 times last spring and summer. Just kept the chambers full of water and had 1 therm in it... No problems, worrys or anything. and about %80 each time. I buy a brand new one and this.... Thanks for listening to me!! It means allot!! Really

 

[The Sheriff]

Then I would just continue on and give them some more time. Put the ones that didn't make in the past and concentrate on the ones you have left. The LGs are notorious for temp problems and your 80% hatches before are great. I gave up on mine after not being able to get a consistent temp. I had three thermometers in there and they were all different. There were hot spots and cooler spots I found by moving the thermometers around. I finally put in a fan but I used a computer fan and it generated too much heat of it's own and stayed at 106. If you decide to add a fan I recommend buying the one designed for the Little Giant. You can buy it here: http://www.flemingoutdoors.com/little-giant--7200-circulated-air-fan.html as well as other places. They are easy to install.

I also cut lengths of sponge to fit in all the trays at the bottom. Then I made a hole in the bottom and pushed some tubing up through it and anchored it into the largest well. I attached a 30 cc syringe to it so that way I could add water without lifting the lid. The magnifying glass was so I could read the stupid little thermometer. See pics:

All that being said, I hated the LG and sold it and bought a Hovabator, hated it and sold it and bought two Brinseas.

Good luck with the rest of your hatch. I'll be watching. Let them decide when they want to come out of the shell.

Mary

 

[MakNat]

Wow Mary, you're so nice. Thank you for the photos and info. In 4 minutes its day 22, so I KNOW I'm beind impatient! I will keep you posted!!!! Thanks so much!