Store your collected eggs between 55 and 65 degrees. They are best if incubated within 7 days. They can still be good for up to three weeks but fertility will diminish as time goes one. Turn the eggs several times a day. I have a book on raising bantams that says to invert the carton completely daily. I don't do that, I just keep them on a tilt and turn morning and night. There are many people who have stored their eggs to be hatched on the kitchen counter and some have stored them in the refrigerator. Stories of folks who have bought organic eggs from the supermarket and hatched some too.
I think the universally recommended way is the first I mentioned, however, I usually try to duplicate the way a hen would do it. She lays eggs for 8 to 12 days, leaves them on the nest in whatever weahter and then finally sets on them Most hen have great hatch rates. With that in mind, I guess there really is no fine science to it.
