Test run for new bator?

[Solsken Farm]

I just got a new incubator. This is my first shot at hatching. I am going on vacation and when I return, beautiful eggs will be arriving from some wonderful stock.

I will have a few days after I get home to fiddle with the incubator and turner.

Have you all given yours a test run? What do you do?

Thanks!

 

[MissPrissy]

Plug it in and set up to work exactly as if you are putting eggs in. Put in your thermometer and hydrometer. Let it run for a few days and just monitor how it works.

Enjoy your vacation.

 

[Solsken Farm]

Thanks Miss Prissy.

Should I clean it or do anything before it's first use? Obviously I will follow the manufacturer's directions, but wondering if anyone does anything else special with a new bator, other than bow respectivefully to it and do a hatch dance.....

 

[speckledhen]

I dont clean brand new ones myself. Well, I've only had one brand new one, but I didnt clean it. Do a test run complete with water in the tray since temps work a bit differently with humidity rather than when you run it dry. Put more than one thermometer in there, too, perhaps three to check accuracy.

 

[Solsken Farm]

Okay, thanks Speckledhen. You and Miss P are really infinite sources of wisdom. Have a great week! I am off on vacation for a week.

 

[Shannon Robinson50]

I just got a new incubator. This is my first shot at hatching. I am going on vacation and when I return, beautiful eggs will be arriving from some wonderful stock.

I will have a few days after I get home to fiddle with the incubator and turner.

Have you all given yours a test run? What do you do?

Thanks!

I run any new incubator, purchased or borrowed, or just not used for a while for 2-3 days to check it’s functioning perfectly before the eggs arrive, whether from the mail or the coop.
we just bought a new one that arrived yesterday. We chose the brinsea ovation 56 ex. The eggs ship out today from the supplier, so we set it up immediately. We tested the hatch humidity first. It maintained perfectly. Check. Now testing humidity with both water troughs filled. check for60% humidity. Now we know the baseline humidities. next, we will remove water from one and see where the humidity settles, as well as making Sure that the humidity water pump works well. 2 thermometers show the same temp. check. The turning mechanism gives off its little trill every45 minutes and it tilts the egg trays. Check. Running it also got rid of that new appliance smell. This might seem overkill to many, but the shipping cost of mail order eggs was enough for me to see the arriving eggs as precious. This is all for my daughter‘s animal care course, so I am trying to teach her how to do your best to ensure healthy birds. Also, if I bothered to buy it, doesn’t it make sense to get any possible problems out of the way prior to setting the eggs?

 

[Mellowmalt]

most incubators need 24 hours to heat up properly first. After that you check temps for 24 hours to make sure they stay stable, then you try to simulate different humidities, for the last 3 days you need to try to get humidity up to 65-75% before this you set it to your preferred level (as this varies by as much as 40% from person to person I cannot give a figure for this).

So see how much you need to fill your incubator, you might have to add a sponge to the water tray as a sponge increases the surface area of evaporation to reach the highest level.

Once you have all that figured out you should be good to go. Just be aware the temp and humidity might change a little once eggs have been added so monitor it for another 6 hours after adding the eggs.