The 5th Annual BYC Easter Hatch-a-long!

[jbenson]

I have a forced air Farm Innovations 'bator and it worked great for me 4 hatches last year. This first hatch this year, not so much (for a variety of reasons, but I think the thermometer i am using is off). I know there are a few things I need to do differently for my next hatch (going in Thursday), first off is go back to locating it in the "office" and not in the kitchen. I think the ambient temp in the kitchen is too variable and the hubby convinced me to put it near a window (yeah, I should know better). I am thinking I want to get a digital thermometer with a probe instead of using a flat thermo on top of the eggs. If I do this, anyone tell me where to position the probe? I might get one with hygro as well.

 

[UtterOblivion]

I am up for this! My eggs will be Seramas. I hope to have about 2 dozen eggs to put in my home-made incubator. Whoo-hoo

I can't wait to see how many chicks this hatch-a-long has!

 

[mlm Mike]

I'm in!

 

[UtterOblivion]

I tried to use a flat thermometer on the eggs my first time hatching...It did not have accurate temps of the air. I switched to a digital indoor/outdoor one. I put the little sensor(at the end of the long wire) in the middle of the incubator on the floor. I put the other part on top of the incubator where I could read it easily. I ended up putting a second (cheap) digital inside so I could make sure they were reading the same. I always put the thermostat at the same level as the eggs. No sense in reading the temps in places the eggs aren't. Hope this helps.

 

[ChickenFox]

I tried to use a flat thermometer on the eggs my first time hatching...It did not have accurate temps of the air. I switched to a digital indoor/outdoor one. I put the little sensor(at the end of the long wire) in the middle of the incubator on the floor. I put the other part on top of the incubator where I could read it easily. I ended up putting a second (cheap) digital inside so I could make sure they were reading the same. I always put the thermostat at the same level as the eggs. No sense in reading the temps in places the eggs aren't. Hope this helps.

I'm glad someone on here has used one before. I have 4 thermometers inside to check the temp. 3 are within 1 degree of each other and the other is under by 4 degrees. That might explain why my hatches in my homemade bator last year were so bad as that's the thermometer I used.

. Any who one of the thermometers is a meat thermometer that I have calibrated and stuck down through a vent hole. The end sits just even with the turner and it reads right in the middle of the 98 and 100 mark. The flat one that came with the incubator reads 99.5 and the digital reads 100. Even the one on top of the bator reads 101 which surprised me. I thought it would be way more off than that. Still everything seems to be going good so far. I should have eggs arriving tomorrow that I'll let set for 8 hours then put in.

Hope everything goes good. I'm not so worried about humidity this time around. The digital says it's about 35% right now so I'm thinking I'll just dry hatch and watch the air cells.

 

[Arielle]

Quote: LOL Nice try!! Yummy CHicken Breast is my pick.

 

[roostereggs]

My NYE littles (eighteen 10-weekers) go into a complete hissy fit every night on their 3 roosts vying for the best spot and best buddies to sleep next to. They make happy sounds all day long until evening when it literally takes them 40 minutes to get settled in for the night, squawking and chirping and pecking each others' heads. I have a BEAUTIFUL long pine branch in there, but they all want to get on the skinny 1x2 boards.They flap at each other, fall off, start over, stand ON TOP of each other, walk along 4 birds to get to a certain spot, etc...it is great entertainment for me. Sometimes I even help them get to their favorite spots. Anyway, tonight they were carrying on with their usual shenanigans when one of them jumped over several others to the spot it wanted...then a cracking noise

...
...then a collective THUD as most of them hit the ground.

And then what happens? They ALL look up at me like

Yeah, NOT my fault!

Must be nearing time for freezer camp.

 

[loribeatty]

I'd like to sign up too...I'm in Chilliwack BC, Canada

 

[Cynthia12]

I'd like to sign up too...I'm in Chilliwack BC, Canada

Only two posts..you will have a blast ... trying..to keep up with this thread!!

 

[Cynthia12]

LOL Nice try!! Yummy CHicken Breast is my pick.

You picked already? I was thinking as I read the recipe that something like...Mom's Best Seasoned Chicken.
Yummy sounding for sure. Mayo?