The 7th Annual BYC Easter Hatch-A-Long!

[Sally Sunshine]

Quote:

Quote: awesome!!

So this is the incubator but I don't know what temp I should do for twelve eggs or how I should position them

little end down in the turner
your own eggs or shipped?
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/hatching-eggs-101

assuming it has a fan?
you will need to purchase one or two extra thermometers see link below, never depend on the thermo/hygros that come with the unit

Thermo/hygro suggestions post #13998
Calibration is a MUST:
WHY YOU SHOULD CALIBRATE and link to HOW: post #545 also see calibration in Hatching Eggs 101 TEMPS SECTION

ALWAYS run your bator a few days first for temp swings post #9129

Incubators with fans and without fans need to run at DIFFERENT TEMPS! post #31175

HUMIDITY Humidity is NOT a set number!
Its a tool to get the correct weight loss in the egg! post #8924 see Hatching Eggs 101
Trick to raising humidity in egg trays by adding small containers to egg slot! post #42512

HOW TO CANDLE EGGS post #40826

UPDATE:​

I have pulled extremely helpful NOTES, LINKS &​

Informational Post Links from the Incubation w/ Friends thread​

for EVERYONE'S convenience and will continue to put them HERE:​

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/incubating-w-friends-helpful-notes-links-informational-post-links
​

 

[generaldsherman]

So this is the incubator but I don't know what temp I should do for twelve eggs or how I should position them

Without Fan: 101 and switch the eggs around in the incubator to correct for warm spots.

With fan: 99.5 degrees and don't have to switch around.

Also, if there's no fan I've got a CPU fan I wired up for an incubator I never built-same thing as incubator fan but free. If you want it I can mail it to you. Just attach it to the roof underneath a vent.

 

[ronott1]

Alright guys, I need some help. The eggs have arrived and... not gonna lie. After the last two batches of eggs that I hatched, I thought I knew what I was looking at when candling. But apparently I don't.

I'm assessing the quality of the air cells. Almost every single one of these eggs has a loose air bubble that moves when I rotate the egg. This is a rolling air cell, correct? It's just that, in some of the eggs, there's a darker area that doesn't move when you rotate the egg and, even though the air bubble wants to roll around freely, it won't go past that dark area. And some of those dark areas look like the saddle shaped air cells in Sally Sunshine's earlier post about shipped eggs. So is that little bubble the air cell, or is it that whole dark area in general? I can try to take pictures if that will help. I just wanted to try the method of outlining the air cells, but I'm not sure what I should outline. Or should I wait to do that until lockdown?

Second, one of the eggs is cracked. Not broken cracked, but definitely has a visual starbust and long hairline cracks coming from it. I've heard you can use candle wax to repair eggs like this, any advice?

Third, a second egg has what looks like cracks, but they're on the inside of the shell. From the outside it looks like a normal egg, but when candled, there's a small starburst and cracks coming from it. Haven't seen anything like that before so not sure if I should do anything about it.

Now, assuming the moving air bubbles are the air cells, I'm going to say they're just about all loose and rolling. I haven't dealt with this before, all of the eggs I hatched in my last two batches never had a freely moving air bubble, so here comes the doubt about me being able to successfully hatch these guys.

I guess I'll let them settle for the few days and set them on Thursday. Sally Sunshine's post says not to turn on the turner for at least 3 days after I start incubating them with loose air cells. Does this still apply if I let them settle for almost 3 days before starting to incubate? Does the air cell eventually settle into place and stop moving? Or will it now be loose until the developing chick essentially forces it to stay near the top of the egg?

It sounds like you have both detached and scrambled air cells. The bubbles will become one air cell. Sometimes the detached air cell will stabilize and that is why you let those rest. It is better to start incubating eggs like that--there is a trade off between age and shipping stress. Eggs that are stressed in shipping will use a lot of energy to heal which takes away from the time before setting. Usually with shipped eggs you want to set them before they are 5 days old for the best chance at hatching instead of the two weeks for not shipped eggs.

You can seal up the cracks with finger nail polish, candle wax and some use glue.

 

[cree57i]

You mean to say you only put 24 eggs in each of your Octo 20's?

Am I the only one who plays the Egg Jigsaw Puzzle Game to see if I can fit just one more egg into the basket???

I have to hand turn the incubators because they are too heavy for the auto-turners and it may break the motor arm (been there, done that, more times than I care to admit!

). This is just one of my Brinseas currently - except for a little variation in the colors, they both look the same

, plus eggs in the coolerbator and as of last night, under a broody Svarthöna, too!

I tried to follow your example (bad or good example IDK), last hatch and got it so full I burst one. Made a mess. I just don't have your stacking talent. Very impressive!

I most certainly would forget to turn if I was doing it by hand. I just messed up putting eggs on lock down and didn't go all the way thru the menu to SAVE. Went to check on them 8 HOURS later and the humidity was 28%. I may not have enough brain cells left to run an incubator.

Would someone be able to tell me at what point in the hatch can curled toes/ crooked toes be caused by incubator mess ups?

I hope at lockdown is too late. The eggs are still moving anyway.

 

[KYTinpusher]

I most certainly would forget to turn if I was doing it by hand. I just messed up putting eggs on lock down and didn't go all the way thru the menu to SAVE. Went to check on them 8 HOURS later and the humidity was 28%. I may not have enough brain cells left to run an incubator.

Would someone be able to tell me at what point in the hatch can curled toes/ crooked toes be caused by incubator mess ups?

I hope at lockdown is too late. The eggs are still moving anyway.

I am sure the first 8 hours of lockdown at 28% won't hurt them. I often don't put my eggs in lockdown until day 19 or even 20, depending on development, and don't get curled/crooked toes. I do dry incubation, so the humidity is usually high 20's to low 30's until lockdown.

 

[Chickenluver106]

Without Fan: 101 and switch the eggs around in the incubator to correct for warm spots.

With fan: 99.5 degrees and don't have to switch around.

Also, if there's no fan I've got a CPU fan I wired up for an incubator I never built-same thing as incubator fan but free. If you want it I can mail it to you.  Just attach it to the roof underneath a vent.

Hey that would be great how much and I will need instructions or something for atachting and working it

 

[lacymorgan]

well getting ready shipped Isbar eggs today for one of our members to hatch for this. I will be hatching or rather setting 8dz eggs will post what the breeds and how many when I know for sure on the 5th

 

[Chickenluver106]

I will be setting 18

 

[littlenessie]

I'm in! I love hatchalongs

 

[Chickenluver106]

I know they are the best