The Moonshiner's Bootleg Incubator Reviews And Discussions

[The Moonshiner]

Ordered, I'll let yall know if it does everything it claims!!

 

[Hedgeland Farms]

View attachment 3763072

..tis the face I expected

 

[Egg Snatcher]

Here’s my review on my incubators

First up my 32 egg incubator.
Pros
-Keeps temp and humidity good as long as it has a light blanket on top.
See through lid
-Can actually fit 50 eggs if I stack eggs. (Can post a pic of that if anyone wants to see)
-Don’t have to open lid to add water
-Aromatic turner
Mid
-66% hatch rate
-Beeps when it need water
Cons
-The tray for the chicks to hatch on doesn’t reach any of the four walls, it leaves a 1/2 in - 1 in gap around. Chicks fall down under the great and some drowned in the water tray. I had to make a border out of cardboard so the chicks wouldn’t fall underneath.
-The screen that tells you the temp(in Celsius), humidity, day, when it will turn, and to tell u if the candling light is on, the blue screen it’s very bright when it’s in your room while your trying to sleep. The words also don’t always work.
-The great holes are a little to big for bantams. Some of my chicks get their legs stuck. Have to lay paper towels on the great so their legs don’t get stuck.
-Very had to clean
-Have to tape one side of the lid down so it will hold temp and humidity, had to start doing this last year after I used it all year. Have had this incubator for 5 years
- this incubator has candleing lights in each of the egg holders but you can’t see in side the eggs even though it a very bright light, maybe it’s just cause I use bantam eggs. I like to hand candle me my eggs anyway.
-kinda loud humming noise all the time
Over all it was a good idea but bad engineering.

Second, my 42 little giant incubator.
Pros
-keeps temp and humidity
- aromatic turner
-hatching great is on the bottom of the incubator and bantams can’t get their legs stuck in the holes.

Mid
- have to open lid to add water
- can get humidity above 55% when chicks are hatching
Cons
- 0% hatch rate. I’ve had this Incubator sense I was little. I know it did hatch chicks at one time. I’ve had it for about 12 years.
- I have more chicks that form their organs on the out side over my other incubator or under a hen.
- can get a few chicks all the way to piping then they die.
-needs two pug ins (one for motor, on for turner)

I’ve never used this 42 egg still air incubator before. If anyone knows the best way to use it please share. I’m testing it out this weekend for the BYC hatch along. I don’t even know if mine holds temp or humidity, found it in an old building. I do know that it does turn on.

Over all I like broody hens better but I’ll take my plastic incubator anyday over my little giant.

In the future I’d like to make my own incubator out of a mini fridge or get a large incubator that can incubator/hatch 300+ chicks/or other birds.

 

[The Moonshiner]

That one you're about to use is a hovabator. I've got like 5 of them. Love them and have used them for years and years.
Is yours exactly like the one in the pic? Wafer thermostat? I'm not a fan of the newer electronic thermostat models.
BTW if you still have your Little Giant turner it will work in the hovabator.

 

[Egg Snatcher]

That one you're about to use is a hovabator. I've got like 5 of them. Love them and have used them for years and years.
Is yours exactly like the one in the pic? Wafer thermostat? I'm not a fan of the newer electronic thermostat models.
BTW if you still have your Little Giant turner it will work in the hovabator.

Ill get a pic of it. i do still haveall of my Little Giant

 

[The Moonshiner]

Ill get a pic of it. i do still haveall of my Little Giant

Ya then you can use that turner. I would only put 41 eggs in it unless you have a smallish one to put in the corner by the motor. I've had eggs bump against the motor and crack.
The hovabators have always been plug and play for me. Mostly because they've worked that well and somewhat because I hatched so much I didn't make much effort to try to keep everything perfect.
I probably averaged 80% to 85% hatch rate without ever using any gauges, candling or adding water until lockdown.
The wafer thermostat is very reliable once you get it dialed in. It takes a small bit of turn at a time. Biggest mistake I've seen people make is continuing to jack with it while incubating.
They see it a tad low or high and make a half turn then it gets way off and it's just a continuing effort back and forth.
Run it for a day adjusting it then another day checking it. Once I've got mine where I wanted it it's held steady all season and into the next.
Should have 2 red plugs. Supposed to keep one in and one out during incubating then remove the second one for lockdown. I just run mine all the time with them both out. Mostly cause I've always lost them.
No help with how much water to use because your everyday humidity is probably different then mine. There's a few different channels you can fill so you'll just have to test and see before you set eggs.
Also does it have a fan or no?

 

[Egg Snatcher]

Ya then you can use that turner. I would only put 41 eggs in it unless you have a smallish one to put in the corner by the motor. I've had eggs bump against the motor and crack.
The hovabators have always been plug and play for me. Mostly because they've worked that well and somewhat because I hatched so much I didn't make much effort to try to keep everything perfect.
I probably averaged 80% to 85% hatch rate without ever using any gauges, candling or adding water until lockdown.
The wafer thermostat is very reliable once you get it dialed in. It takes a small bit of turn at a time. Biggest mistake I've seen people make is continuing to jack with it while incubating.
They see it a tad low or high and make a half turn then it gets way off and it's just a continuing effort back and forth.
Run it for a day adjusting it then another day checking it. Once I've got mine where I wanted it it's held steady all season and into the next.
Should have 2 red plugs. Supposed to keep one in and one out during incubating then remove the second one for lockdown. I just run mine all the time with them both out. Mostly cause I've always lost them.
No help with how much water to use because your everyday humidity is probably different then mine. There's a few different channels you can fill so you'll just have to test and see before you set eggs.
Also does it have a fan or no?

Thanks for the info. For being in a shed for 15+ years it looks pretty good, little mouse damage here and there. Hopefully it’ll be a good hatcher. I’ll have to steal my plugs from my giant. Mine has a plastic water try under the chicken wire. My giant has foam channels for water.
I don’t think if has a fan. (Turners don’t work right now, I did get them new motors, but I’m gonna just use my giants turners)

 

[The Moonshiner]

Mouse damage ya I had that happen once.
Worse though, one time I stored one on a shelf in the garage. The garage I kept my tools in and worked from so frequently leaving the door open.
Ya damn chickens found it and ate half of it. True story.

I've found they do a little better with a fan. They have the mounting holes but instead of buying one of their fans I bought some small ones of Amazon on the cheap and used. Just had to get one with the holes matching the incubators holes. And ya seperate plug so need 3 plug ins to run it with a turner. Ridiculous

 

[Egg Snatcher]

Mouse damage ya I had that happen once.
Worse though, one time I stored one on a shelf in the garage. The garage I kept my tools in and worked from so frequently leaving the door open.
Ya damn chickens found it and ate half of it. True story.

I've found they do a little better with a fan. They have the mounting holes but instead of buying one of their fans I bought some small ones of Amazon on the cheap and used. Just had to get one with the holes matching the incubators holes. And ya seperate plug so need 3 plug ins to run it with a turner. Ridiculous

Can’t believe your chickens at your incubator!

I may look into a battery fan on amazon if mine incubator even hatches anything

 

[Egg Snatcher]

I definitely like that my plastic incubator is just one plug in.