The Moonshiner's Leghorns

[HappyClucker7]

I just read through this whole thread. It took a while, but it was totally worth it. Your leghorns are beautiful @The Moonshiner! I've never been too interested in leghorns, but now I really want one. The Exchequer are gorgeous.

 

[The Moonshiner]

Want me to put him back in line for you @MIAMI LEGHORN?

Well that would be appropriate since youre the one that got me out of line.

 

[The Moonshiner]

I just read through this whole thread. It took a while, but it was totally worth it. Your leghorns are beautiful @The Moonshiner! I've never been too interested in leghorns, but now I really want one. The Exchequer are gorgeous.

Thank you and huge thanks for reading through the whole thread. Thats crazy for someone that wasn't really a leghorn fan. Took about 2 hours huh?
Thanks again and thanks for the 100+ likes.

 

[The Moonshiner]

@MIAMI LEGHORN
Back when I showed the rule of thumb was 1 year old. Which just happened to be the age limit to go from cockerel/pullet to hen/cock.
What I do know is start hatching in May and continue till around Sept or Oct. If is see something I don't want to breed they get the boot. Everything is evaluated the next April or May. So from 6 months to a year old.
I'll be honest though there's times I know as soon as one hatches I'll be using it. Thats when I have a project that has the odds against me. Sometimes I just have to use any I get and worry about improving the following year.
With others that I hatch a lot of and can be picky I usually know with the girls by 6 months and the boys by 9 months.

 

[The Moonshiner]

Ok so I'm building an incubator out of a small stand up Pepsi cooler. It has a false top area and a false side. Theres a fan in the top that sucks air from the bottom into the false top then into the false side. Theres a second fan at the bottom of the false side that pulls the air down then out across a heating element and water tray to then be pulled back up by the top fan.
I'm gonna put wire shelves and use hoverbator turners.
Hopefully youre following the design. Anyways my question is wheres the best place to put the hoverbator wafer style thermostat?
Space wise the best option is the bottom area. Second option is the top. Is it best to be close to the heat source at the bottom or the top away from being too close to the heat source.
Any thoughts? Anyone?

 

[Miami Leghorn]

Ok so I'm building an incubator out of a small stand up Pepsi cooler. It has a false top area and a false side. Theres a fan in the top that sucks air from the bottom into the false top then into the false side. Theres a second fan at the bottom of the false side that pulls the air down then out across a heating element and water tray to then be pulled back up by the top fan.
I'm gonna put wire shelves and use hoverbator turners.
Hopefully youre following the design. Anyways my question is wheres the best place to put the hoverbator wafer style thermostat?
Space wise the best option is the bottom area. Second option is the top. Is it best to be close to the heat source at the bottom or the top away from being too close to the heat source.
Any thoughts? Anyone?

Pictures...

 

[Miami Leghorn]

Shiner,
I would try to put multiple wafers in there to get multiple readings to determine where your weak spots,and where your hot spots are. I don't know if that's possible for you,but such a huge surface area I would not take any chances. I don't know I would do various dry runs with various thermometer placements- function test them- that way you can probably figure out where to best place the wafer. What are you going to do about controlling humidty?
I would search designs of known good large incubators and follow their lead.Although I suspect that you've already done your homework.

 

[ColtHandorf]

@Faraday40 might be able to chime in. Her so built a cooler incubator (on a smaller scale). Perhaps she has some insight for optimal placement.

 

[The Moonshiner]

Shiner,
I would try to put multiple wafers in there to get multiple readings to determine where your weak spots,and where your hot spots are. I don't know if that's possible for you,but such a huge surface area I would not take any chances. I don't know I would do various dry runs with various thermometer placements- function test them- that way you can probably figure out where to best place the wafer. What are you going to do about controlling humidty?
I would search designs of known good large incubators and follow their lead.Although I suspect that you've already done your homework.

No I haven't researched. Lol I hate researching and reading in general. Now if someone had a good picture book id been all over it.
I had an old sportsman way back in the day and built a rip off of it once before to.
That's about all I know. This design is just winging it with what ran through my head and mostly trying to work with the cooler.
I'm not having any humidity control just using a pan of water and adding when it gets low.
My concern is even heat from top to bottom. The egg section part is about 17" x 18" and 35" top to bottom. Should have 6 or 7 shelves with turners so even heat through all those is probably gonna be an issue. IDK?
Just looking at a starting place for thermostat to get it wrapped up to get to the testing stage.

 

[Faraday40]

@Faraday40 might be able to chime in. Her so built a cooler incubator (on a smaller scale). Perhaps she has some insight for optimal placement.

Sorry. I don't think I can be of much help.

Ours was built by a 10 yr old, so it had to be simple. He bought a kit from incubator warehouse. Just drilled some holes and plugged it in. The biggest challenge was making a viewing window which required an adult to cut a rectangle in the lid. (He used duct tape & made a double pane plexiglass window.)

Since I'm a proud mama, I'll share my pics.

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There was a detailed article here about a cabinet incubator build. It had many great ideas.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...d-test-run-ready-set-go.861788/#post-12991035