The Stealthbator

[Finnie]

So, it's not going too well with the Stealthbator.


They are not tilted at much of an angle, so three times a day when I turn them, I rock them as much as I dare (carefully) and then rotate the trays so the other ends are up.


 

I do not feel rocking the eggs is a good thing and it looks like you have enough room to add extra under the egg cartons to get more angle except for the bottom rack, which could be dropped down on the right side and stabilized so you have more angle. You could take a few minutes and angle all the racks and then pull the egg rack out and turn it and slide it back in. So you are only using this as a incubator---not hatching in it. Are you doing Duck eggs?

I think "rocking" was a poor choice of words on my part. I just try to hold the tray a little more slanted than it is during the turning process. The process is tricky, because the trays are a little wobbly, so lifting them and pulling them free of the shelf has to be done very carefully, and even then the tops of the eggs sometimes bump the next up shelf. Then I put them on the top of the fridge, turn the tray around, and carefully lower it back to its shelf. The only "rocking" is that I just hold them a little more tilted than the angle they sit on on the racks while I am raising them to the top of the fridge and lowering them back. But holding them steady, not rocking back and forth.

I like your idea to angle all the racks. I've been pondering how to do that without making the one on third shelf get too close to the light bulb. I guess it won't hurt the eggs to be out for a little while while I fiddle with the racks. But the garage is dusty from the brooders, so I'll have to arrange some sort of clean space for them to be while I do it.

Yes, only incubating in this, and using my Incuview for the hatcher. No duck eggs, just chickens and turkeys.

 

[PD-Riverman]

The process is tricky, because the trays are a little wobbly, so lifting them and pulling them free of the shelf has to be done very carefully,

I like your idea to angle all the racks. I've been pondering how to do that without making the one on third shelf get too close to the light bulb. I guess it won't hurt the eggs to be out for a little while while I fiddle with the racks. But the garage is dusty from the brooders, so I'll have to arrange some sort of clean space for them to be while I do it.

Go to walmarts. dollar tree etc and get 3 cooling wire racks for baking, get as big as you can but make sure they will fit on the shelves---place the "wobbly" cartons on these cooling racks-----problem taken care of. You Turn the cooling racks upside down so the eggs/carton does not slide off or attach them.

Yea Make sure the shop is real clean before starting---because we for sure would not want to do anything like the free-range broodies and get a little dust/dirt on the eggs----LOL---could not resist. Picture this---broody hen runs up to Mr Rooster-----Help, Help one of my eggs is got a little poop/dirt on it----LOL----Naw a Little dust will not hurt them.

Go to the hardware and get 6 flat L brackets and 6 plastic wire loops http://www.ebay.com/itm/100-pc-3-4-...417367?hash=item2807e93b17:g:NysAAOSw7ThUgFA1 get the loops big enough to fit around the wire on the side of the shelf, probably 2 per shelf. I would use short self drilling screws so it will drill its own hole to hold these loops as well as the L brackets/ Attack the L brackets where you need them on the other side----now your shelves are at a angle. You might attach something like wire ties around a couple of the shelf wires to keep the New cooling racks from sliding all the way down to the lower part of the shelf, I would Not use solid wood like a piece of 1x2 because it is solid and will effect your air flow.

 

[Goosegrrl]

Something to try if you need LOWERED humidity due to the ambient humidity in your area being higher than desired for regulation. Get some cheap, scent free, clay cat litter, the really old fashioned kind that looks like little rocks, and replace the sponge tray in the bottom with a tray of this.
People who live in high humidity areas do this for very large cigar humidors, and it works well.

 

[PD-Riverman]

Something to try if you need LOWERED humidity due to the ambient humidity in your area being higher than desired for regulation. Get some cheap, scent free, clay cat litter, the really old fashioned kind that looks like little rocks, and replace the sponge tray in the bottom with a tray of this.
People who live in high humidity areas do this for very large cigar humidors, and it works well.

Yep that or cheap rice.

 

[Finnie]

 
Something to try if you need LOWERED humidity due to the ambient humidity in your area being higher than desired for regulation. Get some cheap, scent free, clay cat litter, the really old fashioned kind that looks like little rocks, and replace the sponge tray in the bottom with a tray of this. 

People who live in high humidity areas do this for very large cigar humidors, and it works well. 

Yep that or cheap rice.

Ohhhh, great ideas!

 

[Finnie]

So it's been three weeks.

I did manage to slant the shelves in the Stealthbator. (Sorry, no picture.) I just waited until there were fewer eggs in there, and then I didn't need to use the lower shelf near the light bulbs. I used the existing grooves that the shelves slide into normally, but put the left sides on a higher level and the right sides on a lower level. There was only one shelf that was too short to make the stretch, but I didn't need that shelf anyway.

I think the extra vent holes I drilled have helped with the humidity. I have not resorted to rice or kitty litter, and I've been able to keep it in the 30s or 40s. I do think that in the future I should tweak the temp on the digital controller a little lower. My hatches have consistently been on day 20 instead of day 21.

So after my fiasco hatch, I had a couple of other bad ones too, since the humidity damage had already been done. But they seemed to be improving slightly. And then this week, which would be the third after I made the improvements, I actually had about a 44% hatch rate!. I've stopped setting more eggs, and I only have next week's hatch left to go in there. I'm hoping that it will be an even better improvement. It will be my last chance to get any of the turkey eggs to hatch. Those always seem to be the first to quit.

One thing I find interesting, is that one hen's eggs have had just about a 100% hatch rate all along, even with the high humidity, and another one of my hens has had very few chicks make it through hatching. They are more or less fully developed chicks, but some never pip, and the pippers don't usually make it out. I'm sure the incubator is partly to blame, since this week I got 3 out of four from hers, which is an improvement. But partly I think it must be the hen.

After next week's hatch, I am shutting it down, and when I get a chance, I will try to do a whole redesign of it. I had been hoping to hatch some fall chicks to have spring layers.

I do have some chick photos.

 

[Finnie]

It will probably hatch some, I feel there can be a lot of improvement on air flow, venting, heat source, design to make it a great incubator. Once you get it like you want, how much space will you gain by removing the shelves in the door? They serve no purpose. I am thinking once they are removed---standard egg turners will set on the shelves??? You can incubate in it now and see how it does----Hope it will do Good, but if you are not happy with the results I am willing to help---if you are up to a re-design?

@PD-Riverman , are you still willing to help me redesign this?

I didn't end up incubating any chicks for the fall, and I thought I would have all winter to play around with the Stealthbator, but I just realized that winter is almost over and I haven't done anything with it yet! And one of my turkey hens started laying already, so I should think about incubating those eggs.

The first thing I should probably do is to cut the door shelves off and see how much space that gives me for auto turners. But I don't want to invest in them yet until I get the air flow, venting and heat source worked out. This year I intend to run it down in my basement where ambient temps and humidity are pretty stable year round. I have a large plastic tray to place under it if it should leak for some reason.

If I do buy auto turners, I will have to figure out how to wire them.

 

[PD-Riverman]

@PD-Riverman , are you still willing to help me redesign this?

I didn't end up incubating any chicks for the fall, and I thought I would have all winter to play around with the Stealthbator, but I just realized that winter is almost over and I haven't done anything with it yet! And one of my turkey hens started laying already, so I should think about incubating those eggs.

The first thing I should probably do is to cut the door shelves off and see how much space that gives me for auto turners. But I don't want to invest in them yet until I get the air flow, venting and heat source worked out. This year I intend to run it down in my basement where ambient temps and humidity are pretty stable year round. I have a large plastic tray to place under it if it should leak for some reason.

If I do buy auto turners, I will have to figure out how to wire them.

Yes I would be glad to help you, by offering advice from Over Here on the East Coast. Did you try to hatch in it? I seen a pic of eggs in it---wondering how it worked??

 

[Finnie]

It worked ok. I incubated a lot of eggs in it, in staggered hatches, and each week moved them to my Incuview for lockdown. So all the hatching was done separately from the incubating.

I had a lot of problems with humidity being too high, which resulted in a lot of chicks that drowned when they started zipping. And there were a LOT of fully developed turkey babies that never even pipped.

When I added more vent holes, I got the humidity under control better, which helped for my last batch of chickens, but not for the turkeys. I'm not really sure what to tweak.

For what it's worth, I had a broody hen sit on three turkey eggs, and she had a 2 out of 3 success rate. The third one hatched all the way, and then died. So I know the turkey eggs were viable.

 

[PD-Riverman]

It worked ok. I incubated a lot of eggs in it, in staggered hatches, and each week moved them to my Incuview for lockdown. So all the hatching was done separately from the incubating.

I had a lot of problems with humidity being too high, which resulted in a lot of chicks that drowned when they started zipping. And there were a LOT of fully developed turkey babies that never even pipped.

When I added more vent holes, I got the humidity under control better, which helped for my last batch of chickens, but not for the turkeys. I'm not really sure what to tweak.

For what it's worth, I had a broody hen sit on three turkey eggs, and she had a 2 out of 3 success rate. The third one hatched all the way, and then died. So I know the turkey eggs were viable.

Well if it worked OK, why not tweak what you are doing a little instead or a complete redesign?? If the humidity was to high----did you remove some of the water surface to lower it??