Turning Stored Eggs - HOW!?

[country flock]

I am reading online how to store fertile hatching eggs and most articles say to "turn the eggs to a different position daily" or something to that effect. Could you tell me exactly what they mean by "turn"?

You store them small end down, so it doesn't mean to turn them small end up, does it? And what good would turning them in a circle do, so I doubt it's that...

Please help! Thanx!

 

[azelgin]

From what I gather, it means to tip the eggs, from one side to the other. You could store them in a carton and tilt the carton to opposite sides, as time goes by. I don't bother and have been told I'm not doing it right. The whole purpose of "turning" eggs during incubation, is so the developing embryo doesn't stick to the side of the shell. Turning before incubating, never seemed to make much sense to me, so, I don't bother.

 

[lazy gardener]

If you're storing them in a carton, which most people do, it means to tilt the carton in a different direction several times/day. Prop a book under one end of the carton, then the other. Your goal is to tilt them in a different direction multiple times/day. The ideal is close to 45 degrees, which if you actually measure it, is a pretty scary angle! So tilt them as much as is safely practical. Most recommendations are for 3 x /day, others say 2 x /day is enough. And there are some new studies that show that actually storing them upside down increased hatch rate, and eliminates the need for turning them all together while they are in storage. This is merely food for thought, and I am in no way recommending it, just pointing out that, just when we think we have all the answers, someone comes along and challenges convention with good results.

 

[subhanalah]

If you're storing them in a carton, which most people do, it means to tilt the carton in a different direction several times/day.  Prop a book under one end of the carton, then the other.  Your goal is to tilt them in a different direction multiple times/day.  The ideal is close to 45 degrees, which if you actually measure it, is a pretty scary angle!  So tilt them as much as is safely practical.  Most recommendations are for 3 x /day, others say 2 x /day is enough.  And there are some new studies that show that actually storing them upside down increased hatch rate, and eliminates the need for turning them all together while they are in storage.  This is merely food for thought, and I am in no way recommending it, just pointing out that, just when we think we have all the answers, someone comes along and challenges convention with good results.

I read this as well. The eggs I have in my incubator right now, weren't turned while being stored. Some were even upside down when I got them.

When I told someone about this study, they freaked and we're pretty adamant saying that would put too much pressure on the air cells and they would succumb to the pressure/weight.
I'd be eager to learn if anyone has actually done it and had such a horrible thing happen, or if it's just conjecture.

 

[country flock]

That's kinda what I was thinking but I just wanted be sure! It would be really interesting to see if they'd hatch if they'd been stored upside down! I'd like to try it sometime with a couple eggs, but for this first time at least I believe I'll just do the "old" way!

Thanks for the quick response! (that's what I love about BYC!)

 

[Ridgerunner]

If you have an automatic turner for an incubator, take that out, plug it in, and store them in it. That makes it really easy.

There are different way to do this without an automatic turner. The idea is to turn them from 45 degrees one way to 45 degrees the other. It often helps to put an X on one side of the egg and an o on the other so you have a visual. Make all the x’s up one time and when you turn them all the o’s should be up.

You can store them in an egg carton. Put a block of wood under one end to raise it up. When you turn them, put the other end on the block of wood. Or tilt the eggs in a flat egg carton.

Some people don’t store them pointy side down. They just lay them flat on a surface. The egg naturally has the wide side up a bit which works. This is where the x’s and o’s really come in handy. Just roll them from all x’s up to all o’s up. You want the fat side of the egg up a little so the air cell stays where it belongs.

You don’t have to turn them the first week of storage but it doesn’t hurt. The reason you turn is to keep the yolk from settling to one side and touching the inside of the shell. It can get stuck there if it touches and that egg can’t hatch, even if it develops.

Turning is really important once incubation starts. Not only do you not want the yolk or developing chick to touch the side, turning helps the body parts form in the right place. You don’t want both eyes on the same side of the head. If the internal organs don’t form where they should, the internal plumbing doesn’t get hooked up right. By 14 days the body parts have formed and a membrane has developed to protect the chick from the inside of the egg, so turning isn’t important after that, but it is really important early in incubation.

 

[Ridgerunner]

If you're storing them in a carton, which most people do, it means to tilt the carton in a different direction several times/day.  Prop a book under one end of the carton, then the other.  Your goal is to tilt them in a different direction multiple times/day.  The ideal is close to 45 degrees, which if you actually measure it, is a pretty scary angle!  So tilt them as much as is safely practical.  Most recommendations are for 3 x /day, others say 2 x /day is enough.  And there are some new studies that show that actually storing them upside down increased hatch rate, and eliminates the need for turning them all together while they are in storage.  This is merely food for thought, and I am in no way recommending it, just pointing out that, just when we think we have all the answers, someone comes along and challenges convention with good results.

Could you please give a link to this source. I'd like to read the original study or have enough information to reach it.

 

[azelgin]

You don’t have to turn them the first week of storage but it doesn’t hurt. The reason you turn is to keep the yolk from settling to one side and touching the inside of the shell. It can get stuck there if it touches and that egg can’t hatch, even if it develops.

This is probably why I never had any hatching problems. I've never waited more than a week to set eggs. I get about 3 dozen eggs per day. It doesn't take long to fill my incubator. Several sources (university websites) suggest to not set eggs stored for more than seven days.

 

[lazy gardener]

Ridgerunner: I was not able to find the original article, but did find this: https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/hatching-eggs-101 There are several other articles that cover the issue if you google search "storing hatching eggs upside down."

 

[lazy gardener]

Ridge Runner: Here's a second article.... Just when we figure that we've learned the correct way to do something, someone comes along and challenges accepted theory. http://www.lohmann-information.com/content/l_i_46_artikel7.pdf so, the next time I hatch, if it's a barnyard mix, and I'm not terribly invested in the outcome, perhaps i'll put the theory to the test with half of them stored pointy end up before incubation. I'd love to hear from readers: Is anyone storing their hatching eggs pointy end up?????