Turning the eggs in the incubator??

[bobby d]

Hi, my husband and I are hatching for the first time. We set the eggs in the incubator last night. We don't have the auto turner so we put them in paper egg cartons. Without the tops on of course and I have been turning the eggs. Other than turning them point end down in the begining and then up, do the eggs need to sit and be turned any other way in the incubator? I just want to make sure I'm doing things right. Thanks for any help given.

 

[deerman]

Nooooo don't put point end up, very bad. Mark an X on side of each egg, then place egg on their side X up then next time down..
turn 3 to 5 times aday

Does the incubator have a fan?

 

[bigredfeather]

I think the easiest way would put the eggs in the carton pointy side down like you're doing. You do not want to turn the eggs end for end. Put something under one end of the carton(s). A 3/4"-1" thick block the width of the carton (the narrower width) would be ideal. Then, two or three times a day move the block to the opposite end of the carton(s), thus "turning" the eggs.

 

[barred-rocks-rock]

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That's Brilliant!!! Im gonna do that!

 

[Kittymomma]

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I tried that and found that the high side was about 3 degrees warmer then the low side. I didn't think that much temp. flucuation would be a good thing so now they're on their sides and I'm opening the bator 3x a day to turn them.

ETA: I'm using a still air LG.

 

[deerman]

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That will work if incubator has a fan, but will kill the chicks if its a still air incubator

 

[deerman]

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I tried that and found that the high side was about 3 degrees warmer then the low side. I didn't think that much temp. flucuation would be a good thing so now they're on their sides and I'm opening the bator 3x a day to turn them.

ETA: I'm using a still air LG.

Yep would kill the chicks, eggs get to hot in a still air incubator, the higher they get the hotter they get

 

[bobby d]

Thanks for the help..right now their laying on their sides. I started off point end down then turned up back up, then to their sides. They should be ok right? Well if not you live and learn and right now we're learning.

 

[deerman]

should be ok, unless they where small end up for a few days, reason you want the air cell to stay at the large end.

Even when eggs lay on the side, the way eggs are shaped, keeps the large end up......

 

[bobby d]

When we started collecting the eggs we were told to set smallest end down first then rotate 2-3 times daily. That's what I have been doing just didn't know if things stayed the same for the incubator. I myself was thinking surely they needed to be on their sides but didn't know.