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thank you! Omgosh yes! I'm a nervous wreck! between being worried about them being shipped then the temp I'll be glad when I can candle them and know if ANYTHING survived my ignorance!! LOL Thank you!
Don't worry so much.. just know a couple rules...
1) try to get temp at 99.5 (forced air) or 101 (still air) but don't sweat it... the temps can range 1-2 degrees up/down with no issues.
if temp ranges on colder side the eggs take longer to hatch, higher side = shorter incubation time.
2) Try to keep humidity at 30-40% for normal incubation and 50-60% at lockdown (chicken eggs) but again don't sweat the small changes..
just make sure that if it runs low or high and you have to choose.. pick low (just not too low!). It's easier to help a chick out of a shell if they get stuck then to help a drowning chick.
3) find the most temperature stable place in your home and put the incubator there. Run the incubator for 24hrs before placing eggs in. When you put eggs in the temp will drop for a while but give it 24hrs before adjusting (unless it gets to high). If you still have temp flux make sure that the high temp is still under 102-3. and don't worry to much about getting in the 96-98 range. I incubate in my basement where the flux is minor but I'd rather the eggs take longer to hatch (cooler the 99.5) then accidently fry due to high temps.
Tip:
the day you set eggs is day ZERO... setup a calender (computer/paper) and Keep track of when you set the eggs also mark due date. (I also write in pencil the day I set eggs on the eggs itself)
Unless you know your incubator was a bit cool for a time frame, Candle eggs 3 days after due date, also listen for peeping or tapping. If after the 3 day extension you see no movement or hear no peeping/tapping I would suggest pulling the eggs.
*If you can do this it will help you understand the process of hatching chicks a lot faster then just reading...
After you pull the eggs that did not hatch take a pencil, paper and eggs outside. (in case of a rotten stinker)
Crack each egg open and examine the embryo's.
You can figure out if they died due to the incubator pretty quickly.
You will see embryos all the same stage of development if something sudden happened (High temp spike, power outage, etc)
Find a lot of runny water in the shell of those that drowned.
etc etc
Document the # of eggs that did not hatch, what stage of development, any oddities.... (also document the ones that hatched!)
After a couple hatches you will notice right away if it was a fertility issue, temperature issue, humidity issue or other possibilities.
Tip:
Candle just before you put eggs into the incubator. This allows you to look for hairline cracks, disconnected air sacks and give you a base of what a clear egg looks like.
I mark the ones who have air sack issues and the ones I can not see through and place them in one section of the incubator. They will not be candled or moved during the incubation.
And I'd not candle more the 2-3 times total per hatch.
Go to this site and look at the photos of chicken embryos.. It will help you understand what you see when you eggtopsy your eggs.
(graphic photos please don't visit if your sensitive to this kind of thing. this is real embryo's no longer in a shell)
http://www.summagallicana.it/lessico/e/embrione di pollo.htm
I suggest google translate but its not needed... the photos are from day 2 -18... it does skip a couple days here and there..
Thank you so much, CL gave me a short list on what to do and that was awesome, I do have a calendar and marked the set date the start incubation and the candle dates as well as the lockdown and hatch date. So I have been printing out the directions people give me and compiling a note book. This is good stuff! Thank you so much!
