Ways to humidify a homemade incubator

[Johncoop]

i recently made a makeshift incubator with a cardboard box, some insolation and a thermometer, thermostat, and a heat source, but i still cannot find any other way of humidifying the the incubator, the only way I've been doing that is by putting a small canister of water under the heat source which i still don't know if it does a good enough job of humidifying the incubator, if anyone knows something about that please comment on this thread

 

[Ridgerunner]

For the way you are doing this, the important parameter is the surface area of the water. The more surface area the more water evaporates so the higher the humidity. You need a good hygrometer in there so you can measure humidity.

Water depth does not matter other than the deeper the water to start with the longer it takes for your container to go dry.

To adjust the surface area, one obvious way is to use a larger or smaller pan. You can increase the surface area by putting a sponge, paper towel, or such in there with some sticking out of the pan so it wicks water and increases surface area. To reduce surface area maybe put aluminum foil or such over part of the pan, blocking part of it.

 

[Debbie292d]

i still don't know if it does a good enough job of humidifying the incubator, if anyone knows something about that please comment on this thread

You need to get a hygrometer so you will know. Most of us purchase both all in one, hygrometer/thermometers. Many of us have Govee brand from Amazon, but there are several other brands that do a good job as well. Just make sure it's got good reviews hopefully from other folks with incubators.

 

[ABQ chicken keeper]

You need to get a hygrometer so you will know. Most of us purchase both all in one, hygrometer/thermometers. Many of us have Govee brand from Amazon, but there are several other brands that do a good job as well. Just make sure it's got good reviews hopefully from other folks with incubators.

I noticed back in the string of comments, a poster took out her egg turner and marked the eggs with a (D) and (N) then turned eggs by hand. The pic showed a bunch of eggs but did not mention the time it took to turn and her concern for air temp drop or humidity drop.
Any concerns about that?

 

[Debbie292d]

I noticed back in the string of comments, a poster took out her egg turner and marked the eggs with a (D) and (N) then turned eggs by hand. The pic showed a bunch of eggs but did not mention the time it took to turn and her concern for air temp drop or humidity drop.
Any concerns about that?

Many folks don't have a turner and they have successful hatches. Many folks candle every single day, and they have successful hatches too. I wouldn't advise turning them by hand the first couple of days then as the embroyos in that stage are setting up. Conditions need to be stable, which will lead to a more successful hatch.

Turning a dozen eggs, no matter how quick a person is, is going to take probably 30 seconds, enough to dry the incubator out. I would suggest having a couple wet paper towels rolled up in a ball to place in there while turning, then take out right before shutting the incubator. That'll mitigate a little bit of the humidity loss.

Someone yesterday posted that they had a home desktop humidifier. They put that under a quilt on their bed, then they put the incubator under there, and they crawled in. So basically, they had a tent. Then they opened the incubator to do whatever it was. That's pretty awesome they'd go to those lengths, and maybe that'll help improve their hatch rate.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I noticed back in the string of comments, a poster took out her egg turner and marked the eggs with a (D) and (N) then turned eggs by hand. The pic showed a bunch of eggs but did not mention the time it took to turn and her concern for air temp drop or humidity drop.
Any concerns about that?

I have a different opinion. Broody hens regularly leave their nest every day to eat, drink, poop, and such. In colder weather I've seen a hen stay off only 15 minutes. In the heat of summer I've seen hens stay off for more than an hour each time. The egg is pretty dense. Inside where the embryo is it will not cool off that much that fast. You are probably doing this inside a fairly warm building. As long as I don't get ridiculous I don't worry about the eggs cooling off.

The eggshell is porous so it can and does lose moisture through that porous shell. But it is not going to lose a lot really fast. If the egg has pipped so it has lost the protection of the shell I'd be concerned. But if the shell is intact I don't think it will lose a significant amount of moisture even if the incubator dries out temporarily. The hen can leave the nest for longer periods than you will have it open. The humidity should recover pretty fast once the incubator is closed.

Someone yesterday posted that they had a home desktop humidifier. They put that under a quilt on their bed, then they put the incubator under there, and they crawled in.

I saw that Debbie. It sounds like a lot of work to do that regularly, especially if you are hand turning a few times a day. It might be easier to turn on the shower (on hot) in the bathroom and close the door so it can steam up. Then open the incubator in there. Some people do that at lockdown when eggs might have pipped but they need to open the incubator. I don't.

 

[Johncoop]

You need to get a hygrometer so you will know. Most of us purchase both all in one, hygrometer/thermometers. Many of us have Govee brand from Amazon, but there are several other brands that do a good job as well. Just make sure it's got good reviews hopefully from other folks with incubators.

ok i think I'll be investing in a hygrometer, i found one that doubles as a thermometer for like 2 dollars on temu