What incubator should I get?

[Ilovechickens2525]

I know there have been threads on this, I’ve been down the rabbit hole reading several of them and googling and left totally overwhelmed and confused!

I’m hatching 24 eggs early spring, so I have some time to figure this out but want to be prepared and learn as much as I can.

What I’m looking for:
Holds 24 eggs
Straight forward and easy to set up and use for a first timer
Reliable, I want these eggs to have a good chance to hatch and they are being shipped
Doesn’t cost a million dollars, I’d like to stay under $300


I’ve heard automatic turning and humidity are key.

I’d also appreciate a battery back up but I don’t know how common that is to find. I do not want to lose these eggs, I spent a lot of money on them and am super excited. So I’m willing to invest but so far the good ones I’ve seen either don’t fit 24 or they are $500 and debate about if they are worth that…

Hence starting a thread to look for something that checks all the boxes! Thanks in advance!

 

[Debbie292d]

Hands down this is what I would get.

Why would I say that? Because I have three of these that are 56 egg -- auto turn, auto humidity.

Buy yourself a nice thermometer/hygrometer though as the temp/humidity on incubators is rarely correct. Govee brand is the one a lot of us use as they have an app for our phone and are calibratable.

 

[Ilovechickens2525]

Hands down this is what I would get.

Why would I say that? Because I have three of these that are 56 egg -- auto turn, auto humidity.

Buy yourself a nice thermometer/hygrometer though as the temp/humidity on incubators is rarely correct. Govee brand is the one a lot of us use as they have an app for our phone and are calibratable.

That one is $745 on Amazon in Canada

 

[Debbie292d]

That one is $745 on Amazon in Canada

OMG, $374 here.

 

[Debbie292d]

That one is $745 on Amazon in Canada

Is there some way to get around that? Like if you had a relative in the States that could order it but use your address, the price would switch you think?

 

[mcdze]

jeez, im not knocking the 700$ ones, but ive hatched a couple hundred out of this ~65$ ebay special (havent checked prices lately) .. it turns and is fairly automatic once you get it set to the right temp ..i pretty much load it, and forget about it until i hear chirps .. i do add water 3 or so times in the recommended hole ..and drop a little auxillary gauge into whatever you get to help set and monitor temp ..is a high end one gonna give you higher hatch rate? debateable .. theres alot of factors that play into that ..i average 75 or so %, but again i dont sweat much these days, i drop eggs in when i need chicks and let them bake until they hatch, dont do anything literally, i dont even candle or turn off the turner anymore as far as backup power thats added expense, alot of things you could do, but the most automated would be a computer ups .. how long it will run it depends on its battery capacity, ie, itl cost more ..

 

[BantyChooks]

I know there have been threads on this, I’ve been down the rabbit hole reading several of them and googling and left totally overwhelmed and confused!

I’m hatching 24 eggs early spring, so I have some time to figure this out but want to be prepared and learn as much as I can.

What I’m looking for:
Holds 24 eggs
Straight forward and easy to set up and use for a first timer
Reliable, I want these eggs to have a good chance to hatch and they are being shipped
Doesn’t cost a million dollars, I’d like to stay under $300


I’ve heard automatic turning and humidity are key.

I’d also appreciate a battery back up but I don’t know how common that is to find. I do not want to lose these eggs, I spent a lot of money on them and am super excited. So I’m willing to invest but so far the good ones I’ve seen either don’t fit 24 or they are $500 and debate about if they are worth that…

Hence starting a thread to look for something that checks all the boxes! Thanks in advance!

HovaBator is generally well regarded and is a cheaper option than Brinsea, which I would recommend if you had a bigger budget. That said, I would highly recommend building your own instead of buying one. You’ll save hundreds of dollars and it’s a great experience - it sounds like you would have enough time to get it tested and tweaked before your eggs arrive, too.

 

[MGG]

I would just get two Nurture Right 360s. And actually if you hand turn you could fit them all in one. Odds are a few won't make it and you can switch to the turner if that happens. The turner holds 22 eggs. Pretty inexpensive and really good quality for the price.
I wouldn't trust any of the cheapo chinabators with valuable eggs.

 

[Debbie292d]

I would just get two Nurture Right 360s. And actually if you hand turn you could fit them all in one. Odds are a few won't make it and you can switch to the turner if that happens. The turner holds 22 eggs. Pretty inexpensive and really good quality for the price.
I wouldn't trust any of the cheapo chinabators with valuable eggs.

My first incubator was a Nurture Right 360, and it holds I think it was 30 silkie eggs, but once I had several more than that, so stacked them and hand turned 4-5X a day for the first six days. Then I candled them and removed the duds, and voila, back to 30. So I can attest it does have a little bit more room then stated if you're willing to turn the eggs for the first week at least.

 

[Ilovechickens2525]

jeez, im not knocking the 700$ ones, but ive hatched a couple hundred out of this ~65$ ebay special (havent checked prices lately) .. it turns and is fairly automatic once you get it set to the right temp ..i pretty much load it, and forget about it until i hear chirps .. i do add water 3 or so times in the recommended hole ..and drop a little auxillary gauge into whatever you get to help set and monitor temp ..is a high end one gonna give you higher hatch rate? debateable .. theres alot of factors that play into that ..i average 75 or so %, but again i dont sweat much these days, i drop eggs in when i need chicks and let them bake until they hatch, dont do anything literally, i dont even candle or turn off the turner anymore as far as backup power thats added expense, alot of things you could do, but the most automated would be a computer ups .. how long it will run it depends on its battery capacity, ie, itl cost more ..

What is the brand of this one? I can’t get the link to cooperate.