what is lockdown?

[melovefrench]

just wondering... what IS lockdown? and with the brinsea octagon what do i do for it?

thanks!

 

[Illia]

Lockdown is when you hit day 18 (for chickens) you should not open your incubator at all, and the humidity should be increased. It is also when the eggs should stop being turned. . . And it is 3 days away from hatch day! It is full of impatience and excitement.

 

[BlacksheepCardigans]

It means the last three days of incubation, when the humidity needs to be higher (65% or higher) and the eggs don't need to be turned. People call it lockdown because in most incubators you have to increase the humidity and shut the lid and NOT OPEN IT or you'll kill the humidity level. In the Brinsea you have a little more freedom; because it has so little air space to fill with water vapor (unlike the styrofoam incubators that are big giant boxes and have a ton of air that has to get wet again after you close it) you can open the lid to add more hot water if you need to and the humidity will bobble very little.

For a Brinsea it means setting it back to its upright/neutral position, taking out the wire egg dividers, adding water to both wells (and, if that doesn't bring the humidity up high enough, increasing surface area by also putting a cloth or a sock or a sponge in there) and closing the lid again. Don't open it unless you have to add more water, and consider snaking a piece of aquarium tubing down through the vent to add water that way instead (DO NOT LEAVE THE TUBING IN IF YOU DO THIS - it's just for the few seconds it takes you to add water). Once the chicks start hatching Brinsea says you can remove them every six hours, but again you want to watch the humidity and make sure it quickly returns to your target after opening it and removing chicks.

 

[debilorrah]

Quote:
Perfectly said!!!!!

 

[bibkel]

I wondered the same thing, I figured it was when you should not open the incubator and I wondered about the turning I keep reading about..... but I now know the details, So thanks!

 

[Baralak]

X2.. But also remember on the Octagon 20 Eco on the back side of the control unit looking from the side that has the power cord, there is another hole that you can also run your tubing into without messing with the vent.. (I found it tonight) I read it was there, but just didn't know where it was until I was taking pics of it tonight.

 

[debilorrah]

Quote:
OMG I have had this bator for over a year and never saw that!!!

 

[BlacksheepCardigans]

Quote:
YES. However, that will only work with a really tiny tube - you could use a feeding tube or similar. Trust me, I have tried. That hole also sits right above a solid piece of plastic; running a tube straight down will get you nowhere. Regular aquarium tubing would be impossible, but you could definitely set up a system using a feeding tube that goes through the hole, down, takes a turn to get through the plastic grille and ends up in the wells or on a sponge.

 

[funnybirds]

I have tried a drinking straw through the front vent hole on this model and it fits fine. Figure I can shoot water down it with a needle -less syringe onto a sponge if I need to. Sounds good in theory right?

 

[annie3001]

I am glad someone posted a question on this... i often wondered, until i start my hatching,,,, first i am going to read all i can...but knowing ahead is just as good!