What is the best incubator?

[nightowl223]

Tell me you posted a how to on this. I have been toying with this idea for years...

So, sorry, I only put up pics of the huge ice chest incubator I made *before* the dorm fridge one. If you get hold of an old, broken dorm fridge, I could talk you through it, though. It really wasn't that difficult. I will note, though, that I thought it was completely out of refrigerant, and accidentally discovered it wasn't. You would have to either see if you know anyone who works in a refrigerant-type industry, and see if they can tell you if it's empty or not, or you would have to take it to a repair shop which might empty it for you, or you could try to discover where the refrigerant lines are so you can avoid it, or you could just take your chances with it. I just crimped off the one line I thought had a chance of leaking, and sealed it with solder as soon as I cut it. Unfortunately, there was another line inside, that apparently had a bit in it I didn't know about. You live and you learn.

Aside from that one boo-boo, I got very lucky with all the parts I used. I had an old styrofoam incubator my SIL got at an auction for $5, which had a working heating element and thermostat. I already had one turner, and got another cheap from a friend, and found a third on Craigslist, also cheaply. I made one set of quail rails with a set of regular turner rails, a bunch of pieces of pvc pipe, pvc pipe glue, and a lot of patience. It will hold over 2 times as many as a regular set of quail rails will. I installed a double-pane window in the door, that I took out of a window frame which was given to me by a friend. And, aside from drilling holes for the wires and the ventilation, it was all pretty simple. The slots for the shelving worked great for installing the turners (mounted on some plywood with the center cut out of it), and the freezer shelf thing worked great for my hatching tray, with the addition of some shelf liner and some 1/2 x 1/2 wire around it as a fence. The door had a big bottom shelf perfect for the container I use for the water. I just used more of the 1/2 x 1/2 wire to cover over that area, so escapees didn't end up drowned in it.

 

[RosieR]

So, sorry, I only put up pics of the huge ice chest incubator I made *before* the dorm fridge one. If you get hold of an old, broken dorm fridge, I could talk you through it, though. It really wasn't that difficult. I will note, though, that I thought it was completely out of refrigerant, and accidentally discovered it wasn't. You would have to either see if you know anyone who works in a refrigerant-type industry, and see if they can tell you if it's empty or not, or you would have to take it to a repair shop which might empty it for you, or you could try to discover where the refrigerant lines are so you can avoid it, or you could just take your chances with it. I just crimped off the one line I thought had a chance of leaking, and sealed it with solder as soon as I cut it. Unfortunately, there was another line inside, that apparently had a bit in it I didn't know about. You live and you learn.

Aside from that one boo-boo, I got very lucky with all the parts I used. I had an old styrofoam incubator my SIL got at an auction for $5, which had a working heating element and thermostat. I already had one turner, and got another cheap from a friend, and found a third on Craigslist, also cheaply. I made one set of quail rails with a set of regular turner rails, a bunch of pieces of pvc pipe, pvc pipe glue, and a lot of patience. It will hold over 2 times as many as a regular set of quail rails will. I installed a double-pane window in the door, that I took out of a window frame which was given to me by a friend. And, aside from drilling holes for the wires and the ventilation, it was all pretty simple. The slots for the shelving worked great for installing the turners (mounted on some plywood with the center cut out of it), and the freezer shelf thing worked great for my hatching tray, with the addition of some shelf liner and some 1/2 x 1/2 wire around it as a fence. The door had a big bottom shelf perfect for the container I use for the water. I just used more of the 1/2 x 1/2 wire to cover over that area, so escapees didn't end up drowned in it.

So cool! I keep looking for discarded wine fridges for this purpose. I didn’t think about just putting glass on the door!

 

[nightowl223]

So cool! I keep looking for discarded wine fridges for this purpose. I didn’t think about just putting glass on the door!

I've got a broken wine fridge that is a work in progress, that I want to turn into JUST a hatcher, where I can move eggs at lockdown, and not have to worry about opening the door for other things... or maybe I'll trade it around, and use the dorm fridge for the hatcher, since it's smaller... LOL, that's why it's a work in progress. I can't decide which way would be best, and I'm still using the dorm fridge to incubate, so I can't just pull everything out and rearrange it right now!

 

[RosieR]

I've got a broken wine fridge that is a work in progress, that I want to turn into JUST a hatcher, where I can move eggs at lockdown, and not have to worry about opening the door for other things... or maybe I'll trade it around, and use the dorm fridge for the hatcher, since it's smaller... LOL, that's why it's a work in progress. I can't decide which way would be best, and I'm still using the dorm fridge to incubate, so I can't just pull everything out and rearrange it right now!

Oh nice!
My bator is an airtight plastic storage bin. But I don’t think I’ve insulated it well enough so I’m thinking about other options for my next round. My quail are due to hatch on Sunday so we’ll see how they do!

 

[nightowl223]

Oh nice!
My bator is an airtight plastic storage bin. But I don’t think I’ve insulated it well enough so I’m thinking about other options for my next round. My quail are due to hatch on Sunday so we’ll see how they do!

I've got quail eggs, as well as other things, 'cooking,' too, LOL! Small world!

 

[RosieR]

I've got quail eggs, as well as other things, 'cooking,' too, LOL! Small world!

Depending how it goes I may pm you for help on assembling something like yours. I’ll keep an eye out for broken/unwanted fridges in the mean time!