Okay, since it's inevitable that the power will go out for some freak reason or another when you've got eggs in the 'bator, I discovered a quick fix for keeping your eggs alive and warm until the *(&*#^ power company fixes everything....Now, I'm sure someone else has probably already thought of this, but I'm gonna post it anyway...
I have discovered that hot tap water is usually well over 100 F. This is what I did when the power went out:
1. I got 6 quart ziplocks and 3 gallon ziplocks. I filled all 6 ziplocks with hot water, using the probe from my thermometer to ensure that the water temp wasn't above 110 F. The air in my bator fluctuates between 99.5 and 106.6, and with that fluctuation my water wiggler stays at a steady temp of 99.3-99.7. So I didn't want to go above 110 F on the tap water temp.
2. I sealed the quart ziplocks and made sure all the air was out so they would lie flat, and I placed 2 full quart bags into each gallon bag so that they would have double protection against leaks...no one wants 6 quarts of water in the bottom of their bator!!!
3. Since my bator has a hardware cloth bottom (and everyone knows how pokey that stuff is) I put a double layer of paper towels in the bottom of the bator.
4. I took all my eggs out of the carton I had them in to fit them as close together as possible and put them on top of the paper towel lined 'bator bottom.
5. I put the water wiggler in the middle of the group of eggs, and GENTLY placed the warm water filled bags on top of them.
It takes a bit of time before the temps will increase, but if you put the lid back on the bator it WILL work. I managed to keep mine at 98.8 for three hours before the power came back on, and they LIVED!!!! Of course, my flashlight died, because I couldn't just walk away and check it now and then, I had to sit there and watch and rejoice at each tenth of a degree the temp increased....LOL!!!
Maybe this should be a sticky....if someone else has come up with this give them the credit!!!!
I have discovered that hot tap water is usually well over 100 F. This is what I did when the power went out:
1. I got 6 quart ziplocks and 3 gallon ziplocks. I filled all 6 ziplocks with hot water, using the probe from my thermometer to ensure that the water temp wasn't above 110 F. The air in my bator fluctuates between 99.5 and 106.6, and with that fluctuation my water wiggler stays at a steady temp of 99.3-99.7. So I didn't want to go above 110 F on the tap water temp.
2. I sealed the quart ziplocks and made sure all the air was out so they would lie flat, and I placed 2 full quart bags into each gallon bag so that they would have double protection against leaks...no one wants 6 quarts of water in the bottom of their bator!!!
3. Since my bator has a hardware cloth bottom (and everyone knows how pokey that stuff is) I put a double layer of paper towels in the bottom of the bator.
4. I took all my eggs out of the carton I had them in to fit them as close together as possible and put them on top of the paper towel lined 'bator bottom.
5. I put the water wiggler in the middle of the group of eggs, and GENTLY placed the warm water filled bags on top of them.
It takes a bit of time before the temps will increase, but if you put the lid back on the bator it WILL work. I managed to keep mine at 98.8 for three hours before the power came back on, and they LIVED!!!! Of course, my flashlight died, because I couldn't just walk away and check it now and then, I had to sit there and watch and rejoice at each tenth of a degree the temp increased....LOL!!!
Maybe this should be a sticky....if someone else has come up with this give them the credit!!!!
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