WHAT TYPE of incubator would be ideal / cheap for a beginner

[sara]

I love Cutler Supply, I've ordered from them many times, and their customer service is top notch.

 

[Akane]

All styrofoam bators require a stable room temp and humidity to work properly. If none of them work for you it's probably the conditions your running them in. There is a reason they are cheap. They are sensitive to the environment around them. In a stable room though they work great. My hovabator is my favorite. If you want really cheap a 1602n is about as cheap as they come. If you want it with a few extra features for a slightly higher price the 1588 is a good option. It has a slightly better heating system and fan.

 

[flyweed]

Well, I did my research a bit on this before I purchased my LG 9200..It came down to either the Hova Bator or Little Giant, and the MAIN reason I chose the LG was all the talk about Porportional temp control being better than the standard wafer style thermostat that's Off and On only. So it allows the temps to fluctuate more.

I found an unbiased review on the internet that actually did a scientific study comparing the two, and the LG 9200 with forced air actually beat the hovabator in accurate temp control. Reason being that the LG ACTUALLY does use a porportional microprocessor for it's temperature control, plus a larger wattage heating element than the hovabator therefore controlling temps in all tested conditions much better.

I'll have to dig the study up again, but it really opened my eyes at how well the LG performed in all of their controlled tests.

So I'd reccomend the LG forced air unit because of this evaluation. Also, I've only had mine running a week now, and haven't hatched anything out yet ( I just set button quail eggs today)..however for this "test" week, it has held a constant 99.7F and humidity of 42%..if I open the lid and add more water for humidity, the temp just drops a hair, and then acclimates back to it's set temp in under 10 minutes.

I really like it so far. Other than setting the temp..the little knob is a pain to "fine tune" but once you hit that magic number, it'll stay there.
Dan

 

[Akane]

A hovabator 1588 doesn't use a wafer. A 1602n does. However when comparing my lg 9200 and hovabator 1602n the hovabator has held better temps the past 2months. I spent weeks just getting the lg to sit at the right temp and I check the min and max temp options every couple days now (I haven't wanted to unplug it even though it's empty because it was so hard to get the right temp in the first place). It shows a greater range in the min max readings than my hova bator did when I set it up.

 

[ashtray]

thanks for the replies everyone .. it will a ways off before i try the any incubating . i still have to finish my coop and buy some birds ..