so i moved up the temp back to 99.5 So your thinking that since i moved the temp back up when I lowered the thermometer it killed them?
I don’t know if it killed them or not. It’s certainly not a good thing but you can be surprised at how tough those chicks can be. I don’t see that you have anything to lose by giving them two or three more days.
I’ve had them hatch over two full days early in an incubator and under a broody. Others I trust to be able to count have said they have had eggs hatch as much as four days late. It’s not an exact science.
That temperature swing just doesn’t sound right. It dropped 10 degrees by moving it to the floor but only 5 degrees when you moved it back up. That thermometer sounds “iffy”. Some are made to be within 2 degrees in accuracy, which would just about explain it.
There are two different things related to thermometer accuracy. One is that some like the type you normally get to measure outside temperature are usually good within 2 degrees in repeatability. That means that it might read 2 degrees high or low if it cools off them heats back up. I got one that reads to within 0.1 degrees for my incubator. At least you have a better handle on what you are reading with this one.
The other thing is that manufacturing tolerances can throw them off. Next time you are where they sell cheap thermometers for outside look at different ones on the same shelf. I’ve seen the same model of thermometers read more than 5 degrees difference when they are on the same shelf. That’s where calibration helps. If you get a thermometer that has a repeatability within 0.1 degrees and you calibrate it so you know how it reads, you then know what is going on inside the incubator. These might help.
Rebel’s Thermometer Calibration
http://cmfarm.us/ThermometerCalibration.html
Rebel’s Hygrometer Calibration
http://cmfarm.us/HygrometerCalibration.html
