What's the rating for a Little Giant Incubator?

[EURanch]

I'm considering purchasing this incubator (and egg turner) but before I make my final decision I would like some personal feedback on both these items. It's very appreciated!
Thanks!

 

[FenDruadin]

Little Giant is not much loved around here. It is unreliable on temps unless you treat it JUST SO, it's made with cheap materials, and is hard to clean.

However: I've had great success using it as a hatcher and have found a way to get around temp fluctuations. I run it all the time with a thick terrycloth towel folded four times lengthwise (to make a nice, thick insulating bolster) over one half, leaving the vent holes open. The extra insulation seems to eliminate temp fluctuations. When I want to look in that window, I just lift the towel and look.

For the price, I think it's a decent buy, but my Hovabator is more reliable. I run most of the incubation in the Hovabator and then move the eggs to the Little Giant for the hatch. So I have not ever run an entire incubation through it and so can't speak to its efficacy on that score.

If I were to have only one incubator again, I would keep the Hova, even if I had to pay for it again.

 

[poultryhaven]

I love my 2 LG's

 

[trilyn]

Quote:
Me too, although I didn't at first, actually returned the first one. Then I became determined to use an LG and ended up with two of them including turners. Installed fans and weatherstripping and now I LOVE them!!! Just gotta be willing to work with them and adjust them to your situation/environment. Not that difficult really, also make sure you get good digital thermometers and good hygrometers. Very, very important, more than the bator, I think!

 

[tobin123]

i have been using my lg for 4 years and love it for the price, just takes a little getting use to it

 

[gabbyscritters]

You can't beat the price. Our 9 year old has been using one since she was 5 for hatching her chicks. I do monitor it alot, they do fluctuate in temps but I don't think too bad. It is the only incubator we have. She runs 75 to 90% hatch rate on her home eggs and we just hatched out 10 out of 14 shipped pyncheon eggs She has hatched many chicks with it. We learned the humidity was a biggie and now have sponges and the bottom cut off of styrofoam 2 cups to increase moisture. The hydrometer really helped. We just have the plain old, no fan or turner. Thinking of adding a computer fan but did not want to experiment with the shipped eggs. A turned would be nice, I am home work just after lunch so I do the afternoon turning for my daughter. If she keeps going with her chickens we might need to upgrade but it has been way worth the money. She has now sold all her barn yard banties to try to get some more quality stock and hopfully get a few more dollars for her chicks.

 

[georgialee]

I just finished my second hatch in an LG and have not had any problems with it. Great incubator for the price!

 

[pkw]

I have a little giant incubator and I like it. In the past I have gotten pretty close to 100% hatches using my own eggs. I have a new one also and where I had my incubator at first with my current hatch, I had some serious temp fluxes (all the way up to 114 degrees) but I changed locations and the temps have been holding better.

 

[EURanch]

Thanks everyone for your experiences with the LG!
I noticed one member mentioned a Hovabator, are they any better then a LG?
As in do the temps flux, less monitoring, or do they have a higher hatch rate compared to a LG?
I would appreciate some personal input on the Hova to!

Thanks again!

 

[scbatz33]

LG still air is worse then forced. I use a forced air for hatching . I incubate in a 1588. It's consistent, reliable and I have good rates with it. So why change?