When do you candle?

[happyhensny]

I've been going through loads of posts and the opinion seems to vary. Some candle at 3 days some wait to do their 1st candle at 7 days. We have 2 Hovabators just about full, with turners.

1st When?

2nd Logistically how do you get the eggs out, candle and put them back in a timely way?

3rd Any suggestions on type of light? We have LED flashlights - will they work?

Thanks a bunch!

 

[chiknhut]

1. I do mine at day 10, day 14, and then at day 18 at my last turning. These are just my preferred times.
2. I have read that you have a good 10 minutes to check them. It doesn't take me long. I lift the lid, take out one, put lid back down, candle, put back in grab another, repeat til done.
3. I use an small hand held led flashlight. I do it at night when everyone has went to bed so all lights are off. I cup the egg with my hand and shine the light through the top.
With the light on top of the egg, your thumb is at the top on the side of the egg. Underneath your thumb you can see where the light is shining through the egg. You can
then see inside the egg. Hope this helps.

 

[Paganbird]

1st: I candle whenever I feel like it. Usually days 4, 10, & 17... but sometimes any day in between.
2nd: I have a cabinet 'bator, so I take out one shelf at a time, set the shelf on top of hte 'bator & start candling. A hen will get off the eggs for an hour or so... I don't worry about being quick. It's better to be careful & take your time.
3rd: I use a high powered hand held light. At the end of incubation, right before lockdown, I don't even take the eggs out of the racks - I just put the light against the top of the egg & check for movement along the aircell.

 

[panner123]

Most want to know what is going on in the egg, so they candle whenever they want. Since I have only been at this for 60 years, I only candle when I am getting them ready for the bator. This is to check for cracked eggs. Then again when I remove the turner. This is for any infertile eggs and chicks that didn't make it. I don't want any exploding eggs in the bator. As stated before, a good LED flashlight in a dark room is the best way to candle the eggs.

 

[happyhensny]

Not sure if I candled too early - set the eggs on Saturday around 6pm( today= 3 days). Just candled 10 eggs with a 2 AA battery Mag Light and did not see any veining at all.

Try again at 1 week. Hope something good happens by then. Thanks!

 

[chicklips]

Try again at day 7 and you should see something, day 3 can be too early esp if your eggs are brown or tinted.

 

[silkiechicken]

When I candled flats (30 egg cartons), I just used a hand held high powered flashlight and put it against the big end of the egg while they were still in the crates anywhere from day 10-14 to toss any without development. Took about 3 minutes a flat. When I say high powered, think hand held $60-80 flashlight like egaltac or surfire lights.

 

[happyhensny]

chicklips - Thanks so much, I was really bummed about the eggs - we have 60! Never have we tried 2 bators before and they are supposed to hatch the weekend of my daughters 7th birthday. I hope at least a few hatch for her.

I am going to try Saturday NIGHT - hoping that will be enough time to see something...