When will bad eggs start to stink in the incubator?

[hatykuber]

I've got three duck eggs in my incubator on day 27. The air cell in one of the eggs has turned really dark, just by looking through the incubator I clearly see it, looks like there is black on the inside of the egg where the air cell is. It's been that way for two days and I can't find any info on it. If it's dead, how long until it will start to stink? I'm keeping a close eye on them and smell the ventilation holes every time I check, I don't smell anything rotten. Being so close to hatching (hopefully) I don't want to mess with it, but don't want it to explode on my other eggs. Any info is greatly appreciated, I tried to get a picture but it's difficult through the incubator lid. Thanks!

 

[ibarrett]

Hi, sorry to hear about the egg, hopefully it will be ok.

To see if your egg is truly dead, warm some water in a bowl to the same temperature as the brooder. Place the egg in (make sure the egg isn't cracked or anything). If the chick is alive, the egg will bob up and down and wobble around. If this doesn't happen, I would dispose of the egg. If it does happen, dry off the egg and quickly put it back in the incubator. You should do this quickly because you don't want the chick to catch chills.

From my own experience with eggs, I've never really smelled rotten eggs until they were cracked. Sometimes I let eggs rot and then crack them in my orchard as a deer repellent, and while I'm letting them rot I don't smell a thing. But this is in normal temperatures, not in an incubator.

Definitely consider trying the water thing. It would be a shame if the egg exploded.

Best of luck,

Isabelle

 

[hatykuber]

Thank you, the egg ended up being dead. I appreciate your help!