100% dry hatch or partial dry hatch?

[bantambabyy]

ive been having problems with chicks both making it to hatching but drowning in the egg and also chicks dying after about day 7-10. i suspect the latter is because i have to open the incubator once a day to refill the humidity since i cant do it from outside. im looking into trying a dry hatch and am interested in what people recommend. (these are all bantam eggs and a couple breeders ive bought from said they do better with a dry hatch).

my ambient humidity stays around 25-30% sometimes going down to about 20%.
so what method do you prefer?

1) no water day 1-18 and then up to about 60-70% at lockdown

2) no water until the first pip and then raise it to about 45-50%

3) no water at any point and just let hatching chicks raise the humidity at the end

which has gotten the best results for you and which would you recommend?
is there anything you would change about these like maybe you do the second one but raise the humidity to 60-70% instead of 45-50%. any advice is appreciated!

 

[McChooky]

Having 2-3 humidity gauges will allow you to compare the results and know you're getting accurate readings .Its also important to place your incubator in a room that maintains a stable temperature.The dry hatch gets very good results by most people who use it.

 

[horselover1999]

I am doing a dry hatch with my current hatch.
I am aiming for 30-35% humidity for days 1-18, then I will up it to 50% for lockdown, which starts later today.
I have had to add water to the incubator to bring it up to the range I want, since the ambient humidity has been pretty low. I found that pill bottles hold a lot of water but have a small surface area, so I can easily adjust the humidity. They fit in the small space between the turner and the wall of the incubator.
11/12 have made it to day 18, the 1 that didn't was infertile.

 

[horselover1999]

I take dry hatching as incubating at a drier humidity, and maintaining it. The most important thing in determining humidity is to watch their air cells and adjust based on where they want the humidity.

 

[Kjnannay]

ive been having problems with chicks both making it to hatching but drowning in the egg and also chicks dying after about day 7-10. i suspect the latter is because i have to open the incubator once a day to refill the humidity since i cant do it from outside. im looking into trying a dry hatch and am interested in what people recommend. (these are all bantam eggs and a couple breeders ive bought from said they do better with a dry hatch).

my ambient humidity stays around 25-30% sometimes going down to about 20%.
so what method do you prefer?

1) no water day 1-18 and then up to about 60-70% at lockdown

2) no water until the first pip and then raise it to about 45-50%

3) no water at any point and just let hatching chicks raise the humidity at the end

which has gotten the best results for you and which would you recommend?
is there anything you would change about these like maybe you do the second one but raise the humidity to 60-70% instead of 45-50%. any advice is appreciated!

Wow a lot of work...

 

[Courtney Farms]

No water the first 18 days and added a sponge and brought it up to 50% and 9 chicks hatched day 19 and are still hatching as I type this.Humidity is up to about 60% at the present.