Covatutto 16 - Detached air cell advice (please!)

[Butterbeandip]

Hi everyone,

I have an order of Pekin duck eggs arriving tomorrow – I’m expecting the air cells to be detached slightly. I’m based in the UK and they’ll have been posted from somewhere a few hours away - I’m hope they won’t be in too bad a state, but would like to prepare regardless. The post can be a bit unpredictable sometimes.

I’ve been scouring online for advice and have read that they need to rest for 12–24 hours before incubation. When I set them, they should be placed vertically with the pointed end down.

My question is: should I still be doing this in the Covatutto 16? The temperature is regulated by a bulb, and I’m concerned that if the eggs are sitting upright in a carton, the temperature reading might not be an accurate representation. Would I be better off elevating them slightly instead? Or just keeping them horizontal?

I have also noticed that people have mentioned about maintaining a lower humidity to encourage the air cell to reattach..?

Any help would be much appreciated!

Thank you

 

[Debbie292d]

Hi!

I am not familiar with that brand, but many incubators, such as the NR360, have the eggs lying on their sides.

I have gotten a lot of shipped eggs, and what I do is sit them in an egg carton like you said, room temperature, pointy side down, for a bit longer, closer to 24 hours.

Then I set them in the incubator that's ready to go, but turn the turner off for a day so they're in there at 99.5F for about 24 hours before turning.

I still will get a couple of displaced air cells, and they still hatch for the most part. I've helped a couple, and I'm about 50/50 on them surviving, so I avoid helping if I can.

Here is a great article should you wind up having a couple in the end that don't hatch themselves.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/guide-to-assisted-hatching-for-all-poultry.72886/

Those I've helped or any that seemed weak, once the others are all able to come out, I put those back in, lower the temp to 95F, and leave them in there for another 24 hours or so. That helps prevent splay legs or other issues and lets them get stronger without interference from others, or too many others. They don't need food/water for this time.

 

[Butterbeandip]

Thank you so much! I will give your advice a go. I'll try to lay them horizontally after they've rested... I'll angle them so the air cell is on the non-dipped side of the egg. Fingers crossed they work!