Gathering eggs for hatching

[DIYGuy24]

Hi all!

I have a small flock of 5 hens and a rooster that I'm hoping to increase in size through incubating eggs. Currently only 3 hens are laying and with the cold weather, what's the best way to collect/store the eggs until I have enough to incubate?

Thanks and looking forward to posting a hatch- along

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Make sure your nests are clean. Keep the eggs clean when collecting. Don't use eggs that have frozen. Try to keep the eggs somewhere the temperature doesn't fluctuate much. Turn the eggs at least twice a day during storage. Only incubate eggs that are less than 10 days old and preferably less than a week old. Bring them to temperature slowly, room temperature first before putting them in the incubator. Too large of a temperature swing can cause condensation.
Don't collect small eggs from young pullets. Only after eggs are full size for the breed.
How many eggs does your incubator hold?
With that ratio of birds, they are probably fertile but it is a good idea to open an egg and look for the bullseye to make sure they are fertile.

 

[Cloverr39]

I agree that it's best not to store them too long before incubating, but I'm also often in situations when only a few hens are laying when I'm collecting eggs. I've found that eggs can generally be stored for up to 14 days. The hatch rates may drop a bit for the older eggs, though. And I only turn the eggs that are over 1 week old.
I always hatch eggs that have been stored for 1-14 days before incubating and still get good hatch rates. As long as they're fertilized and aren't too small or misshapen, they should be fine.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

That depends on if storage is under ideal conditions. Hatchability is reduced for each day of storage.
Two settings can work as well. Turning is no longer critical the last week and as long as humidity is increased when the first eggs are near hatch.