Managing humidity in a cheap incubator?

[Susan Skylark]

I bought a cheaper incubator on Amazon l had recently used a borrowed nurture right 360 for two batches of quail eggs. I really liked the 360 but didn’t plan on spending quite that much (plus a quail rail) at the moment. I did a little looking and picked something that looked decent and we’ll see what happens. I’m impressed with its ability to maintain an even temp (also purchased a couple thermometer/hygrometer units) but the humidity is ridiculous (doesn’t even have a built in hygrometer). I started, as per the very inadequate instructions, to fill a water bottle and place it in the provided attachment thingy (and spilled everywhere as that contraption isn’t very well designed but I guess I won’t need it!). It was running 80-85 percent! So I removed the water attachment and dried everything up and it was still running 65 percent for several hours with only the residual moisture in the bottom. I opened it a few times and gradually it came down. I then let it run overnight and it was 25 percent in the morning. I add 5 mls water with a syringe and it then ran in the sixties, so dried it out and opened a few more times until I hit the mid forties. I did throw in some fertile chicken fridge eggs (no idea on age!) just to see what happens (that and I want to see how easy it is to candle white chicken eggs after doing quail), it is only day 2 and 8/9 are developing, go figure! Any ideas on how to equalize the humidity in this beast? It does not have any sort of vent or air holes either. I was thinking add a ml every morning or so and see how that works, I’d probably do dry incubation if the humidity didn’t want tank below 25 percent at times if run dry. Any other ideas greatly appreciated, you do get what you pay for!

 

[NatJ]

Any ideas on how to equalize the humidity in this beast? It does not have any sort of vent or air holes either. I was thinking add a ml every morning or so and see how that works, I’d probably do dry incubation if the humidity didn’t want tank below 25 percent at times if run dry. Any other ideas greatly appreciated, you do get what you pay for!

I would probably do dry incubation for the first week or so, then check the size of the air cells by candling. (Ther are charts on the internet showing what size the air cell should be at certain stages of development.)

If the air cells are fine at that point, go dry for another week. If they are still fine, let it stay dry until lockdown, then add water to raise the humidity for hatching.

If you run it dry and the air cells are too big after one week, then you need to raise the humidity. But at that point, getting the humidity a bit too high is probably fine (if they lost a bit too much water in the first week, they need to lose less in the second week.)

If they can incubate with no added water, that will be much easier than trying to stabilize the humidity at any other level!

For adding water if you need to, maybe put in a piece of wet sponge. Use a smaller or a larger sponge depending on how much humidity you need to add (bigger sponge, more surface area, more humidity.) Then re-wet the sponge at whatever intervals it seems to need.

 

[Susan Skylark]

Thanks, apparently adding exactly 3 mls of water twice a day works well on this model too, but the sponge thing is worth a try as well.

 

[NatJ]

Thanks, apparently adding exactly 3 mls of water twice a day works well on this model too, but the sponge thing is worth a try as well.

I'm glad you found a method that works

 

[Katiedidnt58]

I bought a cheaper incubator on Amazon l had recently used a borrowed nurture right 360 for two batches of quail eggs. I really liked the 360 but didn’t plan on spending quite that much (plus a quail rail) at the moment. I did a little looking and picked something that looked decent and we’ll see what happens. I’m impressed with its ability to maintain an even temp (also purchased a couple thermometer/hygrometer units) but the humidity is ridiculous (doesn’t even have a built in hygrometer). I started, as per the very inadequate instructions, to fill a water bottle and place it in the provided attachment thingy (and spilled everywhere as that contraption isn’t very well designed but I guess I won’t need it!). It was running 80-85 percent! So I removed the water attachment and dried everything up and it was still running 65 percent for several hours with only the residual moisture in the bottom. I opened it a few times and gradually it came down. I then let it run overnight and it was 25 percent in the morning. I add 5 mls water with a syringe and it then ran in the sixties, so dried it out and opened a few more times until I hit the mid forties. I did throw in some fertile chicken fridge eggs (no idea on age!) just to see what happens (that and I want to see how easy it is to candle white chicken eggs after doing quail), it is only day 2 and 8/9 are developing, go figure! Any ideas on how to equalize the humidity in this beast? It does not have any sort of vent or air holes either. I was thinking add a ml every morning or so and see how that works, I’d probably do dry incubation if the humidity didn’t want tank below 25 percent at times if run dry. Any other ideas greatly appreciated, you do get what you pay for!

I think I have the same incubator. M16? This is my 1st time, I'm just following my nose. Day 14 yesterday, candled last nite and thought the egg cell looked far too small. Should I just get ridve that stupid bottle, mine spilled everywhere too. How much water instead do you think? They're chicken eggs by the way. I'm freaking bout this

 

[NatJ]

I think I have the same incubator. M16? This is my 1st time, I'm just following my nose. Day 14 yesterday, candled last nite and thought the egg cell looked far too small. Should I just get ridve that stupid bottle, mine spilled everywhere too. How much water instead do you think? They're chicken eggs by the way. I'm freaking bout this

If the air cell is way too small, try running the incubator with no added water for the next few days to let the eggs dry down a bit and the air cell get bigger.

You will need to raise the humidity again when the eggs actually hatch, to help the chicks avoid getting stuck to the shell.

 

[Susan Skylark]

Ditch the water bottle asap! Not only is it a mess but the humidity runs in the eighties! Definitely run it dry until lockdown, then I just put in a couple pop bottle caps with water in them and refilled occasionally, humidity was running 70-80 even with that! You could also put 5-10 mls into the water tube thing (that attaches to the bottle) with a syringe 3-4 times daily so you wouldn’t have to open during lockdown but the humidity stays so high and rebounds so quickly it hasn’t been an issue. I do like the incubator besides the humidity issues! May try dry hatch next and see what happens.

 

[Katiedidnt58]

Thank you for that, yep, I got rid of the bottle soon as I got home yesterday. I hope it's not too late.. Put some water in at day 18? Or the end of day 17? Certainly I'll do things different next time. The instructions for this incubator are useless alright. How to set it up and that's it! My brahma girls usually go broody all the time but now I want to hatch some eggs, not at all. Funny that

 

[Susan Skylark]

MacDonald’s Law: Murphy was an optimist!

But happily eggs are pretty forgiving and tougher than people think (they can survive freezing temps and boiling sands though not if they happen to freeze or boil, the birds do something after all, there is even a species that builds a giant compost heap (brush turkey?) to incubate the eggs!). I’m not even sure what lockdown is for chickens but you could probably get away with adding no moisture until 2 days before internal pipping (day 19?). You want to get that air cell enlarged. Before the shell cracks on the first egg you want sixty percent plus moisture in the air. For next hatch I’d get an external hygrometer thermometer thing (like for reptile enclosures). I got a 3 pack on Amazon tor $10, and it makes all the difference in hatching regardless of incubator type! They aren’t highly calibrated but comparing all three you can get a good ballpark figure. Even if you have a rotten hatch, please try again, don’t let it discourage you (yes I am an enabler of addicts!). My next hatch I’m going to try a complete dry hatch and see how it goes (currently day 8 on another experimental group).

 

[NatJ]

I’m not even sure what lockdown is for chickens

Lockdown usually starts about day 18 for chickens (set the eggs on day 0, the next day is day 1, and so forth. They hatch on about day 21, plus or minus a few days in some cases.)

but you could probably get away with adding no moisture until 2 days before internal pipping (day 19?). You want to get that air cell enlarged. Before the shell cracks on the first egg you want sixty percent plus moisture in the air.

That sounds as good as anything I can think of.

But happily eggs are pretty forgiving and tougher than people think

Yes, that is something that many of us have reason to be happy about!