Topic of the Week - Incubating eggs

[Silexian]

Thanks for that link; it was really helpful reading. I am about to incubate my first batch of Pilgrim goose eggs and the hatching manual with my incubator (a Lyon Turn-X from GQF) said to run it at about 50 to 60% humidity right away, whereas I have read different things here on BYC that say to run around 20 to 30%. So I was confused. I think I will start by following the manufacturer's recommendations but monitoring the air sac and adjusting from there.

I have several Turn-X incubators and have been using them for many years. I have had great hatch rates using the manufacturers recommended settings for humidity. I run all of mine at 50%. Depending on your location. You may need somewhat higher or lower humidity than what works for me. It is a good starting point though.

 

[gimmie birdies]

The worst incubators. From my experience and why.

The first incubator I ever bought was the little bubble incubator. You can only fit 3 chicken eggs in it, and the middle egg is the egg that would get heated enough. You lose the heat every time you lift the lid to check on eggs. The cord was bent tight from being coiled. If you ever bumped the cord, the whole incubator would get knocked over. And if you pop the top off to check eggs, the mesh, and every thing in the incubator would roll about and you have to set it up again. The little bulb gets surprisingly hot, so you have to watch that too. If I were to have this one again, what I would do different is tape down the cord so it would not flip the incubator, and put it in a box to hold the heat better. or in a small cabinet. You would want your $10 back pretty quick on this one.
Although I wish I kept it so I could play with it, it went in to the garbage out of frustration.

Chinese Yellow top incubator some times with a diff bottom same machine.

I bought mine used, and the guy who sold it to me said he only hatched with it one time. He was a semi-friend, so I don't think he was lying, it looked new. I had a really good hatch the first time I used it. Worked great. (had just barnyard mixes in incubator.) My next hatch I wanted to use on my fancy shipped eggs I ordered. One week in my yellow top decided it didn't want to get above 35C and I had to order a diff incubator, and set up a DYI, in the mean time. Boy was I mad.

DYI are nice, and I have had luck with them but I have been using factory foam incubators lately they are reliable and I don't have to turn eggs.

I have been using 2 incubators currently. One is a farm innovator still air foam incubator, no turner, and a little giant foam incubator with a fan and turner. One thing I like about both, is they keep what ever temp you want them to keep. I also like having a back up.

 

[Miller79]

I have been following this thread, I started 9 eggs in the incubator on 11/7/2021
this is what I got : https://www.chewy.com/jumbl-fully-automatic-digital-egg/dp/306496
the last time I did this was 4-H in 4th grade! I am driving my husband crazy with my new love for these chickens that were left behind when my sister moved. I will keep updating if there is an interest

 

[589205]

Im plaining on hatching eggs this spring. I was wondering how to pick the right egg to put into the incubator. My husband wants use to try the one at tractor supply (the cheap one until we get good at it)

Choose the cleanest eggs you have. (*Collecting within 7 days because any eggs older than a week tend to decrease chance of successful hatch*) If some or all are dirty or covered in more than a dime-sized amount of dirt or feces then you have the option of either doing your best to remove the debris as carefully as possible without interfering with the eggs natural protective membrane or wash them all in a homemade sanitary solution of your choice, which you can easily find here on BYC if you search through threads. You don’t want to incubate any oddly-shaped eggs or eggs with very visible cracks/damage to them as they risk contaminating the rest.

 

[589205]

Im plaining on hatching eggs this spring. I was wondering how to pick the right egg to put into the incubator. My husband wants use to try the one at tractor supply (the cheap one until we get good at it)

Are you familiar with egg candling?

 

[Silexian]

Just going by some post I have seen on the site. If you are going to try hatching eggs for your first time. Do not buy an off brand incubator that you know absolutely nothing about. A week before your purchased eggs arrival. On that note. It is best to stay away from pricey shipped eggs until your are more familiar with using a tried and true, reliable incubator. That you have had many successful hatches with.

 

[Junejones]

Are you familiar with egg candling?

A little bit not a hole lot

 

[Kkoleckar]

Warning to all. Do not buy the “Devopet” incubator. Its fans are. Mounted right under the lid with very little head space so I’ve have two chicks so far, right after hatching, stick their little foot up into the fan and dang near cut their toes off on the fan blades. Horrible design. Their candel light is so dim it doesn’t even work for candeling. If you open the lid and the temp drops, you have to reset the whole unit in order to get the temp to go back up. The humidity levels are uncontrollable no matter what you do and there is no light to see I inside the incubator. The auto rotate also doesn’t rotate enough either. Overall a terrible experience with this incubator.

 

[Kortniruth]

Brinsea is one of the most touted. It's really true you get what you pay for with incubators. Many of us can't afford these beauties though, plus the capacity is much lower. The hovabators are good midline incubators. I recently bought the 1583 which is the non digital version of the 1588. Love the picture window and the thing holds temps beautifully. I don't need the digital, so the 1583 fit my needs perfect at a less cost. No matter what incubator you go with, the important part is double checking all thermometers and hygrometers for accuracy. A thermometer that is off can compromise your hatch.

For 2 1/2 years I incubated very successfully in an old LG 9200. Boy, it was a lot of work monitoring and adjusting temps, but it can be done. I also prefer hand turning instead of using the automatic turner. I started with the turner and switched to hand turning on my 3rd hatch.

As for humidity, I think we get too caught up in numbers. Like banty said people use so many different ranges successfully. Mostly because there are just too many variables that affect humidity's effect on different eggs. The trick is finding what works for you, but even then, eggs from different sources can need adjustments. I'm a big advocate of low humidity incubation for standard eggs if the hatcher is not in high elevations. But.... with that, I am a firm believer of monitoring air cells to know what your humidity is doing for your eggs. I think if more new hatchers understood the importance of humidity and what it does to eggs instead of just getting a number and trying it, success would be found much quicker. I use this method: http://letsraisechickens.weebly.com...anuals-understanding-and-controlling-humidity. I know quite a few people that have been helped by learning this method. Dry incubation as it is often (and to my thinking wrongly) named is nothing new, but when you add the explanation of humidity and a way to monitor it, is one of the best methods for many.

I think another important part of hatching is understanding that there is no one right way to do it. People are so narrow minded that because they have success doing it "this" way, that everyone they attempt to help should do it "that" way. I think saying "you should" or "you shouldn't" should be replaced with, "in my experience" or "it is my belief" because many of us break the traditional "rules" of hatching with the same success as others. If we embraced the differences of hatching techniques and methods and offer our experiences as possibilities instead of certainties, I think we would be of much more value to new hatchers that we are trying to help.

I love reading your posts. I like how informative they are and how you stress no right or wrong, but more in my experience. Thank you!

 

[kalerae15]

I’m going to be starting my first hatch process tomorrow after I pick up my last breed of chicken eggs. I’ve had my incubator running since yesterday (nurture right 360) and have a hygrometer/thermometer. Temp is between 99.5-100. Humidity is at about 50-55%.
Am I at a good spot number wise for humidity and temp? I know everyone has a different opinion but I’m terrified of drowning the chicks from too much humidity.