The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: docsal on June 08, 2017, 08:48:08 pm
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So, I am incubating my first ever batch of chooks (for meat).
I bought a Brinsea Eco II mini. It seemed to be the most highly recommended for my purposes. Eggs went in last Sunday and have been turning them 4x daily, temp consistently 37.5 degrees........ until last night. It dropped to 35 degrees. Have adjusted the screw thing. Have really struggled in the last 24h. Could barely get the temp above 35 until this evening when it briefly shot up to 39!!! That was only for half an hour or so. Now seems stable again at 37.5.
Can't explain it. Lid was def on properly, turning being done quick and humidity right.
Will the embryos survive this? The first 3 days were perfect then low temp most of last 24h. I feel like a neurotic mother!!!!!!
ie Am I right to carry on the best I can with dodgy temps at times?
Thanks for any advice or comments.....
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No idea - phone Brinsea in the morning.
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Yes they should be OK. If the temp was only at 39 for 30 mins or so, it won't have been long enough to raise the eggs to that temperature, so they shouldn't be harmed. The 35 degrees for a short period certainly shouldn't affect them either.
However, obviously this doesn't bode well for the rest of the hatching period if it keeps happening. If possible I would request an exchange incubator from wherever you bought it, as your contract is with them, as obviously the one you have is not fit for purpose. But, you need to make sure you have a stable temperature with the new one before swapping over.
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Is the incubator in a cool, unheated North-facing room, with the door closed to avoid cool air when the house external doors are opened?
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I have put the incubator into a cardboard box and it seems MUCH better. Suspect draughty cottage (very - Windows missing) and ambient temperatures varying by 10 degrees day - night was too much for a fairly basic incubator. Thanks for tips!
I candled the eggs yesterday - 1 was just yolk, 1 had started to develop then failed, 1 was ambiguous and 7 had good blood vessels and mobile embryos, so pretty pleased all-in-all!