[lord flynn]

how many duck eggs in a Brinsea 20DX please?




I've not incubated duck eggs before- I know they require more humidity but is Scotland humid enough to run dry until day 24(?)

[HesterF]

Duck eggs vary in size but 12 for sure and maybe 16 if they're slim or you want to turn by hand.

It's been a funny year for hatching duck eggs and I've not had great success. I've just hatched nine this week out of 19 fertile eggs (all still alive a few days before hatch and two that pipped and then died after that before I could help them out). Generally I think they actually need lower humidity that chicken eggs because they seem to have thicker membranes but by this time in the season the membranes may be thinner. So you might be fine running dry until day 24 but the best thing to do is to keep an eye on the weight loss and if they're losing too much weight (they need to lose 14% of their starting weight over the 28 days), increase the humidity. The fertility of duck eggs also starts to drop from June onwards so if you can squeeze a few more into the incubator, it might be worth it.

H

[lord flynn]

thanks HesterF-tbh I only really have space for a few ducks so any extras would be up for sale, I've just had so many problems with postal eggs that I know its worth putting as many in as you can. Not fully made up my mind yet as have just been offered some hen eggs from a great line of Marsh Daisies-which means the duck eggs would have to wait until beginning of July so it might not be worth the effort? This is a hard to come by breed up here.




I remember ducklings being messy and growing fast-do they need heat for 6 weeks, how soon could they go outside (in a sheltered run with heat in house) this time of year?

[HesterF]

I think July would be too late for good fertility. I can't remember when my ducks stopped laying last year but it must be around then - the geese are already in moult.

And, yes, messy and fast growing. They don't need heat for 6 weeks at this time of year. I've got two week old goslings at the moment and they're out in a run by day and come back in at night for heat. Ducklings might be a tad slower but when it's 24 degrees outside (which it was today) I'm far less worried than I am when it's still low teens.

H

[lord flynn]

thankyou-very helpful, I appreciate it.


now (don't shoot me ) anyone incubated hen and duck eggs at the same time and hatched them in the same incubator? i.e. put the hen eggs in at the duck eggs day 7? apparently it can be done..

[HesterF]

My first hatch this year I set both duck and chicken eggs in the same incubator with a second for hatching. I found the chicken eggs lost too much weight running at the same humidity as the duck eggs so I had to move them across to the other incubator sooner than planned. Might not be true now - but it is a risk.

[lord flynn]

well, have gone for the duck eggs  should get them in a couple of days. I don't wash my hens eggs before incubation-I know duck eggs are more porous so should I? And is turning them in the octagon sufficient? (the cradle is knacked so I do it manually).


haven't yet told OH-who has been very good about the dozen chicks currently in a brooder in the living room!


weirdly,for Lanarkshire at least, its been relatively dry here humidity wise. After 2/3 years of problems with too much humidity I felt the last incubation may have been affected by too little.

[twizzel]

 I run my incubator at 60% humidity for ducks and put up to 80-80% for hatching and last 3 days, hatched 5 this way a couple of months back and got 12 in the incubator now 2 weeks in cooking away nicely .