[AnnaB]

Sorry anxious mother hen again
Have a Brinsea incubator with the automatic humidity machine, first time I've used it.
Came home this evening and a chick that had pipped yesterday pm was only a little further on
I picked at the shell a bit and the membrane was dry and crispy and very stuck to the chick, it was struggling like mad.
A bit of warm water seems to have sorted the problem and chick now drying ....seems knackered ...hope its OK
Have put extra water in the bottom of the incubator to try and help the others that are pipping.
Now day 22
Am I doing the right thing
Help !

[HesterF]

What have you got the humidity set at? Max it if it isn't already. I'd also put some damp cloths in with them if it's that dry - I put kitchen towel so it lies underneath the insets and with the bottom in the water channel (if that makes sense!). My latest theory is that the fan does dry out the membranes in the Brinsea - whatever you have the humidity set at - but the only alternative is a still air hatcher which are very pricey. Meantime all you can do is make the humidity as high as possible and keep an eye on progress.

[AnnaB]

Thanks, I turned it up to 60 and I guess that wasn't high enough

Have wet kitchen roll in now fingers crossed for the 2 that are chirping at me

[mentalmilly]

I do the same as Hester and also think that my brinsea with the fan tends to dry out the membrane if they pip and there is a hole.  Have not tried to put a damp kitchen towel over the eggs though, but have thought l might try that next time. What do you think Hester?   

[lord flynn]

my brinsea doesn't have the humidity pump but agree fans dry out the membrane (not as bad in the brinsea as in my old incy which was just impossible). I also stand a washing up bowl of water close by and hang up some washing to dry (they are in the utility room). I run the incy dry except for the last 3 days and have had good hatches with it so far.

[HesterF]

I've tried putting the damp cloth over the top of the eggs - or laying them directly on it - but I've found it dries out really quite quickly without having one end in water. I've not been hatching in my Brinsea with the humidity pump this year but tht should be better because it should ensure tht the air blowing around is always at the right humidity.

H

[Steph Hen]

A wet sponge stays damp for at least 24 hrs. Two is better in my opinion. I put them either on the bed with the eggs or on the sides, rather than underneath the bed where the water pans are; I don't find the water pans increase humidity enough for hatching.

[mentalmilly]

Great idea will try that one.

[AnnaB]

So 2 eggs hatched on their own, 3 more pipped and chirped but stayed like that for a day and obviously were dry so with great trepidation I shelled them and wet the membrane and removed it.  After looking really exhausted all 3 seem to have perked up, are still scraggy looking from the sticky goo but seem fine tonight.
Candled the other 6 eggs (some were older than I would have liked when I put them in so didn't expect them all to hatch) and 2 had still dark things and the others were duds.
When I broke the eggs today there were 2 perfectly formed chicks that had failed to pip......awww ....knowing my luck bet they were girls.

So next time much more water.

Will investigate where the RH sensor is because the water drips in to a blotting paper like channel and if its close to the sensor it will have no relevance to the rest of the incubator.

Will try wet kitchen roll and sponges next time, you live and learn.

Now just need to pluck up courage to put them under the broody hen, they are currently under a broody plate.

[mentalmilly]

I put mine under the broody as soon as they dry out and so far have had no problems.

[Marches Farmer]

Sue and Sean Hammon (now retired from The Wernlas Collection, where they used to hatch dozens of rare breed chicks every week) advised me never to add water - they thought that the humidity in our damp island was high enough. Among my incubators I still have a Brinseas Octagon which is in a north-facing unheated room in one of the farm buildings. I keep the vent open halfway all through hatching, don't add water and only open the incubator once a day to removed hatched chicks.  Every time you open it the temperature and humidity change dramatically.  Just had a 100% hatch.

[Victorian Farmer]

You need to keep records day 22 not wright more heat check the thermomiter whith a probe and yes dry hatch then 60 percent. Iff you done this for a living you would have to.get it right .The comments from members is dead right .we need  a section on hatching .There is so much to this and  records need to be kept.

[waddy]

How did the weight loss go before pipping? They need room to manouever in order to get in the right position and pip. They need to lose at least 11% by pipping (more for ducks and geese). A little over is better than under. Larger eggs have a smaller surface area to volume and so tend to lose less weight. These I know could be the problematic ones for hatching. I also have a Brinsea with auto turn and humidity and have learned to run it dry until pipping to give them room or they can end up fully developed but stuck or even with deformed legs. Yes the fan does tend to dry the membranes once pipped so you need to be ready with a wet flannel and help a little if necessary but only if they are dry or have been stuck for a good few hours. Even then help as little as possible and leave them to finish the job. On our last hatch (six West of England geese) the last egg hadn't pipped externally nearly three days after the first one although we could see it had pipped internally and was alive. We made a tiny hole above the center of the air sac so it wouldn't run out of air and then left it to pip naturally and finish itself keeping an eye on the membranes bearing in mind we had made a hole where they could dry out. One of the others had pipped externally but made no further progress. We knew from the less than ideal weight loss and candling to observe the air space it probably had no room and so after a good few hours we helped out a little leaving it to finish the job (this is important as they could still be absorbing the yolk at this stage. Getting them out too early can kill the chick and some just take longer than others). Good luck with your chicks and your next hatch!


 



Helen

[AnnaB]

I didn't weigh them at all, should I do that next time ?  They were a tight fit in the shell.
They are Dorkings and quite big.  2 years ago we hatched chicks in a borrowed incubator they had Dorking mums and a mongrel smaller father and all but one hatched and because I didn't know what to do with the humidity I suspect it was very wet all the way through but they all hatched.  Maybe the different parentage helped.  Last year the chickens did it themselves and they all hatched.  This time it was the sole female from the last batch and the new Dorking cockerel so smaller mum and big dad but that seemed OK.
so this year I buy and expensive bit of kit and do least well.
Praying for girls this year, last 2 years 17 chicks and 16 boys.
Tandoori cockerel out of the freezer tonight ............

[waddy]

By weighing them and observing the air space you have a good idea if the humidity is right and can adjust if necessary. I have an excel spreadsheet where I keep track of temperature, humidity, weights (I weigh and candle once a week) and candling observations; with a formula to work out percentage weight loss which makes it easy to monitor. I have found it better to incubate dryer than you may find it advised in the manuals. When I did my first hatch (hens eggs) I used RH of 45% as recommended but we had some fail to hatch and one hatching with help but deformed. I will definitely run it dryer with my next batch of hens eggs. Our current hatch is our second batch of West of England goose eggs (our first lot of geese we had six out of six fertile ones hatch and they are doing great!). They are at 35% which is just above completely dry (our room is about 30%) and even this may be a bit high for the largest egg so it is a balancing act. The humidity will be turned up to 75% at pipping with me on standby with extra moisture if membranes are drying out. I put a pencil line around the air sac just before pipping which gives me an idea where they are likely to pip although you still need to be aware in case they pip at the wrong end. Just before they pip you will see the air sac dip on one side. With goose eggs which are incubated on their sides I make sure that when turning is stopped the dip is uppermost. I am still a novice at this and learn more with each hatch. I have found it can get addictive! You know you are getting obsessive when you come down in the middle of the night with a torch to check progress!


Helen