Hobby level incubators made by Little Giant
Each incubator holds 42 chicken eggs
I run two incubators at once, one with water in it and the other dry
If an egg dries out too quick during incubation, it gets placed into the incubator with water.
each incubator shown, has an automatic egg turner in it "optional"
These are both Forced Air units, which means a fan circulates the air inside, keeping an even temperature.
These are the egg cups which hold the eggs during incubation
each unit comes with a thermometer, pre-marked at 99.5 deg. F.
The styrofoam units keep temperatures great, but can be hard to clean well
this disposable liner may help keep the incubator clean
other parts of the incubator may be hard to clean out
This is why I only incubate in these units and then move eggs to the Brower Top Hatch for hatching.
These eggs have been sanitized and are ready for the incubator
I'm incubating these eggs for a friend who doesn't want to start his 800 egg incubator yet
Here I'm using a calibrated thermometer to verify accurate temperatures
This is the indicator light and control, turn right to increase heat, left to decrease
When starting the first time, turn to the right so the light remains on
watch the thermometer through the window until it reaches 99.5 deg. F
when it gets to 99.5 deg. turn left until the light goes out, your temperature is now set
with clean hands, hold each egg up to a bright light, in a dark room
turn eggs very slow, inspect for cracks or problems, look at every egg
this egg is showing a crack, you should not incubate cracked or damaged eggs
small spots of light passing through the shell are ok, like this shell
always place eggs pointed end down, same is true when storing eggs
this is a bantam chicken egg, I'm comparing it to a large Rhode Island Red egg
always turn incubators off when opening, or they will overheat trying to keep up
because this is a forced air unit (has a fan), all the eggs will be equal in temperature
this turner motor and fan motor both generate heat when running. the incubator should not be in a hot room
after closing, turn incubator back on and allow time to warm up the eggs, do not adjust heat
I always remove air plugs during incuation, you may need to leave them if you have very dry air
If using this automatic egg turner, it will have to be removed on the 18th day of incubation
place eggs on the bottom screen to hatch, after removing the turner, they will not be turned afte the 18th day
if eggs will be turned by hand, mark them with an x on one side and 0 on the other, use a rounded pencil
eggs will have to be turned three times a day minimum, with a different side up over night
have the incubator on a level surface, or the eggs will roll to one side and not stay put
remember to wash your hands before and after handling the eggs, skin oils can block the pores in the egg shell
remember, these eggs were sanitized to help control bacteria in the incubator