Our 2nd Incubation - 18 Eggs this time

We did things differently for this incubation period.  


Here's a list of everything:


1.  Marked eggs with X on one side and an O on the other side for turning purposes


2.  I also dated the eggs when they were laid.  We got these from our hens this time
We have a Silver laced Wyndotte, a  speckled Sussex, and a Leghorn.  The rooster is a Barred Rock.


3.  We got rid of the dimmer switch in the incubator, and replaced it with a hot water
 tank thermostat.


4.  We kept the humidity around 16% (no water needed in the incubator) until the 18th day.  On the 18th day we added 2 jars and 1 cup of water to bring it up to 59%-60% humidity.


5.  We turned the eggs 3 times a day.


This 2nd incubation period was so much less complicated then the 1st.  I think that was due mainly to the thermostat we added. The temperature still fluctuated a bit but it was so minor.


We started out with a 100 watt light bulb.  It constantly kept turning off and on due to the thermostat regulating the temp around 100 degrees. It was also really bright. We also wondered it it would burn out quicker from going off/on so much so after a week we changed it to a 75 Watt bulb.  The light was more consistent that way.


For some strange reason though the temperature would vary by a degree lower at night and in the morning and go a degree higher the rest of the time.  We learned to just barely touch the thermostat to keep it around 100 degrees.  That was the temperature we wanted to stay at consistently.


So tonight was the beginning of day 18.  We had a HUGE problem today.  Our electricity went out for over 30 minutes. Completely unexpected and we were in a panic.  The temperature dropped down to 91 degrees within minutes.  We got 3 candles, lit them, and put them in the incubator.  Within about 5-7 minutes the temp went back up to 95 degrees and then up to 97 degrees right before the power came back on.  What a relief!


Maybe next time we may get an UPS to plug the incubator into...we'll see.


Here's the picture I took less the 30 minutes ago.

We need to put something underneath the eggs so they don't roll around.  We think if they are rolling around then the chickens won't be able to actually break through the shells. Maybe that was the problem with Chicken Little. We don't know, but that is what popped into our heads.


Check back tomorrow to see if we have any new chickies!