Hovabator Help

[Pink Lady Exotics]

OK, so in anticipation of Angel's impending clutch (hopefully), I bought a Hovabator (the version with the fan). I put it together despite much confusion from the instructions, but now I need to know what else I need to do with it.

It says to lay the eggs directly on the mesh, but obviously I don't do that since they need to be in vermiculite/perlite. How do you guys bed your eggs in your Hovabators or other incubators?

Do they need to be turned like bird eggs?

Do you trust the thermostat on the Hovabator or do you use a secondary theromstat to control it? If you use a secondary thermostat, how do you have it setup?

Any other tips/info would be very much appreciated. She hasn't gone into her pre-lay shed yet but she's darkening up, so it's probably impending. I still have time, but want to get it up and running so I can see how it works and make adjustments.

[hhmoore]

It says to lay the eggs directly on the mesh, but obviously I don't do that since they need to be in vermiculite/perlite. How do you guys bed your eggs in your Hovabators or other incubators?
Some people put the incubation media directly in the Hovabator, but most use some sort of container.

Do they need to be turned like bird eggs?
NO, that will kill them. Place the eggs in the incubation media in the same position they are found. Sometimes it helps to mark the top before you move them. Depending on how quickly you find the eggs, they may already have adhered to each other. When this happens, it is easiest to just deal with them as a group...of course, that may mean last minute changes in the incubation container, and you may have some difficulty getting the new one inside the hovabator. Most people that I know that use Hovabators for python eggs try to separate them...putting a few in a couple different containers.

[COLOR=deeppink]Do you trust the thermostat on the Hovabator or do you use a secondary theromstat to control it? If you use a secondary thermostat, how do you have it setup?
Hovabator thermostats do not provide good temperature control. They would be better compared to a rheostat/dimmer. Once you get the temp set, you will be basically okay as long as there is no fluctuation in room temperature. You are much better off using in in conjunction with a quality thermostat. Plug the heating element into the thermostat's outlet. Place the probe alongside the egg container.

[Lizardeaux]

It says to lay the eggs directly on the mesh, but obviously I don't do that since they need to be in vermiculite/perlite. How do you guys bed your eggs in your Hovabators or other incubators? From JenHarrison

I put mine in tupperware dishes with a mixture of vermiculite from Lowes and perlite from walmart. Just damp enough that if you squeeze it water doesn't come out. I also put the tiniest 3 pin holes on top. I have digital thermometers in mine like you get at the pet store. I put the probe in with the eggs in one of my tupperware and I have never had a problem. :thumbsup:

[hhmoore]

The problem with putting the probe in the egg container is that you tend to get more temp drift when either the container or incubator is opened. Being inside the egg box, with the incubation media and eggs, the probe is somewhat isolated from the outer environment. The change outside the box happens quicker, and by the time the temps inside the box equilibrate, you can have a temp shift of several degrees. This is more problematic when the incubator is trying to come back up to temperature. Everything inside the egg box serves as thermal mass, and helps keep the temperature fairly consistent...by the time the inside is heated to the desired temperature, the outer area is several degrees warmer (which will result in higher temperatures in the egg box after equilibration). Depending on the species you are working with, this CAN be cause lower hatch rates.

*if you manage to leave the incubator and boxes alone, and don't open them, there should be no problem with placing the probe inside the egg chamber.

[Clay Davenport]

Let me just preface my comments by saying Hovabators suck and I hate them. I find myself unable to discuss using them without mentioning that.

Now then, I mainly wanted to comment on the fact you got the turbo fan model. I would suggest you not use the fan. In such a small space, the temperature will not stratify, and running the fan can cause the eggs to dry out at a faster rate.

As was said, the wafer thermostats on the hovabators aren't worth anything at all really. They will do a fair job of maintaining the temperature if the room it is in is very stable as well. However a fluctuating room temperature will wreak havoc with the temperature settings of the hovabator.

Considering the size of a ball python egg, if your female lays a good sized clutch you may have trouble using an incubation container inside the hovabator. Especially if the clutch adhered in a pile before you got to them. They make a spacer that increases the height inside, which I'm sure you could make yourself out of sheet styrofoam.
Five or six years ago I incubated a clutch of taiwan beauty eggs in a hovabator. Her eggs were the size of ball eggs and there were 18 of them in this particular clutch, adhered in a pyramid of sorts.
I filled the hovabator with sphagnum and didn't use a container at all. The problem was due to the height of the pile, the top three eggs were too close to the heating element and as a result were actually incubated at higher temps. All three of these hatched with kinking, while the remainder of the clutch was fine.
Just wanted to relate this experience in case it became pertinent in your situation this season.

It says to lay the eggs directly on the mesh, but obviously I don't do that since they need to be in vermiculite/perlite. How do you guys bed your eggs in your Hovabators or other incubators?
Of course these directions were written with bird eggs in mind, but you could actually incubate python eggs in this manner.
An incubation media is not an absolute requirement. Eggs require a specific temperature and humidity in order to hatch. The method by which these are provided is not important. You could actually lay the eggs on the mesh and put water in the bottom. Several people have done experiments with media free incubation techniques, some using very unconventional methods like suspending the eggs in a mesh hammock over standing water.
That being said, I wouldn't recommend you embark on experimental techniques at this stage, just wanted to mention it was possible.
I'm thinking of doing a few different things using colubrid eggs as test subjects just to see if differing methods can produce equal results.

[Scott Nellis]

If you can't afford to buy (or build) a quality incubator, you can get by with a very cheap "emergency" incubator using an insulated shipping box, a section of 11" heat tape, and a quality thermostat. Just set up the heat tape in the bottom of an insulated shipping box (I used a big Mouse Factory box) with a thick piece of cardboard (or hardboard) between the heat tape and the foam insulation. Put a couple of small dowels or sticks on top of the tape to act as risers and then put your shoebox (with lid on) full of eggs and moistened medium on top of that. Hook up the heat tape to your thermostat and put the probe inside...some say inside the egg container, some say outside (maybe taped to the side of the egg container). Close up the shipping box (put in top piece of foam and just close the flaps) and set your thermostat and you're done. I used this method to successfully incubate a clutch of 5 ball python eggs last year since I didn't have a nice incubator build yet.

Some people have great success using large insulated coolers instead of boxes. Same idea, different box.

Since I had the box laying around (from a recent frozen rodent order), all I needed was the heat tape, connecting clips and electrical cord, and a good thermostat (I used the Spyder Robotics basic model)...maybe $9 for the heat tape and cord and around $100 for the thermostat?

Just my $.02 worth.

Scott Nellis

[Pink Lady Exotics]

I bought a Hovabator because I have no need for a larger incubator yet and do not have the time/skills/tools needed to turn a small refrigerator into one. As for insulated shipping boxes, I used all the ones I had for shipping snakes. Don't have any laying around as I don't use frozen rodents. Plus me + flexwatt + trying to figure out electrical connections = disaster. :rofl: I also have talked to many people who have used Hovabators successfully, so I went with one for my first clutch. :thumbsup:

Thanks for the advice all, hopefully I can get it up and working properly before they arrive.

[hhmoore]

I have been pretty open about my feelings regarding using Hovabators for snake eggs, esp python eggs, in other threads...but I didn't see any need to bash Jen's choice AFTER she had made it (had she asked first, it would have been a different story, lol). She has what she has, I figured the best course was to help her get the most out of it. She will come to her own conclusions about the product later.

For the record, a hovabator is a suitable box for storing colubrid eggs while waiting for them to hatch...as long as the shelf is big enough that it doesn't fall off.

[Lizardeaux]

Good Luck Jen! I think your gonna do fine with the hovabator. I still use mine and I have the big double door fridge size incubator too.
You can go bigger and better after you have more of a quanity of eggs. :thumbsup:

[Clay Davenport]

Well, I will admit a hovabator is much better than my first incubator. Many years ago I used an uninsulated rubbermaid sweater box with two heat rocks in it.
It was not on a thermostat, so it required close monitoring. The temperature was regulated by taking one of the heat rocks in and out of the box. :rofl:
I did hatch a good number of day geckos in this setup though.
I've also hatched a lot of colubrids in a hovabator before I started using converted refridgerators about 10 years ago.

[Scott Nellis]

I just thought that since some people were advising her to get a good thermostat to replace the wafer thing in a Hovabator, why bother with the Hovabator in the first place? Like I stated, an insulated box will work just as well and cost much less than a Hovabator. But since she already bought the thing, I guess my point was moot. Again, I'm sorry if it seemed like I was bashing anyone, that wasn't my intention.

Scott Nellis