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Hovabator?

dragonflame

dragonflame

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What do you guys think of hovabators? Wanted to get some opinions on it and if you have instructions for a good home made incubator if you think thats better! :)
 
They Suck!!!!

I really don't like them, some people have luck with them, but they are not real reliable.. I made an incubator out of an old freezer, with flexwatt heat tape as the main heat source and a good thermostat, and a digital thermometer,, The freezer has good insulation, and holds the temps well.. Go to any search engine and type in " How to build a reptile incubator" There are several kinds to pick from.. Let me know if you need any tips from mine, i will be happy to share them with you>>> Good Luck!!!! Mike
 
Hova Bators are fine as long as you use a thermostat, and with ANY incubator you need a thermostat to keep accurate temps.

The Hova Bator has a wafer type thermostat which means that once you set it at say 85 and your room temp is 80, if the room temp goes down 5 degress the incubator will too. A thermostat will prevent some of these flucuations.

Now on that note, if your room temp goes above the incubator setting even with a thermostat the incubator will still go up, a thermostat cannot prevent that. So staedy room temps are still needed but a thermostat added to the hova bator will keep more accurate temps than the wafer that it comes with.

The other issue with a Hova Bator is the space, it is limited so if you plan to haev a lot of eggs you will have to modify it with a fish cooler or get a lager type incubator or build one from scratch.
 
i was a fan of the hovas at first because of cost and simplicity. now the simplicity simply pisses me off. i have added a new thermostat to help but plan on going to my uncles plastic shop to build my own proffessional type incubater.

basically i would say that if you use a proportional thermostat on your home made incubater or even add it to a hova your on the right track.

as Wendy said room temp is also very important as ive learned when there was nowhere in my house below 90f and im trying to incubate females.
 
i will say it may be ok for beginners (my first incubater, my only for now) to keep down costs but anyone how is serious about their eggs will end looking for alternatives.
 
Very true Vinny, its a good beginner incubator because it has space limitations and is inexpensive. You just really really need touse a thermostat with it (not just the wafer it comes with) I only use the wafer as a backup, I set it at 83, then I plugged it into my thermostat set at 81, if the thermostat fails the wafer is merely a backup.

And all incubators need a thermostat!
 
If you like the idea of a Hovabator, but want something a little more user-friendly and accurate, you might want to check out www.petiatric.com They have a wide variety of incubator models that are based on the original Hovabator technology, but they're plastic, not styrofoam, and they offer a variety of built-in thermostats and controls. We started using these about 10 years ago when we raised birds, and I've been using them for my reptile eggs ever since. I especially like the Nursery Hospital 3A and 3B, but I know they're probably a lot more expensive than what some people are looking for. When we purchased ours (3 different models) years ago, they were a LOT cheaper. They also have models that fit on top of standard aquariums. Those would work well for ICU units, but I have personally never owned one. They have scales, thermometers & hygrometers too.
 
I use the hovabator incubators and like them. I plan in the future, to get some better ones or have one built. What I don't like about the hovabators is the dependency on room temperatures. They also don't hold the heat well. When I had a brief power failure while it was still chilly out the temps droped quicker then I had thought they would. We dusted off a kerosene heater and put heat packs on the incubators. I like the idea of converting a wine fridge/cooler into an incubator. Nice large area with racks, glass door for observation, good insulation.....As my hobby expands that is probably what I will go with but for now, as a beginner, the hovabator works.
 
Shannan, you can help that problem some if you put a jar of water in the incubator, the water retains heat longer and better than air alone. I tested my modifed hovabotar before I put eggs in it and I can unplug it with my room temp being 72 and it took more than 3 hours to drop from 81 down to 80.

The hova bator will not hold steady temps without a thermostat though, but the water jar does help that some too.

I used a large fish cooler to modify my hova bator and I have much more space to use a large water jar as a heat sink.
 
Thanks everyone, I'm ordering a hovabator and a thermostat today! I will consider some others later but for now I will only have one breeding female and I dont have a lot of money!
 
Emily I have had no problems with mine, thought I did modify my female hovabator but to hold more eggs really. My male hova bator only has 2-4 eggs every now and then it it so it was fine space wish.

Im sure that with the hermostat, steady room temps and the proper egg incubation medium and mixture you will be happy with it.
 
From Lancaster! We are from the other side of the river....York!
Anyways...
I do have one homemade incubator that I havent used yet. I bought it in a group deal. it is a big stryafoam cooler with a heat rock and thermostat. Makes sense to me...control the heat rock temps, control the incubator temps. Though I am not sure how reliable heat rocks are....
One day I will have my wine cooler incubator!
 
Sorry, I lied... I ended up not getting my hovabator last night... See, I want to get my male before I do it. So I decided to go broke instead by buying my fabulous european glass terarrium by exo-terra!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I thought I would never get it. I got the 18X18X24" one. (Not for leos, I'm getting some cresties someday...) Hehe I'm in love with it!
 
Those are neat little terrariums. A bit pricey but neat nonetheless. BTW your avatar told me it's bored.
 
I was just kidding. As all of you get to know me you will realize I do that a lot. Didnt mean anything. Just terribly sarcastic. I really needed to change it anyway!
 
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