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Incubator Problems...

M

Manhattan Herps

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ok, heres the deal

i'v got 6 fertile eggs in the incubator..here all this time im thinking the temps are at 88*f..because thats what the digital thermo/hydrometer reads..

well..today i decided to check the temps INSIDE the containers and it reads 84*f..i realize this isnt a bad temp..but i was really hoping for males this time..

has anyones incubator done this? or has anyone ever checked for this?

it's really frusterating me..
 
Its always good

Tokay_Dude said:
ok, heres the deal

i'v got 6 fertile eggs in the incubator..here all this time im thinking the temps are at 88*f..because thats what the digital thermo/hydrometer reads..

well..today i decided to check the temps INSIDE the containers and it reads 84*f..i realize this isnt a bad temp..but i was really hoping for males this time..

has anyones incubator done this? or has anyone ever checked for this?

it's really frusterating me..
Click to expand...
to have one of the old mecury thermometers in there too....
 
If you read the inside temp with a temp gun or a more accurate temp reading device, I'd say it's your digital termometer. I'd invest in a higher quality digital probe thermometer. And go by only that temp. It might not be good for the eggs to keep opening the incubator to test with an accurate temp gun. I got one from Brookstone for $30. It will save the 5 highest and 5 lowest Temps and has an alarm warning if the temp goes out of a temp range that you can set. It's got a clock, timer, in\out temps. I like it becuase the display is nice and large and eay to read. When the outside\probe temp is switched on, it will display both the probe temp and probe humidity. So you can monitor both. I know it's really accurate because I tested the temps with a Craftsman temp gun. I just bought a hova-bator and the old mercury thermometer in there is hard to read. So I'm just using the one thermometer.

Here's the link:
BrookStone's Thermometer

I've got big temp changes in my apartment so I'm trying to come up with a solution to making sure that my incubator stays constant. One thing I'm trying is setting the incubator 8 - 10 higher then I want it to be, and then pluging it into a thermostat and just adjusting the thermostat temp. I'm hoping my theroy works: By setting the incubator higher then I want, itself will always kick in to make sure its trying to reach that higher temp, but the thermostat will turn it off before it does. And turn it back on when it gets to low. Pretty simple right? I hope :)

If that doesn't work that I have an idea for building a box out of ceiling insulation from Home Depot. I'm thinking the extra barrier of insulation will help to better regulater the incubator inside. The sheet of insulation is only $9 bucks and can be easily cut with a razor blade. With some tape and glue, it should be cheap and easy to make a box. with that stuff.
 
thermostat......hobovators do not have a real thermostat per say... outside termps can make it fluctuate... by pluging that hobovator into a thermostat.. either on/off or proportional... it will keep the inside temps at a very acurate temps with very minimal fluctuation plus/minus1 degree and sometimes even less than that. hobovator work great but they should be hooked up to a thermostat
 
robin, i'll definatly try that, thanks, i have an extra dimmer..maybe i can try somthing like that for now

Jay, the thermometer i have has a probe, thats how i figured the inside temps out
 
robin s. said:
thermostat......hobovators do not have a real thermostat per say... outside termps can make it fluctuate... by pluging that hobovator into a thermostat.. either on/off or proportional... it will keep the inside temps at a very acurate temps with very minimal fluctuation plus/minus1 degree and sometimes even less than that. hobovator work great but they should be hooked up to a thermostat
Click to expand...

what thermostat would you recomend? where can i get one? A link would help me out a lot , thanks in advance!
 
Where do you place the thermostat probe? In the actual egg container itself, or just in the incubator?
 
robin, i'll definatly try that, thanks, i have an extra dimmer..maybe i can try somthing like that for now
Click to expand...
a dimmer switch will work the same way the wafer thermostats will work.. once you set it any outside temp flux will cause it to go up or down that much
i just bought and recieved a johnsons thermostat i bought from DThomas at http://www.dsreptiles.com/, well worth the money spent
 
you place the probe in the incubator. i place mine directly under the heat source. if you have the right amount of ventalation temps wont build up but if there is not ventalation humidity and heat both can build up inside the incubation container, causing problems
 
my problem doesnt really have to do with fluctuations, it stays within 87-88 degrees constantly, my problem was with the temps inside the egg containers..when the probe is in the incubator it reads 88*f, when i put the probe into the egg container it read 84*f and stayed at that temp for about 4 hours, didnt change, my initial question was if this has happened to anyone else..maybe i just have a defective incubator, after i buy a rack off of Alberto i am goint to invest in another incubator, and a quality thermostat
 
mindcrash said:
Where do you place the thermostat probe? In the actual egg container itself, or just in the incubator?
Click to expand...

i had the probe just in the incubator itself, i just dedcided today to check the temps in the egg container
 
robin s. said:
a dimmer switch will work the same way the wafer thermostats will work.. once you set it any outside temp flux will cause it to go up or down that much
i just bought and recieved a johnsons thermostat i bought from DThomas at http://www.dsreptiles.com/, well worth the money spent
Click to expand...

i'll definatly look into one of those thermostats
 
Just a thought, what if you premade containers of perlite that stayed inside the incubator until you put the eggs in. Do you think that will give the perlite a jump start to heat up to the same temp as the incubator?
 
it could but you would have to worry about it drying out
dan, what are you using to incubate in... and how many holes are in it? and if you mist the containers how often you do that?
 
once i notice a female digging i get everything set up, usually mine take about 2 days to lay, another one of my first time females just laid her first pair after 2 days of digging, i got the egg container set up yesterday when i noticed her digging like crazy
 
robin, i use albeys method, i use perlite, i put 4 pinholes on the lid, i dont mist, the egg that has been in there the longest was laid on the 7th and is swelling up nicely, the others are doing well also, no denting, no sweating, i dont think i have to worry about them drying out, but i will check the humidity in the containers, when i put the probe in today the himidity stayed between 84% and 86%
 
a dimmer switch will work the same way the wafer thermostats will work.. once you set it any outside temp flux will cause it to go up or down that much
i just bought and recieved a johnsons thermostat i bought from DThomas at http://www.dsreptiles.com/, well worth the money spent
Click to expand...
it was up a little
oh and dan what type of container do you use to incubate the eggs? how full are you filling it and are there any air holes in the ontainer and if so how many?

also just by opening up the incubator and then in the time you open the top of your eggs the temp can lose 4 degrees unless you were leaving the probe inside while the incubator was closed for some time, to regulate
 
i dont exactly know what the containers are called..but they are rectangle shaped with clear tops, i put 4 pinholes in the top, the container itself is about 2 inches high without the top, i fill it about and inch and a half

the incubator was closed while the probe was in, i did have to take the top off the egg container to actually put the probe in, closed it, closed the incubator and let it sit for about a half hour
 
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