![]() Whether you're a beginner or an experienced chicken farmer, finding the right incubator is crucial for a successful hatching experience. In this article, we'll be discussing the best small incubator for chicken eggs. Look for an incubator that is straightforward to set up and clean after use.Īre you tired of buying chicken eggs every week and want to start hatching your own? Do you want to start a small business selling chickens or simply enjoy the satisfaction of witnessing the hatching process? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you're in the right place. Finally, ease of use and maintenance should also be considered. Look for a model with accurate temperature monitoring and automatic adjustments to ensure the eggs are kept at the ideal temperature throughout the hatching process. Temperature control is another crucial factor. However, if you're looking to hatch larger batches, you'll need a bigger incubator. If you only plan on hatching a few eggs at a time, a smaller incubator should suffice. Before making a purchase, there are a few factors to consider.įirstly, size is important. However, with so many different models on the market, it can be overwhelming to choose the best one for your needs. Consider investing in a heat recovery system.If you're looking for a reliable way to hatch chicken eggs at home, investing in a small incubator is a great option.Perform a cost-benefit analysis within these specifications, to establish the most advantageous combination of temperature, relative humidity and energy usage to achieve the highest hatchability and optimum chick quality.Pre-condition hot, humid outside air to the inlet specifications recommended by your incubator supplier, to reduce its moisture content.Aim for a linear rather than non-linear weight loss profile, to prevent insufficient weight loss that will inevitably arise from failing to achieve the low %RH set points required during the last days of incubation using a NLWL-profile.Additional, albeit reduced, energy costs will still increase the cost price of the day-old-chick – but this does give the hatchery manager an additional tool for better controlling hatchability and chick quality in a challenging, hot and humid climate. A heat recovery system, which uses energy present in the return water from the incubator’s cooling circuit, is an effective way to reduce heating costs. It requires energy, both for the cooling needed for dehumidification and also to subsequently re-heat the air to a recommended inlet temperature of 25☌ (+/- 2 ☌). There is a downside to treating hot, humid outside air in this way. Again using the above example, each kilogram of air entering the incubator now has the capacity to extract 21 – 12 = 9 gram of water. Outside air of 30☌ / 75%RH can be climatized to, for example, 25☌ / 60%RH, which significantly reduces the water content of the air from 20g H2O/kg to approx. It is possible, at least partially, to overcome these challenges and minimize the need for high ventilation rates early in incubation, by optimizing the temperature and relative humidity of inlet air using an Air Handling Unit. ![]() In this scenario, a linear weight loss profile based on a constant RH% of approx. This is because when RH% set point inside the setter is, for example, 45%RH, the inlet air (30☌ / 75%RH=20g H2O/kg) already contains more water (37.5 ☌/45 %RH = approx. Such low levels of RH% simply cannot be achieved, even when air valves are 100% open. less than 45%) during the second half of incubation, is not feasible in hot, humid conditions. ![]() This requires a lot of ventilation, starting early in incubation, to allow the hatching eggs to lose sufficient weight.Īdopting a non-linear weight loss profile that starts incubation with high RH% (by sealing the setter for several days), then compensating for low weight loss by applying a low RH% (ie. However, using the example above, each kilogram of air entering the incubator can extract only 21g – 20g = 1 gram of water. This limits evaporation from the eggs, making it impossible to achieve 12% weight loss.īy ventilating the incubator with fresh air, evaporating water from the eggs can be removed via the outlet, while maintaining an optimal incubation climate. With the setter’s air valves closed, evaporating water from the eggs will increase both the absolute (gH2O/kg air) and relative (RH%) humidity of air in the setter. If we assume a setter climate of 37.5☌ and, with the aim of optimising weight loss from fresh egg weight at transfer of 12%, we choose a set point of 50% RH, the air in the setter will contain approx. For example, a moderately hot and humid climate of 30☌ with 75%RH at sea level contains approx.
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