Incubator help??

[AerialArtist]

Two questions: I'm using a ZooMed Reptibator and I've got the eggs in two 6-quart tubs on Hatchrite with two tiny holes in each tub and press and seal on both. The problem is I can't see the eggs through the top now and can't keep visual track of any potential problems. How often can I safely open the whole thing up without causing things to fluctuate too much? I had temps at 88-89, but they dropped for the few minutes I had it open while setting the eggs up.

Second question: Should I trust my cheap little thermometer? This is what it was reading after I got the eggs in there and the temps started climbing again. They're also climbing very slowly.

Fretful newbie here

[fatSNAKEs]

I typically check eggs once a week, but best to leave alone. Sounds like you're setup is good, although my advice is to plug the 2 holes. Tighter the seal the better. Not sure about your thermometer, but thermostat is more important. Good luck, best way to learn!

[Stewart_Reptiles]

holes in each tub and press and seal on both.

That's counter productive, you put holes in to let humidity out but put press and seal to keep humidity in .

You can have your egg setup in a tub without holes (that would be best for optimum humidity) and without press and seal.

I do not check eggs I put them in and forget about them, if your eggs are properly setup there is really no reason to check on them or open the tub until the last week of incubation.

Sure you can check on them every day if you wish too but with such a small incubator that will lose it's heat soon as it is open, especially if in a cold room, it's not the best idea.

As for thermometer get a temp gun it will be more reliable.

[Albert Clark]

Hey AA, you have a pretty decent incubator there. I use the same one. You absolutely don't need any holes in your egg tub bc essential humidity will be lost. The press n seal is a good idea to keep the higher humidity in the tub. As Deborah said you should invest in a temp gun for accurate temp readings. The zoo med thermometers only give temperature readings you will still need a hygrometer to monitor the humidity. Better to grab up a couple of Accurite therm/hygrometer off Amazon or at home depot or Lowes. I see your temperature setting is on 106f what is the internal temp of the tub? I set mine for 94f and get a internal tub temp of 87.5f - 88.5f.

[AerialArtist]

The holes are tiny, I used a 1/16th drill bit. I can get out the duct tape and seal them, though.

I've got a small temp gun, but I can also pick up a thermometer/hygrometer combo at my local reptile shop.

Exterior temp is set to 103 right now with an internal temp of 88 with slight fluctuations. I was concerned last night at how low it dropped after having the incubator open and how slowly it climbed back up(hours), but I guess a little low is better than a little high? I'll try and leave the eggs alone now, lol. Thanks for the help!

[Albert Clark]

The holes are tiny, I used a 1/16th drill bit. I can get out the duct tape and seal them, though.

I've got a small temp gun, but I can also pick up a thermometer/hygrometer combo at my local reptile shop.

Exterior temp is set to 103 right now with an internal temp of 88 with slight fluctuations. I was concerned last night at how low it dropped after having the incubator open and how slowly it climbed back up(hours), but I guess a little low is better than a little high? I'll try and leave the eggs alone now, lol. Thanks for the help!

Yeah, I would seal those holes however small. Great with the temp gun. I would double check that interior tub temp with the temp gun and a accurite therm/ hygrom. It's fine to check your eggs on a weekly basis to check the incubation medium for dryness, the eggs for integrity and any abnormalities but you have to be cognizant of the temperature fluctuation as you do this. Make sure to snap those lids back on too.

[AerialArtist]

Awesome, thanks again. Temps and humidity seem stable. I opened the incubator briefly to seal the holes and they only dropped slightly. Just to be clear, seal the whole egg tub up and they'll be fine?

[Slowcountry Balls]

I would still invest in a second thermostat. I have two thermostats on all my racks and my incubator. You don't want to risk a thermostat failure and loose everything in the incubator. Albert Clark's advice to get a hygrometer certainly will let you keep an eye on the humidity in the tubs. With tubs that are sealed, I have usually just check them weekly and added a little water in the corners as needed (I use the medium less method by the way, so the water is not in direct contact with the eggs). Like Deborah said, I would not open your incubator often because it is small and will loose heat rapidly. Do you have any water bottles in it to help stabilize temperatures?

[AerialArtist]

I would still invest in a second thermostat. I have two thermostats on all my racks and my incubator. You don't want to risk a thermostat failure and loose everything in the incubator. Albert Clark's advice to get a hygrometer certainly will let you keep an eye on the humidity in the tubs. With tubs that are sealed, I have usually just check them weekly and added a little water in the corners as needed (I use the medium less method by the way, so the water is not in direct contact with the eggs). Like Deborah said, I would not open your incubator often because it is small and will loose heat rapidly. Do you have any water bottles in it to help stabilize temperatures?

Second thermostat on the reptibator? A Herpstat?

I bought an ExoTerra combometer and have it running from the second egg box. I have a ZooMed thermometer in the first egg box. Problem is, the temps are 5 degrees apart. ZooMed is at 87 and ExoTerra is at 90. At one point it was up to 92, so I turned the incubator down 2 degrees. Incubator is at 101. I don't have any water bottles in, there's no extra room, but the temperatures seem to stay relatively stable.

I sealed off the air holes and have press-n-seal on top. Humidity is staying at 86%. There was condensation on the sides of the boxes, which seem to be lessening a bit. The eggs have dented/dimpled very slightly, so I added tablespoon of water to the edge of each tub and sealed them back up. Humidity jumped to 88% for an hour, then dropped back to 86%.

So my dilemma now is wanting to ensure the setup is right and not wanting to open anything again and disturb the eggs. Overreacting? Underreacting?? Haha.

[Slowcountry Balls]

Second thermostat on the reptibator? A Herpstat?

I bought an ExoTerra combometer and have it running from the second egg box. I have a ZooMed thermometer in the first egg box. Problem is, the temps are 5 degrees apart. ZooMed is at 87 and ExoTerra is at 90. At one point it was up to 92, so I turned the incubator down 2 degrees. Incubator is at 101. I don't have any water bottles in, there's no extra room, but the temperatures seem to stay relatively stable.

I sealed off the air holes and have press-n-seal on top. Humidity is staying at 86%. There was condensation on the sides of the boxes, which seem to be lessening a bit. The eggs have dented/dimpled very slightly, so I added tablespoon of water to the edge of each tub and sealed them back up. Humidity jumped to 88% for an hour, then dropped back to 86%.

So my dilemma now is wanting to ensure the setup is right and not wanting to open anything again and disturb the eggs. Overreacting? Underreacting?? Haha.

I probably would leave the tubs alone at this point. I just open the tubs once a week to let fresh air in and add a little water if needed. My comment about a second thermostat is to prevent a failure that causes the heating element to go fully on and thus kill your eggs. What you do is get a Herpstat or a Vivarium Thermostat, or even a Johnson or Ranco and set it to 2 degrees higher than you have set the Reptibator. Plug the Reptibator into this back up thermostat. This way if the Reptibator's thermostat fails, the backup will catch it before it gets too hot.