Microwave as an incubator??? Comments?

[Argentra]

I will be breeding my corn snakes, perhaps as early as this season, and am looking for CHEAP ideas on an incubator. I have been searching like mad and have seen various posts on coolers, old fridges and freezers, and Styrofoam crates... but has anyone ever thought to use an old microwave?

They are really well insulated, have no freon to drain, can be found really cheap at thrift stores and pawn shops, and already have a handy window for viewing. Plus, the small capacity would be great as I would only ever have at most two clutches going at any time. I have the flexwatt and could use my Ranco stat, all I would need is a fan and we have an old computer we're getting rid of soon.

So, anyone see any problems with this idea? I could probably get my hands on a small dorm fridge for @$10-30 if I had to...but there's no window.

[Nate]

hmmm...i don't think the front door is air tight though is it?

and surely there's a way for heat to escape. i dunno.. Might be worth it to experiment with it. not expensive at all

give it a go

[gncz73]

i don't see why it wouldn't work a little small though. i just wouldn't turn it on LOL

[Argentra]

small is good. Space is at a premium in this apartment.

As for air-tightness, they have latching doors for a reason. I certainly wouldn't want the waves leaking out of one of those...

And I would cut the cord off and seal it just to make sure it NEVER came on.

[dr del]

Hi,

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is that older microwaves can occasonally start to leak their radiation. The mesh in the doors and the metal body obviously help to stop that being a threat to us but , with the eggs being in the actual cooking compartment, would they be ok?


dr del

[k1ingdomKaa]

dr del, could possibly lead to a new morph or bizarre creation.

[dr del]

Hi,

Stop that you!


dr del

[Argentra]

LOL

Well, I would focus on getting a newer model with guards against that sort of thing... but I figure if it's been off for a long time, in a pawn shop or thrift store, the stuff that would have been in there would have gone.

Of course, I'm not ENTIRELY sure about how these things work, I thought that the radiation came from the workings of the machine when it's on. I was mostly focused on a microwave because it's A) smaller than a fridge, B) no freon or bad chemicals to drain or remove, and C) cheaper used than a fridge. My local pawn shop has literally dozens of the things and they are usually around $10.

So, any appliance people out there who know about these things?? I want to be sure before I go about getting one and fitting it up.

[kc261]

I am pretty sure the radiation would only be there, leaking or not, when the microwave was turned on. I don't think it has to do with any radio-active chemicals or any such thing. So as long as it doesn't get turned on, it should be safe in that regard.

Microwaves do have a fan built in. It might be too strong, and also I have NO idea how you'd go about using the fan but not turning the heating part on. Just something to think about.

I'd test it out to see how good the insulation is. I think it is possible that the insulation in microwaves has very little to do with heat/cold transfer, and instead is aimed at preventing the microwaves from escaping.

On a similar note, while I understand the "small is good" theory, the smaller it is, the harder it will be to maintain stable temperatures. Opening the door will mean losing lots of heat, and you won't have room to put water bottles which I know is a popular trick to help stabilize temps.

[Argentra]

Hmm, true on the too small thing. I was also looking at the camping cooler idea since I've seen so many threads regarding it. I would have to try putting in a window or two in the top, to avoid opening it too much for checking the eggs. That's the main reason I was interested in a microwave: the window in the door.

At any rate, I should have it figured out before too long. Thanks for all the commentary folks!