Stabilizing Incubator Temps

With less than 2 weeks to go till I'm expecting my first clutch of the season, I'm trying to get my incubator up and running smoothly. The room is sitting at roughly 85 (I'm using a small fan space heater. I set it to heat to 80 but so far the room is still warming up past 80). The incubator is using a helix DBS 1000 and it is currently set to 96. So far, this gives me a temp of 89.1. I want to incubate at 88, so I'm going to lower the setting.

Now, I've heard of people using water bottles in their incubators to keep the temperatures stable. Does this work? I'm keeping a little log of the room temp, incubator temp, and what I have it set to, to try and achieve a steady temp of 88. I'm checking every hour or so (well until I go to work anyway). The thermometer is an accurite so even if I have to go to work, I can check High and Lo temps when I get home. I want to have this incubator stable in the next day or so because I know eggs can come early.

What kind of incubator are you using and how is it heated? If its a really well insulated incubator the outside temperature shouldn't affect it that drastically I think.

Pics are always helpful. :)

It is a mini fridge using 4 inch flexwatt. (about 3' worth I think). So far its holding right around 88-89.1. I'll check it when I get home (heading to work early. Yay for hours!) and see how much it fluctuated.

This is before I added the thermostat and flexwatt. (just the fridge)

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r...e/DSCN4597.jpg

Make sure you check temps in all areas of the incubator to ensure there are no extreme high or low areas. If that thing is well insulated you really shouldn't have to adjust the temp much. Put the primary probe in a central area. Ours is usually within two tenths of a degree of the actual thermostat setting.

Do you have a fan in there to circulate air to get consistent temps throughout?

Water bottles are almost a must have in mini fridges, they are not as insulated from the outside ambient temps as you might think.
If your only using one shelf no fan is necessary but if you are using more than one shelf a fan is pretty much a have to have item.

3 feet of 4 inch flexwatt is possibly not enough heat to keep it stable, I used 2 feet of 11x12 in my fridge that size and it barely kept stable temps.
I also removed the freezer portion so I could put the flexwatt along the back wall.

Where are you measuring your temps and where is the probe for the helix?

If i set my helix for 88, my temps in the incubator will be 88, there's no gradient. also the room temp shouldn't play much of a factor unless you keep your windows open in the winter, my house is 70 and set my helix for 88 and temps are 88 in the incubator.

Where is your T-stat probe?

Where do you measure your temps?

Do you have a fan to circlate the air avoiding hot spots?

When it comes to incubator we all do it a bit differently but here is what I do

This is my incubator it holds 20 ((10) 7 quarts + (10) 15 quarts) to 30 clutches ((30) 7 quarts)

http://i954.photobucket.com/albums/a.../Incubator.png

The thermostat probe is place in the middle tub, and I have a thermometer in the top middle tub as well as the bottom middle tub the variance is less than 2 degrees from top to bottom.

I do not use water bottles in this one, water bottles helps should power goes out they will help holding the temps a little longer.

I do have a fan on the top circulating the air.