Wine cooler incubator

[akaangela]

Ok, I finally found an wine cooler that would fit in my space. I have been looking for the last few years and couldn't find anything for free so I ended up buying a used one. Now my question is two fold.

One: If weight doesn't matter do I have to take the guts out?

Second: If I drill a hole in the side/back won't it let cold air in?

I would really like to put a light in it as well and I am thinking I would need a fan. So does that mean I have to put a hole in it for each item?

I paid $75 for the wine cooler and I have the flexwatt and a Herpstat (I acutally have two and was thinking of using one as a back up) The measurements are 18" wide x 20" deep and 26" tall.

I looked at some of the other fridgerator incubators and couldn't find any that show the actual drilling of holes in the thing. That is the thing I am most worried about doing. THanks for the help

[saber2th]

From what I've read, most everyone removes the compressor and all the freon, it could leak down the road and that would not be good.
As for the hole, you can fit all your cords in one hole. And you seal it up, some people use the spray foam in the can and some just patch it with foil tape. You should put a fan in for sure and a light is just a personal option. If you do go with a light try to go with one of those real small fluorescent one that do not give off much heat. That's what I plane on doing, one with a glass door.

Good luck,

Dave

[MustBeSatan]

One: If weight doesn't matter do I have to take the guts out?

Second: If I drill a hole in the side/back won't it let cold air in?

I would really like to put a light in it as well and I am thinking I would need a fan. So does that mean I have to put a hole in it for each item?

One: No reason to take the guts out if you don't care about weight or doing heavy customization work on the inside. If you're just putting in flexwatt and a light, you shouldn't need to do anything near the freon tubes, so taking them off is unnecessary.

Second: Yes, a hole will let cold air in. Run your cords through and then patch it up as best you can. Your flexwatt should be able to handle the extra little bit of effort it takes to maintain temps with a little hole.

Lastly: No, don't do a hole for each item. Make one hole and run each cord through that hole. No reason you couldn't do three holes, but why would you? Best to only have to patch one, plus that keeps all the cords in one place.

Best of luck with your project, make sure to post up with the final product!

[het.pied]

use some expanding insulation to seal the hole!

[akaangela]

I just thought I would add an update on this. The incubator holds the tempature well and it is cool because I can look in and see the eggs. Last year I had a nice clutch. I lost ALL of them due to the door getting opened accidentally not noticing till it was too late :*( That was a harsh blow. This year I made two adjustments. I have a wireless thermometer that I can look at from my chair and see exactly what the temp inside the incubator is and I put two strands of velcro on the side to make sure the door doesn't get opened (even just a crack) without it being intentional.

So if you have an incubator make sure the door can't get opened and let all the heat out. I learned the hard way, so I hope you can learn from my mistakes. I thought I was being good leaving them alone and not bothering them for a few days, but you can never check your temps often enough.

[Kingofspades]

I sealed the hole in the side of mine with silicon. Worked fine.

[akaangela]

I sealed the hole with tape and it worked well. The incubator works well, except that the door opens really easy. I was surprised at how easy making this incubator was. It was also relative inexpensive. The only negative is I can't get many clutches in it. LOL maybe next year I will get a bigger one

[Kingofspades]

Mine is at the end of the video.