whats a good incubator??

[spaztheweird1]

i was just looking around i don't have any eggs and not really planing but wanted to know whats the best one for the price not made of money looking to spend under 100 bucks i did a search and found a bunch of different ones but what makes one better then the rest??

[rabernet]

There's something to be said for "you get what you pay for". I'm going to guess that the under $100 that you've found are hovabators. Hovabators are designed to hatch chicken eggs, not reptile eggs. Certainly people have used them with some success, but I've heard far too many losses to ever feel comfortable putting any clutches of mine into one.

You can probably make your own incubator for under $100, but you will spend over $100 in the end once you add your thermostat, which will run you $80 to $135, depending on if you get a Ranco/Johnson's (on/off thermostats) or a Helix/Herpstat (proportional thermostats). I am using a Helix on my incubator, which is a converted dorm fridge, that was gutted, has a strip of 11" flexwatt taped to the front door, and a 12V fan inside the unit.

[Mochelem]

You can get a fridge from a used appliance store that has been striped of parts or not fixable, for free or next to nothing just talk to the people who work there and see what they have...

You can get a ranco 111000 from e-bay for $50-$55 shipped and wire it yourself heres a link to good instructions on how to wire it
http://rcreptiles.com/blog/index.php...1000_thermosta
I would recomend a proportional thermostat you could use a Spyder Robotics Herpstat they cost about $109 though....

Flex watt is cheap $3.50 a foot and add some cpu fans in there and the total should be around $100 and about $150 if you get the proportional thermostat...

[Beardedragon]

I used hovabators to hatch silkworm eggs and after monitoring temps for a few months, no way would I let them hatch ball python eggs.

[extensive]

i wouldnt use a hovabator.

this is my first year incubating and i built my own. small marine cooler, big apple herp radiant heat panel (http://www.bigappleherp.com/Big-Appl...nt-Heat-Panels) and a herpstat. it is working great so far. we are on day 49 with one clutch.

[Larry Suttles]

I gutted an old fridge installed some wire shelving units. Helix t-stat to control the temps and I'd trust that bad boy with anything inside.

[ama1997]

I do the old fridge thing too. Most places that sell fridges when they have to pick up and take away the old one. They are stuck with it and have to pay to get rid of it. Thats how I got mine they were more than happy to give me one. I got a little upright freezer. Its about 5 foot tall. 2 foot wide 2 foot deep. Then you have to buy the tubs. The heat tape I use 2 pieces 1 almost as long as the freezer is tall. Then another about 2 foot long. The most I had to spend was on a good thermostat. I use a Helix too. I have used it for 3 seasons now. It has worked great. Think it was 135.00 or so.

Anyways I would go that way. Even if your not producing 30 clutches a year. The freezer or fridge type incubator, you will be able to grow into it. If your only having a few clutches a year. Then you bump that up to say 5 or 10 you should have plenty of room and wont have to build another incubator every year.
Here are a few pics they are a bit older. Before I added the other piece of heat tape. I also took out the thermostat thats in the freezer. I also added two pc fans after the pictures were taken.

[spaztheweird1]

see i have a freezer thats broke its about 2.5 wide 2 foot deep and 2.5 tall but what are other's can be used but helix??? i know its cheap so most likely wont work but figured i would ask what about something like this??http://www.cornishcrispa.co.uk/produ...roducts_id=330

[rabernet]

see i have a freezer thats broke its about 2.5 wide 2 foot deep and 2.5 tall but what are other's can be used but helix??? i know its cheap so most likely wont work but figured i would ask what about something like this??http://www.cornishcrispa.co.uk/produ...roducts_id=330

Why wouldn't you want to get the best thermometer that you can if you're going to trust your eggs to it? If you're that concerned about how much your spending, have you thought about saving money for veterinary care if your female were to become egg bound?

Once you've done the currency conversion and paid shipping from Europe, you've spent what you'd spend on a Helix (not to mention, that thermostat may not be compatible with US outlets). If you really must go more affordable, choose a Johnson's or Ranco.

Since you're not really planning on eggs right away (per your first post), save the money and get quality products instead.

[Colin Vestrand]

in my opinion, a cooler with some heat tape in the bottom is the best... cheap, reliable, and very good at holding the correct temps.