incubating eggs

[sussex x]

hi , i have a incubator . one of the cheap models , it has a thermostat and a bulb thats it . it stays at 37-38 constant ,i was wondering do different eggs need different temp and humidity levels ? , im asking as this incubator has hatched ducks , and even cockatiel eggs ( which are notoriously difficult to incubate ) .
thanks

 

[bex46]

(personal opinion) Hi, chickens & bantams etc should be incubated at 37.5. I always do this with bantams, my humidity is 35 then upto 55 on the last 3 days.I keep my temp the same throughout incubation even though youl find people put it up slightly. i have brilliant hatches in my rcoms.

 

[chrismahon]

We follow bex settings and have had good hatches. But we don't use hardly any water because it is an old house and the air is damp anyway, so we could probably run 'dry'. We drop the temperature to 37 for the last few days. The best hatch we had was with an incubator set (and checked) at 37.8 degrees. It was a cheap semi-auto Spanish unit which we now use as a hatcher, transferring the eggs at day 18 and putting a new batch in the Auto turning Rcom.

 

[foxy]

I think that a slight variance in temperatures can have a minor effect, some breeds may hatch earlier than others due to slight metabolic changes within the egg. There is research looking at optimum temps for different breeds, more for the commercial market though.

Interesting my new MS cabinet incubator has a digital readout, and this seems to work on a cycle from 37.1 right up to around 38.4. I have had excellent hatches though, if the eggs are fertile I have had near enough 100% on 6 hatches this year.

 

[Chuck]

If it's hatched ducks and cockatiels it should hatch chicks. I think most models vary in temp more than we realise.