Humidity in the incubator

[Guest]

I have a question about the humidity reading inside the incubator.  I have a hygrometer and thermometer in the kitchen that reads 70% humidity and 70F.  The hygrometer and thermometer I bought for the incubator (reptile equipment from Petsmart) correlates within a few degrees/ percentiles (65%/ 68F) when set out on the counter.  When I put them in the incubator, the temperature raises (duh  :p ), but I noticed at 95F the humidity had already dropped to 35% within a few hours.  Is this a true reading?  It certainly doesn\'t \"feel\" dry when I open it.  The outdoor humidity runs between 70-90%, and the indoor gauge between 65-75%.  According to those readings, I wouldn\'t add any moisture to the incubator, but the reading the hygrometer is giving me seems way low.  Any advise is appreciated before I try again with another batch of eggs.  (The last batch didn\'t make at all, and I\'m wondering if I was erroneously treating the moisture...?)

Thanks!  

[Guest]

It depends on if you have a forced air (a fan that circulates the air) or a still air (no fan) incubator.  A forced air incubator will move the air around drying it out quite a bit.  Also, any eggs in the incubator will absorb moisture as they do their thing too.  

If you have a still air incubator, it should mimic the numbers closer to what it is in the room around it, however it will be more concise since you have trapped the air and minimized it\'s movement.

My guess is you have the forced air type.  Try adding a shallow dish or pan of water and see what the reading changes to.  35% is quite a bit low and you will have problems.  Raise it to 55-65% and you will have better luck with the chicks hatching.  Just add more pans of water and/or adjust the air vents.  The overall amount of surface area of the water determines the humidity level in combination with the amount of fresh air you allow the unit to take inside.

Hope this helps.

[Guest]

Thanks so much... yes, it is a forced air, Brower Top Hatch.  I just didn\'t know the humidity coud drop that much that fast!  The last time, I was forever dumping water in the \"tray\" in the bottom, but that required opening the lid and letting out any humidity already built up.  I think I\'ll try a wet sponge in a dish and see what that does, instead.

[Guest]

Thanks!  And, thanks to those who emailed suggestions, too.  The sponge worked well enough and I only had to open ad add water every 4 days or so instead of daily.  It must have been better, because I had 3 of 6 hatch today (on day 18, at that) and I\'m going to watch the other 3 for a few more days.  50% is better than the literal gooseegg I had the last try.

[Guest]

If your chicks hatched on day 18 I would say back your temperature down about a degree to a degree and a half next time you incubate eggs.

[Guest]

Funny, the thermometer was reading consistently under 99F and I was thinking it was too cool (even as low as 97-98F).  The chicks don\'t lie, though.  Next time, I\'ll spend several days tweaking the thermostat and thermometer and hopefully get better readings.