Incubator Question

[tb144050]

Yes my husband is very handy. I don't like electricity. We don't get along very well. Lol So he normally is the one doing the wiring. Not that I can't .When you run a pet store for 3 years and do all the pluming and all the wiring. Well, don't get me wrong it was so much fun i loved it but I got nailed a few times. Nothing bad but when mixing electric and water there is always a scene of danger. I had to rebuild the pump on the vat system after we had a big storm here one year and I went to plug it in and one of the 3 canister filters that are on the vat exploded. The collar that holds the lid on wasn't on properly so I ended up standing in a pool of water holding an 8 pound pipe wrench and a live line in the other. Needless to say if the plug I was holding hadn't have had a surge protector that made it cut off I probably would not be here now. I wasn't right for a few days after but other than that no harm was done me. Sorry I'm rambling lol thats part of being a stay at home mom tho if I can find someone to talk to I will. Just tell me to shut up.Lol The answer to your Q is I have not moved the thermostat it is still in the top left corner inside the cooler so it should be reading the air temp inside the cooler. Up date on the temp its not constant its bouncing from 81.7 to 84.4 so far. I'm running out of ideas.

Don't give up on it yet. Leave the door closed and give it more than 24hours to stabiliize.

81.7 --> 84.4 is only a 2.7 degree-F fluctuation. That is probably almost as stable as a thermostat can get unless you buy a Proportional thermostat. The thermostat you are using is probably an ON/OFF thermostat....I've never seen a "proportional home-thermostat" (but I bet rich people might have them...lol). On/off thermostats will turn off at your desired setting (to prevent overheating).....but they turn back on when the temp drops too much (usually about 2 degrees drop will turn the on/off thermostat back on).

Note: My ZooMed thermometers often register 1F below the thermostat's temperature display....so I set the t-stat for 81.3F and my ZooMed thermometers show 80.6 -> 81.0 most of the time.

If you want to "tweak" you setup to have the most stable temps:

1) You already have a towel in place to trap "heatwaves" and create the "hot box" below.
2) Move the thermostat to be LEVEL WITH THE EGGS.
---(even with the towel, the heat of the "incubation area" still tends to rise and cause frequent ON/OFF cycles. So you don't want the thermostat at the very top inside the "incubation area".)
3)More water bottles/tubs provide perfects supplements to the heat (after 24-48hours).

------------------------------------------------
-water containers at top will stabilize at, lets estimate: 83F
-
-
-
-Eggs on this level with Thermostat set to 82F...will maintain very close to 82F (even in OFF cycle)
-
-
- Water containers above towel willl emit an estimated 81-82F
-------Towel to create hot box and prevent heatwaves from screwing with the thermostat
----- Water containers in "hot box emit 88F+ heat even during the OFF cycle
----Heatrope
--------------------------------------------------------


Remember, as stated above:

1) a 2-3 degree variation is probably as good as an On/Off thermostat can achieve;
2) The other advice is for stabilizing the temps to maintain steadier temps and minimize the frequency of On/Off cycles...

 

[Kjenkins]

Ok I'll check temp in the morning and see whats going on with it and i will move the thermostat down. I will update in the morning. I'n determined to make this work if it kills me.

 

[Kjenkins]

Update:

I'm going to pull my hair out. I gave it a full 24hrs and it still fluxes so bad. One day its a 5.2 flux than a 6.2 flux than a 4.2 flux for today so far. I moved the thermostat down like you said. I just added more water bottles this morning. I'm gonna just keep watching it for today after this I may try one more thing I have in mind than I'll be totally out of ideas. I'm so over this but I also am very stubborn and I will make this work. I'm still considering a hovabator tho even if I do get this one working. It would give me more than one incubator to work with. Ok so we will see how the rest of the day go's. Now I must go take care of my Spaz she just laid about 30 mins ago. So now I have 6 eggs all together and no incubator. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

 

[Kjenkins]

Ok so its still not working right. I'm just gonna order another zoo med thermostat for it. I know that's the prob. I did pick up an incubator today tho. It's rural king's version of the hovabator. Farm Inovations is what its called so I'm going to let it run and monitor it just to be safe. It's the same volts' watts, size and specs so it should be ok. Its about 15 dollars cheaper than the hovabator so if it works fine if not I'll just go exchange it and pay the diff. I just thought I would give it a shot first.

 

[tb144050]

Sorry things arent working out for you. I know a proportional thermostat would work better, but I would not expect an on/off thermostat to have that much fluctuation.

 

[DrCarrotTail]

Thermostats made to regulate house temps are usually not accurate enough to regulate an incubator. Temps below 78 or over 92 for more than a few minutes will probably harm, stress or even kill your eggs so you'll probably need to fix that all before you are successful at incubating them. I'd get a hunk of styrofoam to put in the hole in the back so it's insulated. Something as easy as duct tape will work great for holding it in place. I'd also get a better thermostat that has a probe and is accurate at least to 2 degrees. Many of the ones for houses have a wider range of error which is fine for humans wearing socks but not so much for gecko eggs.

My suggestion would be to head to Tractor Supply and spend $45 on a Little Giant Still air Incubator and use that. I've used one with the built in temperature controlled for a couple seasons now successfully. I also have a fridge style incubator. I usually test mine for 1-2 weeks before I begin breeding my females 1. to make sure everything is working perfectly and 2. To get the incubation containers up to the right temperature before I add eggs. Good luck!

 

[Kjenkins]

I have put my home made incubator on the back burner until I can order the nessesery upgrades needed to make it work right. The incubator I purchased is holding at 80-81. The sad part is it is located in my closet because it is the only place in my house that is a constant temp but at this point if it works it works. Thank god all my gravid females have layed now the last one layed yesterday. Now I can just worry about what I have for now untill they start again. So far so good.:main_thumbsup:

 

[indyana]

Whew, this has been a epic thread to follow. A lot of people make their own incubators, but after reading all this, I'm seriously considering just buying one!

Maybe you can post when you start working on the DIY incubator again and see what works to get that one stabilized.

 

[Kjenkins]

Shur thing Rachel I can do that. Its been such a long battle so far. I think its really just trial and error tho. I got help from Texarkana (he was a huge help), I watched videos, I read everything I could find,I left no stone un-turned. I felt drained by the whole thing. I also learned a lot tho. Bye a quality thermostat, find a room (in my case closet) that the ambient air temp stays the same or around the same temp, make shur that your cooler is sealed properly, water bottles are awesome for stabilization, a towel makes a great heat pocket that can allow heat to rise lowly, and most important in this whole thing plan ahead. I took to long to complete my task and mean will my females had started laying. Its my falt because I did not allow my self the proper amount of time to get the most important thing done. You can't hatch eggs with out an incubator. The one I ended up purchasing tho is awesome. 42.99 is what I paid and its a very small price to pay when I think about the 8 baby geckos I will have running around.