Out of the box

[JasonO80]

What is an out of the box incubator that will hold temps consistently and not break the bank. I am going to try to start my first breeding next season and am just trying to prepare. I am only going to have 1 to 2 breeding pairs at most. But I would like something that will maintain temps for temp sexing without having to worry about modifying thermostats and what not.

 

[DrCarrotTail]

Hovabator or Little Giant have both worked well for me. They run about $40-$50 plus shipping. No shipping if you find a Tractor Supply near you. If you have a different farm equipment store near you they might have a different brand of still air incubator that's marketed for chickens. Just don't get the egg turner and make sure you can adjust it down to the temp you want.

 

[acpart]

I would recommend going with the Zoo Med incubator since the Hobovator is best used with a proportional thermostat. As I understand it, the ZooMed is similar to the HObovator except that it already has the proportional thermostat (I use the Reptipro5000 myself, so someone correct me if I"m wrong about the ZooMed).

Aliza

 

[favrielle]

Yes, the Zoo Med Reptibator comes with a "pulse proportional thermostat". I'm breaking my new one out today to fool around with, as I just received a female that's gravid.

The Reptibator also has an alarm on it that you can set to go off in case the temperature swings more than so many degrees (a number which you set/input yourself). I thought that was a neat feature.

Amazon sells them for anywhere from $96-$108, or at least that's the low/high price points I've seen. I got mine for just about $100. I'm not sure what they run elsewhere, but you should be able to find one cheaper than a Hovobator + proportional thermostat.