An incubator is an enclosed machine that stimulates avian incubation by keeping eggs in warm temperature ranges and corrects humidity with a turning mechanism to hatch them.
This writing focuses on the incubator. Its pertinent information will be helpful when in need of purchasing an incubator.
An egg incubator aims to hatch baby chicks that grow up to become part of the backyard flock. The egg incubator can be used to hatch chicken eggs and other poultry types, including doves. A farmer should purchase an incubator and should consider the following factors:
Temperature
Cost
Ventilation
Humidity
Turning the eggs
Temperature
Temperature fluctuations can make the eggs hatch prematurely and lead to the chick’s health and development deterioration. The incubator should maintain a consistent temperature of about half a degree convenient. Any temperatures above this can be a problem.
The hatching machine should have an accurate thermometer to help the farmer to maintain the required temperatures. A faulty thermometer can be harmful; hence the farmer should ensure the thermometer is accurate.
Air Flow and Ventilation
The eggs should have enough ventilation because oxygen is essential for hatching. Oxygen enters the eggs through the shell, removing carbon dioxide as a waste product.
The incubator needs enough ventilation holes, and where you keep the machine should also be well-ventilated. Good airflow is important to the healthy development of the chicks. Modern incubators have fans that facilitate good ventilation.
With ventilation, there are two types of incubators for sale in Kenya, still-egg ventilation and the forced air egg incubator.
The still-egg ventilation allows warm air to rise and it does; cool air from the base of the machine rises to replace the air that is left, and the cool air gets warmer. It is hard to control the temperature in this incubator and hence applies to eggs that do not need intensive care during hatching.
The forced-air egg incubator has an inbuilt fan for ventilation and temperature control. This is good because it maintains a consistent temperature throughout the hatching period.
Turning eggs mechanism
According to turning eggs, there are two types of incubators: the mechanic incubator and the pneumatic incubator.
Mechanic incubators use gears for the egg-turning process, which is quite disadvantageous because gears need frequent lubrication. After every washing of the machine, one has to clear the grease. Lack of publication to this machine will lead to rusting, which causes malfunctioning.
Pneumatic machines are more reliable than mechanic machines because the is a large cylinders for turning eggs that move slowly and hatch healthy chicks. Despite its reliability, the pneumatic drive experiences freezing and sudden jolts.
Cost of the Incubator
The cost of an incubator is mainly determined by the Construction materials used to make the machine. One should ensure that high-quality materials are used to manufacture the hatching machine. High-quality materials have an added advantage because they are always easy to clean.
The buying price of the machine is compared to the machine’s maintenance cost after purchase. High-quality appliances are expensive but have a cheaper maintenance cost.
Conclusion
An egg incubator helps in the hatching of eggs under favorable conditions. This reduces the risk of breaking the eggs and the death of chicks when there is no care from others. Large-scale poultry farmers should purchase an egg incubator to improve the hatching of chickens like the one shown below.