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One of the most exciting experiences I have had on this homesteading journey was to be able to hatch the very eggs that my hens laid. I was like a girl at Christmas when I candled the eggs and saw life fluttering inside the shell.
But the process didn’t start until I chose the right incubator for our homestead. Click here and I will walk you through that process.
After 100% (nine) and 90% (19) hatch rate with our chicks (these eggs were laid on our homestead; typically mail-order eggs will have lower hatch results), I am thoroughly happy with the Brinsea Octagon 20 ECO Manual.
This particular incubator was chosen because of price, product quality, ease of use, and product features. I chose the manual model, meaning I would have to remember to turn the eggs myself. Brinsea offers the same model with an automatic cradle (Brinsea Products Fully Automatic Egg Incubator), or you can buy the cradle separate if you feel like you need the automated feature later.
Why Brinsea?
Features
- Simple to use but made with the same high quality standards of other Brinsea products. This is the same cabinet used with the Octagon 20 Advance, which is designed to prevent the growth and spread of bacteria during incubation.
- The octagonal design allows all the eggs in the incubator to be turned manually at one time without having to turn individual eggs.
- Holds up to 24 eggs depending on size.
- Temperature factory preset at 99.5 F with easy tamperproof adjustment. The temperature for poultry eggs should be set to between 99 and 102 degrees Fahrenheit (with 99.5 the ideal). If you are raising different species of birds, then the setting will be different. The temperature is easily adjusted with a small eyeglass screwdriver.
- Good visibility of the eggs—this is an absolute MUST! To keep the humidity constant, you don’t want to lift the lid in the last few days of the hatching process.
- It’s very flexible. Right now I have the stand-alone unit, which is fine for our homestead. (I am able to remember when I have turned the eggs, and I mark my calendar three days out from hatching so that I know to stop turning them, check the humidity, and leave the lid on.) But if I so chose, down the road, I can purchase the cradle.
Who Would Benefit from this incubator?
- Anyone who wants to hatch more than six or seven chicks.
- Anyone looking for a high-quality product that is easy to use.
- Anyone who can remember to turn the incubator at least three times a day.
- Anyone who is willing to monitor the temperature and humidity on a daily basis.
Easy of Set up?
This incubator is super simple to use. I opened the box, inserted the chord, put water into the humidity chamber, adjusted the humidity vent, and allowed it to warm up before putting in the eggs.
Doesn’t get much easier than that.
Upgraded Version
If you would like the fully automated version (humidity and temperature set for you) the Brinsea’s Octagon 20 Advance egg incubator may be just what you need (I have not tested this particular product). You can also add the humidity pump so that you don’t have to lift the lid when adding water.
Bottom Line
I would recommend this incubator. It’s a quality-built product that gave me fantastic results. It was very simple to use, and even though I did have to turn the eggs myself, I didn’t see that it posed a problem. I simply got into a daily routine of doing it at the same time every day.
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