# Incubation



## Monkeyshines0123 (Dec 17, 2012)

Ok, so I'm new to incubating my own eggs, grew up on a farm and the hens always did that, if not dad just bought more chickens .
Dad has been gone now for more than ten years, mom too and I no longer live on the farm . last summer I had 10 nice Buff Orphingtons and a Barred Rock hen, then I lost two hens to the heat, so I had a friend who had a nice Barred Rock rooster which he gave to me, one of my Buff hens then hatched out 2 chicks, Barred Rocks they look like, but I wanted a few more, so I went online and found out how to build an incubator, no way I am paying the price they want for those things, anyway, I built it, tested it out several times, temp seemed to hold steady at between 99 and 100, had a bit of problem with the humidity but seemed to work that out, so I took 7 eggs out of my henhouse, put them in the incubator and carefully took care of them for the proscribed time, 29 day's I think it was not sure but anyway, not a single one hatched !
My question is, what happened, are they not fertile, the temps and humidity were good for the whole time, I turned the eggs three times a day except for the last three day's, but nothing, the Roo has to be good because I already have two chicks by him, What gives ? Any suggestions ? I thought about buying fertilized eggs online but GEEZ their expensive !
any help would be nice , thanks


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## 1948daydreamer (Sep 9, 2012)

Hey MS,I think it is 21 days for the eggs to hatch,and your eggs must not have been fertile. You can get a small incubator on Ebay for about $45 that will hold about 20 eggs,and I have used those incubators with very good success.


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## woody (Dec 25, 2012)

You can also check the eggs to see what happened inside them. Take them AWAY from the house and break them open on a rock. If they have chicks inside dead then it was likely and incubation issue. If they so not then it was likely a fertilization issue. 

It is 21 days for chickens to hatch


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## LICHICK28 (Jan 1, 2013)

woody said:


> You can also check the eggs to see what happened inside them. Take them AWAY from the house and break them open on a rock. If they have chicks inside dead then it was likely and incubation issue. If they so not then it was likely a fertilization issue.
> 
> It is 21 days for chickens to hatch


You can candle egg with led flash light in dark room at day 7. Hold light up to end of egg. You should see little spot with vein lines (spider) if nothing there I mark with -0- but check again at day 10. If nothing shows but yolk I toss, if you see vein lines it is fertilized. I dont candle too often. Fertilized eggs can still die if handled too much. Humidity raised at day 18 to 65. A wet paper towel on floor can help keep up humidity but dont let newly hatched stay on wet towel, you want it to dry out. Good luck


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## Monkeyshines0123 (Dec 17, 2012)

Thanks for the info, I did candle them at 10 day's, nothing but yolk, again after I gave up, again nothing but yolk, does'nt make a lot of sense though because I already have 2 from this Roo so I figured he was good, oh well guess I will try again when it warms up a little more .
thanks


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