

Most of the units on this list feature a fan that will move the air through the device to circulate correctly and maintain an even atmosphere without hot or cold pockets that could slow the development of your chickens and other birds. One of the most critical components of an egg incubator is proper air circulation. We tried to point out and brands that weren’t successful with turning and recommend checking how well a machine performs in this category when researching a particular brand. Most of the brands on our list use some mechanism to rotate the eggs, and some work better than others. It’s easy to rotate the eggs by hand, but you should do it every two hours, and opening the habitat that often will make it impossible to maintain correct heat and humidity. Rotating the egg is essential for creating a healthy chick. Unfortunately, humidity detection is something many brands can do better with, and we recommend you pick up a hygrometer to use with these devices for better results Rotation Most machines have a tray or reservoir to add water every so often, but the brands that allow you to add water without lifting the lid are even better so you can maintain an even temperature. You will need to check the suggested humidity level for the kind of birds you have. Most birds will do well with humidity between levels between 45 and 55, which is what it is in most homes, while others will prefer higher levels of 55 – 65. The next thing you will need to look for when choosing an egg incubator is its ability to maintain the proper humidity level. We tried to point out any models on our list that had difficulty keeping an even temperature. Small fluctuations are normal but constant changes of several degrees, or more can damage your birds. It may even prevent some of them from hatching. Too much fluctuation in temperatures can affect the development of the birds. Heat and Temperature Control Image Credit: SutidaS, ShutterstockĬhickens, ducks, and quail eggs all require a constant warm temperature of 100-degrees to develop correctly and hatch. If your device claims to hold one dozen chicken eggs, you can almost always use it to incubate nine duck eggs, four goose eggs, or 35 quail eggs. Chicken eggs are used as a size guide because they are the most common, and more people are familiar with them. TypeĪll of the incubators on our list can incubate different types of eggs and are suitable for chickens, ducks, and quail.

We tried to list how many eggs each brand on our list could hold at once. Finally, if you have a large farm that sells plenty of chickens for meat, we highly recommend one of the larger units on our list capable of incubating 90 – 120 eggs at once. If you have a chicken farm, especially one that deals in meat, you will need to replace your birds frequently, so we highly recommend getting a unit that allows you to incubate 20 or 30 eggs at a time. We also recommend these smaller units for people just gaining experience. Children and science experiments will usually do well with a smaller device that will incubate 12 or fewer chicken eggs. One of the first things you will need to consider is the size of your incubator. Let’s look at a few things you should consider before purchasing your next egg incubator for chickens, ducks, and quail. The only problem we had is the turner doesn’t always work, so you will need to keep an eye on it and turn them manually on occasion. We enjoyed using the Apdo Egg Incubator, and we had plenty of success incubating eggs with it.

There are even four small drinking cups for the chicks to use after they hatch and an over-temperature alarm to let you know if it’s getting too hot. A channeled panel helps to regulate humidity, and an LED candler allows you to see inside the egg to make sure it’s developing properly. The LED digital temperature control is easy to read and set, while the Smart Airflow system keeps the temperature even over all the eggs. An automatic egg turner pushes and turns the eggs while keeping them evenly spaced for more effective incubation. You can use it to incubate 12 chicken eggs, 9 duck eggs, 4 goose eggs, or 35 quail eggs. It’s easy to set up and adjusts to fit multiple egg sizes. The Apdo Egg Incubator is our pick as the best overall incubator for chickens, ducks, and quail.
