Incubator Help

[Nocash13]

Wondering if anyone would be interested in providing a step by step guide to building an incubator. Funds are limited so the cheaper the better ;D

[nellybean]

Here's a few links that may halp you:

www.herpcam.com/incubator.htm
members.aol.com/TheWyvernsLair/incubator.html
www.arbreptiles.com/cages/incubator.shtml
www.reptilerooms.com/forumtopic-5168.html

I hope that helps!

What we did, was buy a huge styrofoam cooler from Canadian Tire. We placed a heat pad under water bottles to regulate the heat. On top of that we placed egg crate, and then the incubation boxes. We used rubbermaid shoebox containers filled with moist vermiculite, and placed the eggs in those. Let me know if you need pictures. The whole setup was less than $50.

[vanderkm]

We have a homemade incubator as well - cost about $100 for cooler and heater - incubates 8 clutches of cornsnake eggs with no problems.

Outside view of cooler with thermometer


Inside it is filled with water to about 6 inches, heater with an Ebo Jager aquarium heater - expensive but the best - you can see it along the front. Then egg crate suspended on some boxes above the water, and egg tubs on that.


Eggs in the tub - usually they are on a bit of egg crate to hold them above the substrate - have very good hatch rates.


mary v.

[Nocash13]

Thanks Mary... By the way, this is Andrew.. Bought my first snake from you ... just wondering if there are any holes in the glad containers so the humidity is in the containers or not?... and how many watts is that water heater?

[Nocash13]

nelly, hows your hatch rate? and pics wouldnt hurt

[Wickedawesome]

Hey Andrew,

We only had a clutch of Corn eggs, and a clutch of Bearded Dragon eggs, but we shot 100% this season with our incubator.

[nellybean]

Travis (wickedawesome) and I live together in case no one figured that out by now. Just thought I'd clarify.

Our incubator looks pretty much the same as Mary's. The only difference is that we had bottles of water in the bottom, and used a 50 gallon desert heat pad.

[vanderkm]

nocash13 said:

Thanks Mary... By the way, this is Andrew.. Bought my first snake from you ... just wondering if there are any holes in the glad containers so the humidity is in the containers or not?... and how many watts is that water heater?

Hi Andrew - hope that snake is doing well. There are holes in the glad containers - that allows the humidity to equalize in the container - also allows the babies some air exchange when they hatch. These are my hatchling tubs actually - just use what I have for other purposes after incubation is over.

The heater is 100 watts in this incubator I think - I have used smaller ones though - the Ebo Jager brand is great - very reliable regulation - never fluxuates much at all.

mary v.

[joeysgreen]

Mary, I use the exact same thermometer as you, from Home Depot right? Great minds think alike I guess *wink*. I bought a hovabator today in hopes I have mexican black king eggs this spring It's been too long since I"ve tried breeding any of my charges.

Ian

[Nocash13]

K thanks Mary and all you others for your input... I'm not quite ready to start breeding yet but im hoping to get all my necessities before i move out of my parents house to start university. One year of high school to go ... I'm hoping that corns will be in high demand while im in saskatoon and i can make some extra money while in school. Thanks Everyone

[Nocash13]

Hmmm, seems to me that the closest home depot to prince albert is in saskatoon. That's no good to me Any ideas of where i might find a thermostat? Canadian Tire or Rona? What kind do the two of you use? (Ian and Mary). Life is hard in P.A.

[joeysgreen]

Well, a thermometer like that, perhaps not the exact same brand, can probably be found at any home hardware store, or perhaps large department store. Even a radioshak might have them.

A thermostat is different. Then you'll be looking into a helix or something. This is a thermometer that takes the temp and then adjusts the power to your heating elements accordingly. Great for snake racks or large display cages. Not so good if you have many different cages with many different heating needs. There is a new product that does a similar thing with humidity, but it's rare and expensive.

Ian

[Nocash13]

Good to know, thanks Ian... I would've looked like a fool using a thermostat to try and heat my incubator lol

[Ryan Wunsch]

I've built and experimented with a lot of different types of incubators, but the method Mary posted is the best, for a lot of different reasons.

I never even bothered with Ebo Jaeger. I bought the cheaper brand (which does have a line on it suggesting you don't submerge it any further) and never had any issues with those.

The only improvement I made, was to install some plexiglass under the insulated cover, so that the ambient warm air did not escape when opening the lid to check on the eggs. Heating and cooling, even a small amount when using a solid state thermostat, causes humidity fluctuations inside the egg containers, and the cold air on the outside forms condensate which can drip on the eggs. Not necessarily a big deal with corn snakes - but it can kill green tree pythons and some of the more delicate species very quickly.

[Nocash13]

Good to know if i ever get out of saskatchewan Thanks for your input Ryan... All of it is much appreciated... But you don't think i need to go higher quality with the water heater?

[Ryan Wunsch]

nocash13 said:

Good to know if i ever get out of saskatchewan Thanks for your input Ryan... All of it is much appreciated... But you don't think i need to go higher quality with the water heater?

Ebo Jaegers are the best, and it was explained to me that they are one of the only heaters that are certified in Canada to be used underwater.

But I and a lot of people I know have never had a problem by cheaping out. If you can afford to go with an Ebo, go for it.

[vanderkm]

Even the Ebo Jager have a maximum water line on them and indicte that they are not to be submersed - but we submerse them on the advice of several people who have used them before and we have not had problems after using them for years. I like them because I believe that the thermostat in them is very reliable - so they are unlikely (not impossible) to overheat and kill everything in the incubator. I don't have a separate thermostat, so rely on the heater to regulate temperature.


mary v.