[rich25]

im looking for an incubator but not sure what to get can anyone help?

 

[solidius]

livefoods has some on there site

 

[rich25]

i've just had a look at livefoods and seen the hova-bator. has anyone got one and what thay like?

 

[BELIAL]

best one you can buy is the brinsea r...top pf the range with a price tag to match..i have two and they do a blinding job...

www.brinsea.co.uk

 

[K.J.Geckos]

get yourself on ebay!they have quite a few on there new of used and some go quite cheap too.I was advised by someone on here and i dont regret it and neither does my fiance the banker neither lol :lol:

 

[darkdan99]

much cheaper to make one!

this will work well for many snakes, beardies, waterdragons etc, any soft leathery eggs basically

all you need is
polystyrine box (ask your fish mounger they will give you one for free)
heat mat
mat stat
thermometer with probe
vermiculite
cricket tub (the little plastic ones)

put mat in box
cover with 1-2 inch of vermiculite.
put the cricket tub 1/2 inch deep, and put 1/12 of vermiculite in the tub
put the probe to the thermometer in the centre of the cricket tub
put the stat probe in the vermiculite below the tub.

watch the temp on the thermometer, and adjust the stat accordingly, the temp on the stsat and the temp on the thermometer can be differnt so go by the thermometer at all times.

then plase the eggs 1/2 inch between each of them in the tub and mist daily to keep humidity up

 

[rich25]

thanks for the replys everyone i left out that its for my leo's.

 

[darkdan99]

in which case i would say replace the vermiculit with perlite. moisten it to 1 part perlite, to 0.8 parts water, then place the same ratio in a sealed container with the eggs, it will keep the humidity correct. open daily for air exchange, but breifly so as not to allow humidity to escape, or the temp to drob significantly. the best temp for leopard geckos is around 80-82 for females, 82-84 for a mix of male and female, and 84-86 for males. i would reccomend a temp of 85*F, because you will get a good range, and if it changes by a degree or two, no harm will bee done. near hatching time, i would put holes in the top of the tub, but mist everyother day.

hope this helps

 

[CBR1100XX]

Nice info darkdan, just about to start building my own. :wink:

 

[darkdan99]

if you were closer i could give youa couple of boxes cos i work on the fish counter in asda but im ill today *cough cough* lol dont tell the boss, looking for plateds lol ne1 in essex want1, i'm your guy!

 

[rich25]

thanks darkdan. i will have a go at making one and see how it comes out hopefully it will be ok. thank

 

[darkdan99]

just experimenting, and i have found that if you place a few (2-4) layers of bubble wrap under the vermiculite, but over the heater you get more stable heating, because the bubble wrap dosnt change temp much, so the on and off of the heat mat will have a lesser effect on the temp.

it is good practise to test the incubator for at least 48 hours before using. to test set up with everything, apart from the eggs and run. it will take a while to heat up (around1-3hours depending on specifics), look at the max/min function on the thermometer to ensure there is a good range. it may mean that you will have to set the matstat to a higher level than needed, i know i have to set mine to 33*C or 92*F to get a range of around 85*F. these are my results, yours will be differnt.

and its not my fault if you fail to test properly, this is just a guideline on how i am making my incubator.

thanks DT
once again hope it is useful to you

 

[Becky Wheeler]

much cheaper to make one!

this will work well for many snakes, beardies, waterdragons etc, any soft leathery eggs basically

all you need is
polystyrine box (ask your fish mounger they will give you one for free)
heat mat
mat stat
thermometer with probe
vermiculite
cricket tub (the little plastic ones)

put mat in box
cover with 1-2 inch of vermiculite.
put the cricket tub 1/2 inch deep, and put 1/12 of vermiculite in the tub
put the probe to the thermometer in the centre of the cricket tub
put the stat probe in the vermiculite below the tub.

watch the temp on the thermometer, and adjust the stat accordingly, the temp on the stsat and the temp on the thermometer can be differnt so go by the thermometer at all times.

then plase the eggs 1/2 inch between each of them in the tub and mist daily to keep humidity up

Spot on mate! I have done the same thing and i've had 4 successful clutches and more incubated. In my opinion it's much better to make your own. If you want i do have pictures of my incubator to give you a better look.

 

[darkdan99]

nice1 becky, i've yet to hatch any but ive got one set up so when i get eggs i'll be prepared, rather than rushing around like a madman-this way i can walk like a mad man!

i wud post some pics but my cam really sux, as ne1 who saw my ID post can tell yay, poor peeps tryin to guess what it is from that quality of picture lol

 

[rich25]

if u can put up so pics Becky that would be a gr8 help to see how it looks.

 

[Becky Wheeler]

Hiya Mate,

Here's some pics i took a few months back (It's now packed full of eggies!, lol)

I use food tubs with moist vermiculite inside and check every 2 days to make sure the humidity is o.k or the eggs can collapse and fail. If the vermiculite becomes dry then drip some water on the vermiculite, around the eggs (try not to get the eggs wet!)

 

[Double_Jai]

Can I ask are thoses beardie eggs?

 

[rich25]

thanks becky.

 

[Becky Wheeler]

Hiya,

Yes there Beardie eggs. Those ones in the picture where just days from hatching.

 

[Double_Jai]

ok thanks i was just wondering cause Mine just laid her first cluck on sunday but there not that big haha. but i have been wondering if there ok.