Question First error... that didn't take me long! Egg rotation question

[Reboot]

I always like to follow up my online questions with results as people are generous enough to offer help its on me to at least report how it went. I candled last week and not knowing what to look for to be certain I marked what I thought was infertile and tried to keep them separate from the fertile ones and I believe I did see a few so I am glad I didn't dump the whole lot. I candled again last night and out of 40 eggs I have what I believe are 12 viable ones. This is so freaking cool to watch happen and despite the error I learned a great deal and will fire the incubator up again in a couple pf weeks. I built another brooder box to replace the contaminated one I built last year and had to burn; this new one is set it up in the house for now until things warm up outside. Lock down will be next Wednesday so fingers are crossed I get at least two little ones otherwise its a lonely couple of weeks in a 4x3 foot brooder for one chick. I did toss the non viable ones as I am certain nothing was going to happen and I didn't want one to blow and contaminate the rest of the viable eggs.

[Killerbunny]

That's great news. Best of luck with your hatch!

[Kbr42]

Fingers crossed!

[Reboot]

Well I'm glad I took the advise here and pushed ahead. Out of 40 eggs I have 9 chicks chirping away in the incubator. Oddly enough they started coming at 20 days. My guess is the thermometer I am using which does not indicate decimal readings was likely closer to 38 than 37.5 C. Either way I have 9 as of noon yesterday with another having pecked through but not coming out and 4 more that do not appear to be doing anything. 2 chicks are still a bit damp so I'll wait until morning to move them all to the brooder box. It'll give the last one thats pecked through a chance to get out before I open the incubator and blow my humidity. By tomorrow morning the first chick has been out 36 hours so I will want to get it drinking and eating asap. If the last guy isn't out I'm not risking the first ones waiting past tomorrow noon. I am already 3/4 into another batch of 40 eggs destined for the incubator so I really hope I can do much better that a 25% hatch rate. After another "bad start" it can only get better from this point on!

[Killerbunny]

Great news @Badstart . Remember forum rules though - pictures of chicks MUST be posted!

[Kbr42]

Congratulations!

[Ontario Chick]

Great stuff, kudos to those who persevere Thanks for letting us know.

[Reboot]

LOL I actually did take pictures but didn't want to come across as all excited or anything about this. Yes of course I am excited about it! Being a retired cop though I should control my emotions........ bahahaha the operative word is 'retired' so pictures you shall have if I can figure out how to add them in here. The first image is the first chick to hatch last Thursday, the second is the feathered water fleas scooting around the brooder this morning and the 3rd is my office. I am running 3 environments in one room: incubator at 37.5 C, rotating egg tray accumulating eggs for the next batch at 15 C and the brooder box at 37 C. One chick is B1 deficient though I think as it seems to take great interest in star gazing. I hope a meal or two rectifies that until I can find natural vitamin supplements around here like brewers yeast. I think I read that would be helpful and maybe I can give it to the hens so the embryos get a better start.

[Killerbunny]

Thanks! We are all chick deprived at this time of year!

[kenya]

Thats a nice setup although you. won't get much work done in the office with the chicks there. You'll have to stop every few minutes to check out the chicks. LOL