Backyard Poultry Forum

I have a quick question with yours Bob knowing mine is a different brand how neat do your egg trays fit in the holders mine is a little loose so I fitted some of the flexi seal foam in the corners so it fits nice and doesn't jerk the egg tray as it turns and I have gotten a lot better take in the eggs ( 8 clear from 88 eggs set).

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Starting out to breed Australorps & Marans and a couple more

Hello Canna Kid

The overall dimensions of the trays vary from species to species.
I offer four types of egg trays for the different species from quail up to peafowl.
So I make my racks big enough to fit the largest tray ... then I provide spacers with the sets.
My spacers are just lengths of rectangular electrical conduit ... a sparky's solution

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bobpeel@greatlander.com.au

oh good you think of everthing.

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Starting out to breed Australorps & Marans and a couple more

We never had spacers with ours and never noticed until it had a few eggs in it - I wonder if this may contribute to embryonic deaths as it's quite a jolt when it slips down.

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http://www.geckodan.com
The CHOOKSHOP http://www.geckodan.com/the-chookshop/
email geckodan@bigpond.com

Breeder of Exotic waterfowl, wild type Muscovy, Dutch bantams, Phoenix and Yokohama Fowls.

Mmmm

You should have got the two spacers that went with it from the start.
I can see them in this shot below from when it was at Ben's

The spacers are just 20 x 15 rectangular plastic conduit

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bobpeel@greatlander.com.au

I'll second that Mmmmmm - that would be the left over bits we couldn't work out what they were for that ultimately got chopped up to make spacers for all 4 trays. Good thing they new what they were destined for. We thought they were spacers for under the water dish but they weren't high enough.

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http://www.geckodan.com
The CHOOKSHOP http://www.geckodan.com/the-chookshop/
email geckodan@bigpond.com

Breeder of Exotic waterfowl, wild type Muscovy, Dutch bantams, Phoenix and Yokohama Fowls.

Under the water tray I put round conduit
I like the tray to be off the colourbond

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bobpeel@greatlander.com.au

Venting vs Preserving Humidity

This breeder asks a question about humidity and about ventilation. A common one at the change of seasons.

Hi Bob, started up the 5T ran for half a day and started checking controls as humidity wouldn't get up above 38% put plugs back in vent holes, started to run true after that. When I went through functions I found that the settings had gone back to the default settings, so I reset them to your list and set some eggs. All went well for another day then all the settings went out of whack again. Is the controller broken or can I do something to fix it?
Regards
Ian


It’s more probable that the controller has done a self-restart and defaulted to the factory settings?
The majority of these controllers are run in this default mode in machines word-wide.
We like to utilise their potential so we tweak our controllers based on feedback from experienced breeders such as yourself.
It’s annoying when the machine does a self-restart but it is only doing it as a preservation measure so it can continue running.
Do you know why it needed to do a restart in the first place? Was it choked?

The issue of the humidity disappearing too fast with the plugs opened is easily fixed by setting P2 up by 0.1oC or so.
P2 is the setting at which the exhaust fan cuts in. By delaying it a touch, it comes on less frequently and only when absolutely necessary.
Humidity, being air-borne, flees fast out the exhaust.
However don’t lose sight that it’s average humidity that matters, not oscillations.
From day 1 to H-Day minus 3, you want an environment dry enough to develop adequate air-sacs
Then on the last 3 days you want humidity high enough to travel down the pores and `lubricate’ the down from the membrane.

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bobpeel@greatlander.com.au

Responsibility - The price of Control

There is a thread here about a preference for `set and forget' simple incubators with as little as possible to break or fail ... and having easily available and cheap parts, etc

Commercial hatcheries now have fully computerised large scale equipment with Heaters, Coolers, Fans, Turners, Humidifiers and CO2 Injectors - and they are `manned' by `lab coats' who monitor and control them round the clock

In my class of machine, I show you how your little controller will rival a commercial hatchery's level of efficiency but with the provision that you engage in some technical basics.
The controller provides the means - you supply the commonsense observation and control - I provide the box, the instructions and the support

No one machine can suit everyone - We say this in our specifications and in our manuals.

"Your Greatlander incubator provides unparalleled levels of control such that it requires some technical aptitude to operate it at its optimum. User support is always available while you gain confidence".

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bobpeel@greatlander.com.au

This morning I exchanged emails with a breeder from an area of NSW inland from Kempsey that experienced a heat wave on Saturday

Original Message from Brad
Sent: Sunday, 21 October 2012 8:22 PM
To: bobpeel@greatlander.com.au
Subject: 3TTH incubator

Hi Bob ,
Thankyou for the emails .
As i said the unit was getting up to 39 degrees .There was plenty of water in the unit. I opened a window above the unit to see if that helped .no change so i read that by turning the fan around this would help and i raised P2 up 0.3 .it did take awhile for the unit to settle down.it has been runningtoday at 37.6 -37.7 and between 52-55 humidty.Was this the right thing to do ? today was cooler but unit maintained . if it gets cool again do i still leave fan as is ?I 'm leaving to go away and my wife will watch the unit .your advice would be appreciated . cheers brad



Hello Brad

Yes, daytime temps like you just had up in the 30’s are challenging for all incubators

In Multiquips say, you would crack open the top. That stops the eggs from overheating, but there is no control.
If midway through a hatch, on a dry hot day, cracking the top open, humidity in the set also drops and the hatch will suffer.

In the Greatlander, reversing the ventilation fan is like opening the top, but it is controllable.
It brings in the outside air in `gulps’ which the circulation fans then quickly distribute
The temp sensor quickly senses the cooler air and shuts the fan off

How fast a rate the ventilation fan can bring in the air is still dependent on how many vents are open ... the back-pressure in the set.
So now on hot days you open vents, in anticipation, and on cool days you close them to provide back-pressure.

You could slit the membranes with a blade and push a short piece of conduit through.
Then when you pull out the conduit, the membranes close.

On one of the forums, a breeder is trialling for me a `custom’ 4TTH with a smaller ventilation fan that is always working as an inlet fan.
Here’s the link. http://www.poultrymatters.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3088
This very experienced breeder keeps some species that are notoriously difficult to hatch


Yours sincerely
Bob Peel

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bobpeel@greatlander.com.au

Circulation Fans in Hatching Chamber -
Please monitor because a couple of breeders have had Early-Failures

Hello All

This is a cautionary post about the pair of circulation fans in the bottom of the Greatlander Top Hatch incubator (I emailed all the relevant clients - however a few are uncontactable)
Some breeders have reported an early failure of these computer fans in the hatching chamber.

Please monitor your set closely because if these fans are not working, the hatched chicks may become chilled and not survive after hatching.
If your fan(s) fail, in an emergency you may hatch in egg cartons or on paper towels placed on top of the hatching chamber.

We have raised the issue with the fans’ suppliers and they have air freighted replacement fans.
This batch of replacement fans they advise is of a more durable design.

Naturally if you need replacement fans we will send them a.s.a.p.
Along with the fans we will also send fitting instructions and the bits required to change them over.


...oooOOOooo...


In response to the extreme hot and dry heat-wave conditions being experienced Australia-wide I have come up with a HUMIDITY PUMP Kit



4 December 2012

Re: NEW “HUMIDITY PUMP”
INCUBATOR-RUNNING IN HOT DRY WEATHER

BACKGROUND
Some breeders extend incubation into the summer months.
The current hot and dry heat-wave conditions Australia-wide are challenging for all incubators.

Last year about this time we sent breeders a memo about reversing the flow of the ventilator fan.
Since then, those instructions have been incorporated in the instruction book. (By reversing the flow of the exhaust fan so it becomes a ventilator fan, cooler outside air is drawn in and is distributed very quickly through the cabinet by the equal temp fan).

This season however, breeders are experiencing very extreme conditions. There are difficulties maintaining sufficient humidity and overall stability in such dry and hot conditions.

The latest development in time for summer is a `HUMIDITY PUMP’ that plugs into the same socket where the immersion water heater goes … see picture below.



The pump is one whose normal application is forcing of hot water through fine compacted coffee in espresso machines at very high pressure (5BAR – 5 x Atmospheres)

It generates such high pressure that is makes a super-fine micro-mist with the nozzles that I have been using in waterfowl hatchers for some time.

In the picture, the pump is seen pre-wired (with a plug) and mounted on a right angle bracket.

The pump’s body has a dovetail slot so the pump can be removed from the bracket.

It is seen fitted with a nozzle, and the inlet water enters through a micro mesh filter.

Now instead of creating humidity by heating water into vapour (which heat is detrimental to stability in very hot weather), the controller switches the pump which draws water at the same temperature as the air in the incubator, and pushes it through the nozzle as a very fine micro-mist, making any target humidity easily achievable and maintainable.


It is possible to fit this Humidity Pump in any brand of incubator to supply humidity in the form of a very fine micro-mist into the air flow.

In Incubators that already have humidity sensing and switching, the pump simply piggy-backs on the existing wiring

In incubators that do not have humidity sensing/control, E.g. Multiquip, etc, it would be supplied with a controller, a sensor and a wiring diagram

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bobpeel@greatlander.com.au

Hello all

For those who have switched/are switching to these Humidity Pumps, it's a good idea to spray some RP7 or CRC on the terminals.
Where they connect to the pump body they are covered with blobs of insulaton material.
The pumps are sealed.
The spray is just a preventative measure.

The micro mist being so fine now, it travels in all directions.
The spray will keep that moisture out. (It would trip your house safety breaker)

It's a good idea to swivel the nozzle so it sprays opposite to the side of the pump with the connections.

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bobpeel@greatlander.com.au

Humidity Pump Kits - Will they work in a Multiquip?

No and yes, the humidity pump kit by itself will not work in a Multiquip
It needs to be energised and it needs to be regulated, switched on and off as necessary
That can be done with the addition of a controller and a humidity sensor
(It would work with most modern incubators that have humidity sensing and control. The relay needs to be rated over 50W).

I have supplied a number of my controllers and sensors to owners of Multiquips
They wanted them to calibrate, monitor and control temperature and to also monitor humidity only - Multiquip have passive humidity

The relay that is built into my controller will run the new humidity pumps.

The pump can be wired straight to the controller's terminals (and the pump's earth bonded to the case of the incubator)

However, the pump kit is supplied with a 3-pin plug, so it can be removed easily
So it makes sense to run the wires from the controller to a wall socket near the water tray.

Of course, the water must not be allowed to run dry if using the pump

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bobpeel@greatlander.com.au

I had a call yesterday from a new Greatlander-owner in Alice Springs. (Initials P.M.)

His feedback is about his one-week-old 5TTH Greatlander Top Hatch fitted with dual methods of making humidity (element and pump)

Yesterday when he rang, it was close enough to 40oC in his shed (outside it was 37oC and Humidity 20%)
His Greatlander was stable holding 38oC and humidity around 50%, as set.
He said he just had to tell that his set was running cooler than the ambient in his shed

I can only put this down to the humidity pump, the micro-mist must have been contributing a cooling `evaporative-cooler' effect
I don't know what would happen in humid and very hot weather - but it seems that DRY and very hot weather is taken in stride.

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bobpeel@greatlander.com.au

OK
I haven't looked at this thread for over 6 months
It's a thread which was transferred by Admin to BYP from the now dormant Poultry Matters Forum
http://www.poultrymatters.com/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=2202&hilit=greatlander
The original purpose of the thread was for open discussions among the much smaller membership of Poultry Matters
A question asked by an individual and answered there, remains archived here along with the valuable feedback from other breeders to view

A BYP member recently asked for the instructions to a 2nd Greatlander 4TTH that she had acquired, and BYP Admin referred her here
http://forum.backyardpoultry.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=8023651&p=666399&hilit=greatlander#p666399
With this in mind, and with the breeding season approaching, it may be a good time to `revive' the archive
I will post some general `frequently asked questions' to add to the archive
You, the broader BYP membership, will determine what direction it goes from there, if at all

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bobpeel@greatlander.com.au