When breeding birds on a private farm or on a farm, you simply need an incubator in which the chicks are hatched artificially. For a small number of eggs it is not advisable to buy it. Therefore, many poultry farmers knowledgeable about the device This device, they prefer to make it with their own hands.

If you know how to hold a tool in your hands, then making an incubator will not be difficult for you, especially since it is also economically profitable. The entire process of hatching chicks in the incubator will take place under supervision, and the young will grow up healthy and strong.

Advantages of homemade incubators

Many poultry farmers believe that an incubator is a complex device, so it’s unrealistic to make it yourself at home. In fact, making an incubator with your own hands is quite simple, and you can do it with minimal costs.

When making the device yourself, you can choose the desired dimensions and supplement it with the necessary functions such as adjusting the temperature or turning eggs. Since such a design will consist practically of improvised materials, it will be economically profitable, which is one of the advantages of the device.

Other advantages of a homemade incubator include:

• reliability in use;
• possibility of breeding various types birds;
• obtaining chicks within the required time frame;
• ensuring the survival rate of young animals up to 90%;
• self-selected bookmark sizes required quantity eggs
• low power consumption.

Preparatory work

No special materials or tools are required to make the structure. Materials that are found in almost every home are suitable.

First of all, it is necessary determine the size of the device for raising chickens. They depend on the type of future poultry being raised, the number of young animals and the conditions of placement of the incubator itself. For example, the design for quail eggs should be smaller than for chicken and duck eggs. The slope of the trays is also taken into account, which should be different for each type of bird.

To provide the eggs with constant heat and the necessary humidity, it is best to make an incubator with a housing, which can be homemade or taken from an old refrigerator.

The main components of the incubator are:

• body with insulation;
• egg trays;
• heating system;
• devices for monitoring temperature and humidity in a structure.

Making incubators with your own hands

At home, the body can be made from cardboard boxes, a basin, chipboard sheets, polystyrene foam, wooden beams. By applying your imagination and using available materials, you can make a high-quality incubator.

From a basin or bowl

The easiest device to make for breeding chickens can only be used if power outages are possible. An incubator is being made from two containers same size , which can be used as basins or bowls. It is desirable that they be metal.

The bowls are placed one on top of the other, and on one side are fastened with furniture canopies or other devices. There should be space between the bowls to accommodate the eggs. The top bowl in this design will serve as a lid. Since the containers are round, the eggs in them will heat evenly.

A 2 cm layer of sand is poured into the lower bowl and covered with foil. Hay or straw is placed on top. To allow moisture to evaporate, several holes are made in the foil.

A cartridge will be inserted into the upper bowl, for which you need to make a hole. If the capacity is large, you will need several light bulbs.

A thermometer should be placed in the center of the assembled structure at the height where the eggs will lie. The incubator is installed in a place where constantly same temperature . Then it should be warmed up, after which it can be filled with eggs of quails, chickens or other birds.

If the lights are turned off at home, the device will need to be covered with a blanket and placed in a pan with warm water. In summer it can be taken out into the sun, and in winter it can be placed near the radiator.

Sand in this design serves as an air humidifier and heat accumulator, so it needs to be moistened regularly. Eggs should be turned and sprayed daily.

Incubator out of the box

You can make such a cost-effective device with your own hands quite quickly.

Manufacturing stages:

Styrofoam incubator

Good thermal insulation material available in almost every private home. Therefore, making an incubator for chicken or quail eggs from foam plastic with your own hands will not be difficult. In addition, you can choose its dimensions yourself.

Manufacturing stages:

1. The cut pieces of foam are fastened in any convenient way.
2. Light bulbs are inserted into the top cover at a distance of 15 cm from each other. You can buy a special heater for the incubator. However, light bulbs cope with their functions quite well and are the most budget option.
3. The tray can be purchased or made from wooden planks. For quails, the cell sizes should be 5x5 mm.
4. The tray with eggs is placed in the middle of the structure so that the distance to heating elements was equal to the distance to the container with water.
5. It is necessary to leave space between the laid eggs and the walls of the homemade box for air ventilation.

Using an old refrigerator

Making a device from an old refrigerator is the best option. This is explained by the ability to use several chambers and ready-made thermal insulation. It is very convenient to use the refrigerator even when if the power goes out in the house. You can simply put a closed container with hot water, which will keep the eggs warm for a long time.

You only need to do ventilation holes, install incandescent lamps, a fan, water trays and a thermostat.

Stages of work:

1. The freezer and other unnecessary parts are dismantled.
2. A window is cut out in the door and sealed with glass.
3. Egg trays are secured.
4. There are two light bulbs installed at the top of the refrigerator, and four at the bottom.
5. The gyroscope and thermometer are attached so that they can be seen through the window.
6. A container of water is placed at the bottom of the refrigerator.

You can buy special trays with an egg turning mechanism and install them in the incubator from the refrigerator. They will make the job easier for those who cannot pay enough attention to hatching the bird. In addition, when installing automatic turning, the number of openings will be reduced to a minimum, which is very important when breeding birds.

Quail incubator

Many poultry farmers are interested in the question, what should an incubator for quail eggs be like? Designs for birds of this species are made according to the same principle. They differ only in size.

A quail incubator should be two to three times smaller than a chicken incubator. In a ready-made incubator, which was intended for chickens, Three times more quail eggs will be included.

When making an incubator with your own hands, you should keep in mind that its assembly requires attention and precision. The slightest disturbance in humidity or temperature can lead to egg spoilage.

Spring has arrived, which means it is not too late to start raising poultry. The most faithful assistant there will be an incubator in this business. With this device you can “hatch” chickens both for yourself and for sale. You only need fertilized eggs. The advantage of an incubator is that everything can be controlled here; chicks are born warm and clean.

In this instruction we will look at how to make a simple incubator with your own hands. A 60-watt light bulb will be used here as a heating element. The author made the body from such a publicly available material as polystyrene foam. For homemade products, you will need to buy one, which will turn the light bulb on and off, keeping the temperature in a given range. So, let's take a closer look at how to assemble such an incubator.

Materials and tools used

List of materials:
- 60 Watt light bulb;
- sheet foam or ready-made box;
- ;
- computer fan;
- plastic container or something similar;
- 12V power supply;
- wire;
- carrying;
- switch, wires, heat shrink and other little things.

List of tools:
- drill;
- soldering iron;
- screwdriver.

Incubator manufacturing process:

Step one. Controller housing
Make a case for the controller from plastic, plexiglass or other similar material. This will protect its elements from mechanical damage, as well as from falling water and dust.

Step two. We assemble the circuit and test it
First of all, let's prepare a 12V power supply with a current of 2.5A. It is needed to power the fan, as well as to power the controller. A laptop power supply or something similar will do. Solder the “+” and “-” wires to the controller to the corresponding contacts. We also connect a carrier with a light bulb to the controller. We supply voltage to the light bulb 220V, and also turn on the power supply. On the controller we set the desired value in degrees at which the device will turn off the power.

Now bring the sensor to the burning light bulb. When it warms up to set temperature, the light will go out. When it cools down, the controller will turn on the light bulb again and so on.

Step three. Installing a fan and light bulb
The system is equipped with a fan from the computer. It is needed in order to evenly distribute heat throughout the incubator, as well as to provide ventilation. We attach the fan with screws to the base, for which the author used a plastic container. Water is then poured into it to moisten it.

Install the socket with the light bulb. To do this, the author used a wire, with the help of which we attach the cartridge to the fan housing. The light bulb should face down without touching the container.

Step four. Preparing the body
Let's prepare the case; the author uses a polystyrene box. It is necessary to drill holes in it, as ventilation must occur. The author drills holes in two walls so that the fan draws air in through one side and then blows it out through the other. You can also drill holes in the lid.

Step five. Electronics installation and connection
Install the power supply and temperature controller outside the case. We drill holes and secure the devices using plastic ties. It's fast, convenient and completely reliable. Well, then we connect the necessary wires and try to see if everything works. The wires also need to be secured just in case.

The author installed a sensor on the bottom of the incubator using a wire bracket. This will allow you to control the temperature below, where it is lowest. That's it, now you can configure your device!

Step six. Settings
You can customize the incubator, these settings depend on the type of bird eggs you will use. For chicken, you will need a temperature around 37-37.5 degrees Celsius. To do this, set on the controller limit value 37.5, if the temperature rises higher, the controller will turn off the light bulb. We also set the step to 0.5, this means that the controller will not turn on the light bulb until the temperature drops below 37.0 degrees.

That's all, now pour some water into a plastic container, it will evaporate and humidify the air. This is very important for the chicks to hatch. Place a thermometer inside the incubator to monitor whether the system is working correctly. Turn on the incubator and test it in action.

You should definitely purchase or make your own incubator. At home, this functional device will allow you to acquire chicks in a timely manner and control the conditions in which they are born. We invite you to get acquainted with the operating principle of this design.

Read in the article

How an egg incubator works and works: basic elements

If you are thinking about how to make an incubator yourself, then you will be interested to know that such a device consists of:

• housings;
• heating systems;
• egg trays;
• devices that control temperature and humidity conditions.

Now let's talk about how an egg incubator works. It imitates the conditions typical for the natural brooding conditions of various birds. During operation, the device not only ensures optimal temperature and humidity conditions, but also turns the egg in a timely manner.

How to make an incubator at home - general manufacturing principles

In order for the finished design to allow you to hatch a high-quality egg, you need to know how to make an incubator at home. Such devices must meet certain requirements which we invite you to get acquainted with.

What requirements must the body of an incubator for eggs made by hand meet: characteristics of the material

In order for a self-made egg incubator to function well, materials that have good properties should be used to create it. This element should not only help maintain the temperature inside at an optimal level, but also prevent sudden temperature changes.

What devices are used to heat air, and how the temperature is controlled: thermostats used

Incandescent lamps are most often used as a heating element for an incubator. Depending on the dimensions of the structure, their power can start from 25 W and reach the maximum possible values. Can be used as:

• electric contactors– mercury thermometers with an electrode sealed into a tube. The second is a column of mercury. As it heats up, the mercury begins to move and, as soon as it reaches the soldered electrode, it closes the circuit. The incubator will turn off;
• bimetallic plates. Heating of this thermostat will cause it to bend due to different thermal expansion of its constituent elements. When you touch the second electrode, the circuit will open;
• barometric sensors. This is a hermetically sealed cylindrical object filled with ether, the height of which is less than the diameter. The cylinder is the first electrode, and the screw, located 1 mm from the bottom of the object, is the second. As the ether heats up, it causes the internal pressure to increase and the bottom to bend. As a result, the circuit closes and the heating system opens.

How to ventilate an incubation system: useful tips

The system must be provided without fail. The state of the air inside the device and the temperature and humidity conditions depend on its presence and stability of operation. To create an optimal microclimate, you should ensure average speed ventilation about 5 m/sec.

It is usually used to move air masses. Ventilation holes are drilled at the top and bottom of the housing into which tubes of suitable diameter are inserted. By changing the degree of their overlap, the flow of fresh air is regulated.

Attention! The embryo located inside the egg consumes oxygen from the outside on the 6th day of incubation.

What mechanisms can be used to turn eggs: implementation options

In order for the egg to heat up evenly, it is necessary to provide swivel mechanism for the incubator. It can be implemented in different ways. The simplest option for small structures is using mosquito net, which acts as the bottom of the structure. The mesh is mounted on two rollers, providing circular movement. The rotation of one of the rollers moves and turns the eggs in the trays. By providing a relay, timer and electric drive, you can automate the process. The disadvantages include that sometimes this mechanism does not work, and the egg simply moves along the tray.

Inclined mechanisms have a more reliable design. The egg inside does not rotate, but simply tilts. To do this, the trays are fixed in the axial direction so that they can be tilted freely. There is a handle on the outside with which you can change the inclination of the trays.

It is possible to use swivel casters. The eggs are placed in trays between rubber rollers, which are connected to each other by a chain that ensures simultaneous rotation. Such a system allows connection. We invite you to watch a thematic video.

How to decide on the size of a home egg incubator: average values

The dimensions of the manufactured device are affected by:

• the number of lamps used to heat the incubator;
• the number of eggs that are planned to be placed in the device at the same time;
• egg size.

As a rough guide, we can assume that in a home incubator for eggs 47 cm long and 40 cm wide, you can simultaneously place up to:

• 70 chicken;
• 55 turkey, duck;
• 40 goose;
• 200 quail.

Differences in temperature conditions for birds of different breeds

To hatch a bird, it is necessary to maintain optimal temperature conditions. The maximum and minimum temperature at which eggs should be kept depends on the breed of bird.

Bird breed	Temperature at the time of laying, °C	Temperature at the end of incubation, °C
Chickens	38-39	37,6
Ducks	37,8	37,1
Geese	38,4	37,4
Turkey	37,6	37,1
Got over it	37,5	37,5

Attention! Overheating of eggs is undesirable, underheating is unacceptable.

Violation of the temperature regime will lead to the development of embryos slowing down, and many of them will simply die. Overheating can affect the health of hatched chicks.

How to make an incubator from an old refrigerator with your own hands

If you still have it at home old refrigerator, we suggest you learn how to make an incubator out of it with your own hands. By following our recommendations, you can create a functional device that fully copes with the task assigned to it.

What tools and materials are needed for the job: an indicative list

To make your own quail incubator, in addition to the body of the refrigerator itself, you should prepare:

• glass;
• low power motor with gearbox;
• metal gratings;
• frames made of wood or aluminum;
• light bulbs of suitable power;
• heat reflecting material;
• computer coolers;
• sealant;
• construction tools.

Preparing the refrigerator body

We begin work by preparing the body.

Illustration	Description of action
	The entire cooling system should be removed from the refrigerator body and all unnecessary parts should be removed. This will increase the volume of the internal space of the incubation chamber.
	We mark the door and secure the glass with screws. We ensure sufficient tightness at the junction of the window and the door.
	We formalize interior space using panels. We use screws as fasteners. All joints must be foamed to ensure sufficient tightness.

Ventilation system installation

To ensure sufficient air speed, preference should be given to forced ventilation.

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Leading engineer for heating, ventilation and air conditioning LLC "GK "Spetsstroy"

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"Purchase two fans for the incubator. One should be mounted at the top of the chamber, the second at the bottom. In this case, you will be able to better control the humidity and temperature conditions inside the chamber

"

Installation of a heating and thermoregulation system

To heat the incubator, incandescent lamps with a power of 25-40 W should be used. They are connected to lamps.

Attention! It is preferable to use four 25-watt lamps instead of two 40-watt lamps.

Heating elements should be located either at the top of the chamber or along its perimeter. The thermostat should be mounted outside the chamber, the sensor inside the chamber.

We invite you to watch a video that shows the connection diagram of the incubator.

How to make a mechanism for automatically turning eggs for an incubator with your own hands: video and nuances

In order not to miss time, it is worth making your own incubator with automatic turning. Such a system will independently change the position of the eggs through specified time.

It can be made on the basis of a gear motor for a windshield wiper. This video describes in sufficient detail the diagram of such a device.

We think you will also be interested in the video instructions for making your own incubator from the refrigerator.

The nuances of making a foam incubator with your own hands: video instructions

Such structures can be made entirely of polystyrene foam, or this material can act as a . Schemes and drawings for making such incubators with your own hands are presented in the public domain. We offer you to look at photos of the simplest options.

Lamp sockets are attached from the inside, under which slats for a tray or grille are mounted. The latter should be done as a frame type. It is worth laying a construction mesh for puttying or a mosquito net on the gratings.

Pay attention! When choosing the distance between the cartridges and the slats, keep in mind that there should be no more than 25 cm between the low-power incandescent lamp and the egg.

How to use an incubator: important points

To ensure a healthy brood, you need to know how to use an incubator. To do this, the chamber is first cleaned and disinfected using a weak bleach solution. Wait until the internal surfaces are completely dry.

Attention! The incubator should be operated in a room where the air temperature is 21-23°C, located away from a source of cold or heat.

Before laying eggs, you should check the functionality of the device for at least 24 hours. If the temperature conditions are met, you can begin incubation. An egg for this clean hands place it in the tray, placing it with the sharp edge down.

Initially, the temperature inside the device may become lower than the required values. Over time, the indicators level out.

During the incubation process, the egg is turned over three times a day. 3-4 days before the chicks hatch, the rotation of the trays is stopped. After they hatch from the eggs, you should wait a bit until they dry properly.

How much can you buy an automatic egg incubator - price review

It is quite difficult to create a homemade incubator with automatic egg turning. It is required to have certain knowledge and be able to perform certain manipulations. If manual turning is difficult, you should buy an automatic egg incubator, the price of which depends on technical characteristics And design features. Particularly popular models are:

• "Cinderella". The manufacturer offers devices for different quantity eggs, which allows you to choose best option for yourself. Can be used for incubating chicken and goose eggs. Operates from a 220 V network. The model for 98 eggs weighs 4.5 kg;

Review of the “Cinderella” model

More details on Otzovik: https://otzovik.com/review_1059377.html

• WQ-48. Convenient and fairly simple model. Made of plastic, which greatly simplifies the process of caring for the device. Equipped rotary trays. Designed for 48 chicken eggs. Allows the installation of special trays for incubating quail eggs. Weighs 5.1 kg;

Model overview:

• MSN 32. Incubator for 42 eggs. Weighs 2.6 kg. Electronic system control ensures fairly accurate setting of the required parameters;
• "Laying hen BI-1". A universal model suitable for breeding young birds of all breeds. Equipped with an analogue thermostat and an automatic egg turning system.

Review of the model “Layer BI-1”

More details on Otzovik: https://otzovik.com/review_1935873.html

Now you know how to make an incubator from a refrigerator and other scrap materials. You can safely get to work. Share your successes and photos of hatched chickens in the comments.

When intending to make an incubator with their own hands, owners are often interested in what materials and type of design to choose for making the device and what conditions need to be created for the successful incubation of healthy chicks. Different types incubators differ in their performance characteristics and the specifics of handling eggs. The article outlines these differences and describes the process of creating an incubator with your own hands at home.

Where to start creating an incubator?

Before you begin work on creating a system for hatching chicks at home, you need to:

• Select camera material. The most significant criterion is the ability to retain heat. The preferred choice is large pieces of polystyrene foam, and the worst choice is a cardboard box (the easiest way to make an incubator with your own hands). Refrigerators that are no longer in use are also used.
• Decide on the size of the structure - it depends on the number of eggs placed at a time and the type of bird.
• Select devices to maintain the required air temperature. A thermometer is used to measure indicators, and lamps are used for heating. Sometimes they buy a thermostat.
• Decide whether the design will be equipped with an automatic egg turning mechanism. It will require investment, but will save time resources. More often, the mechanism is used for large systems that can accommodate two hundred eggs.

What you need to create a homemade incubator

To construct a homemade incubator with your own hands, you will need to purchase or make its elements:

• Egg trays are made of wood and plastic. The bottom is slatted or made of mesh. You can purchase an option with automated turning (the eggs turn after a time interval specified by the user). A water tray is also installed.
• A housing with good thermal insulation properties, ensuring constant temperature inside the structure without sudden changes. It is made from foam or plywood sheets.
• Incandescent lamps installed in the corners (for a small device a 25 W element is suitable, for a large device a 100 W model is used). The distance from the lamp to the tray should be at least 15 centimeters.
• Thermometer.
• Fans - will be required if the structure is made from the body of a refrigerator. Then they will need to be installed at the top and bottom. In other cases, to ensure ventilation, it is enough to make holes with a diameter of 1-2 centimeters in the lid and on the wall near the bottom.

What conditions must be maintained in a homemade incubator?

Observance of the temperature regime is of great importance for the normal formation of chickens. For the first two days, for chicken and goose eggs, you need to keep the temperature at 38-38.5 degrees Celsius, gradually lowering it to 37.5 by days 19-21. For ducks and turkeys these parameters are 37.8 at the beginning and 37 at the end. Quail eggs are kept at a temperature of 37.5 throughout the incubation period (16-18 days). Humidity is also important - at the beginning it should be in the range of 45-60%, by last days it is increased to a value of 75-80%.

How to make your own incubator for chicken eggs: step-by-step instructions

Methods for manufacturing the unit differ depending on the source material for the housing. Below are the most available options.

How to make an incubator from polystyrene foam with your own hands

The advantages of foam plastic as a material for a bird hatching unit are excellent thermal insulation properties, low cost and lightness. To make a foam incubator with your own hands, you will need tools and components:

• two sheets of material 5 cm thick;
• four incandescent lamps - for the one in question small design 25 W lamps are enough;
• scotch;
• soldering iron for cutting holes (the material crumbles easily when cutting with a knife);
• set of trays;
• thermometer;
• liquid glue;
• fan.

Sequence of work:

1. The side walls are made from the first sheet by cutting it into 4 equal parts.
2. The walls are glued together.
3. From the second sheet, make a base 40 cm wide and a lid 60 cm wide (the length of both parts is 50 cm).
4. The sides of the base are coated with glue and inserted into the wall blank.
5. Cover the resulting box with tape to make the structure more rigid (starting from the bottom).
6. Install foam plastic bars 6 cm high at the bottom, on which the trays will be placed.
7. Drill 2 holes for ventilation with a diameter of 1-1.5 cm at a centimeter height from the bottom.
8. Install lamps.
9. The thermostat is placed on the outside of the lid, and the sensor is placed on the inside, making a small hole under it.
10. Place the tray - it should be at a distance of at least 4 cm from the walls.

DIY incubator with automatic and manual turning

To do homemade incubator with automatic egg turning, you will need to purchase a turning device. The types of egg turning mechanisms used are:

• Movable mesh – suitable for small incubators. When it moves slowly (automatic or manual), the position of the eggs changes.
• The roller mechanism is used less frequently: it self-production requires many small parts.
• An automatic mechanism that rotates the trays after a set time has elapsed is used in large units.

How to make a device for hatching chicks from a refrigerator or plywood

The refrigerator structure is prepared as follows:

1. Shelves and containers for storing food are removed from the chamber.
2. 3-4 bottom ventilation holes are drilled.
3. Fans and lamps are installed. Depending on the size of the chamber, 2-4 fans will be required, placed next to the lamps.
4. An inspection window is mounted in the lid or wall.

You can construct a model from plywood sheets. Its dimensions and arrangement differ little from those of foam plastic. The walls of the housing must consist of two layers of material, between which insulation is mounted. A viewing window with sliding glass is installed in the roof, allowing ventilation of the incubator.

How to make an incubator out of a box - the easiest way

The simplest do-it-yourself incubator is constructed from cardboard. This material has the least strength and does not retain heat well. The process differs from working with foam plastic:

• Blowing holes are made at a height of 3-4 cm from the bottom.
• The slats for the tray are attached 6-7 cm above the bottom; a store-bought egg carton is used as a tray.
• Holes are made in the roof for a lamp (in the center) and a thermometer (on the edge), as well as a viewing window.

Advantages and disadvantages of homemade incubators

Do-it-yourself manufacturing is beneficial for the following reasons:

• Cost savings compared to the factory version by 2-3 times.
• Possibility of breeding several species of birds in one incubator, provided the recommended temperature conditions are similar.
• High survival rate of chicks - up to 90%.
• Low power consumption.
• Ease of manufacture.

The downside is the need to take care of turning the eggs - do it regularly (recommended frequency is once every 8 hours) manually or purchase a special mechanism.

If you plan to raise chickens at home or in the country, you can build an incubator with your own hands. This way you can save a lot of money and create exactly the device that best suits your purposes. In our article you will find a description of several interesting designs that you can make yourself.

Myth or reality?

Many novice farmers believe that a homemade incubator is a very complex device that requires expensive materials and tools. But in fact, you can do it at home with your own hands and at minimal cost. At the same time, you can make either a simple incubator or a complex device with automatic egg turning and temperature control.

A homemade incubator will allow you to choose the desired dimensions of the device, as well as the presence of various additional functions. In addition, this design will allow you to save significantly, because it will contain almost no expensive materials. But at the same time, during assembly you need to do everything very accurately, because the slightest violation of temperature or humidity can lead to damage to the eggs.

Manufacturing of the device

There are several options for creating an incubator with your own hands at home. You can use an old refrigerator or a box as a base. Also this device can be assembled using foam plastic. Below are diagrams of the most popular designs that you can make yourself.

Incubator out of the box

This type of device will be the most profitable from an economic point of view. Making it yourself will not require expensive materials and will take place as quickly as possible.

1. First, you need to cut a small hole in the side of the box for ventilation, and secure the light bulb sockets in the box lid.
2. For 60 chicken eggs you will need to insert 3 25 W light bulbs. They should be located at a distance of 15 cm from the tray.
3. For reliability, it is recommended to cover all edges of the box with plywood or chipboard sheets.
4. Below the eggs you need to place a container of water. The area of ​​the evaporated surface depends on the volume of the housing and is selected experimentally using a hygrometer.
5. The egg tray is installed in the middle of the box.
6. It is recommended to choose a gyroscope and thermometer, the data of which can be viewed without opening the box. It is recommended to tear off the lid of the box only to turn the eggs.

Simple incubator out of the box

From foam plastic

Polystyrene foam has excellent thermal insulation properties, and most farmers can find this material at home. This is why do-it-yourself incubators are often made from polystyrene foam. The principle of its manufacture is in many ways similar to creating a structure from a cardboard box. But you can choose the housing size yourself based on the desired number of eggs.

1. First you need to make a box from foam sheets. You can easily do this yourself using adhesive tape. Just cut out the edges the right size and fasten them into a box in a way convenient for you.
2. This design will provide high thermal insulation and will allow the use of light bulbs with a power of about 20 W for heating. Of course, you can include special heaters in the design, but the option with light bulbs is the most budget-friendly and they cope with their functions perfectly.
3. As in the previous design, it is recommended to insert the light bulbs into the top cover at a distance of about 15 cm from the eggs.
4. Can be used as a tray finished design, or make it from wooden planks. It is best to place the tray in the middle of the homemade box so that the distance to the water containers and heating elements is approximately the same.
5. When making such an incubator with your own hands, do not forget to leave space between the tray and the walls, because air circulation is very important when hatching chickens at home.

With automatic revolution

The most difficult thing to do at home is to make an incubator with automatic egg turning. But this design will help to hatch chickens at home as conditionally as possible, because regular egg turning is the most important factor. Such a mechanism will be indispensable for people who are often absent and cannot pay enough attention to hatching chickens from eggs. In addition, this design will minimize the number of times the lid is opened, which is also a very important factor.

The most in a simple way The implementation of automatic turning is the purchase of ready-made trays with a special mechanism. Such a device will cost several times less than a ready-made incubator, but you will need to create a suitable housing, as well as purchase a thermometer and a gyroscope. The body of an old refrigerator is perfect for assembling a house. It has good thermal insulation and a convenient door. You will need to perform the following sequence of actions:

1. Remove unnecessary parts, including the freezer.
2. Cut a window in the door and glaze it.
3. Attach automatic turning trays where shelves were previously.
4. Install 4 light bulbs at the bottom of the refrigerator and 2 at the top.
5. Place a reservoir of water at the bottom.
6. Attach the thermometer and gyroscope so that they can be seen through the window.

You can also try to assemble an automatic turning device at home with your own hands, but its manufacture will require special tools, materials and skills. On crafts forums you can find a variety of diagrams, drawings and videos that will help you realize this idea. But in most cases it is easier and more profitable to install a ready-made tray with automatic turning.

Photo gallery

The photographs and drawings below will help you make a device for hatching chicks at home. You can find even more information in the video.

Video “Example of a finished incubator from a refrigerator”

In the next video you can look at a working device that was assembled with your own hands at home from scrap materials.