What can you cook from squid: quick and tasty

Everyone knows that quail eggs and meat contain many vitamins and are very beneficial for the human body. But when breeding quails, breeders can have problems. Most egg-bearing breeds of females hatch eggs poorly. Therefore, an incubator is required to breed birds. You can buy it in the store or make it yourself.

Incubator design

Making an incubator with your own hands is not difficult. It has a simple design, and it will be cheaper to assemble it from the material at hand than to buy a ready-made model.

One of the benefits homemade assembly is the ability to make an incubator for any number of eggs... The whole structure consists of:

• egg storage tray;
• heating system;
• a sealed container with a heat-insulating coating.

Unlike DIY products, store models equipped with auxiliary equipment, which is necessary for breeding quail. They are also suitable for hatching goslings and chicks. This includes a controller that monitors the humidity and temperature inside the chamber, as well as an automatic egg turning mechanism.

For breeders with more than 1,000 poultry, it is unprofitable to buy such incubators... They have very high price, and the capacity of eggs is from 100 to 300 pieces. Another drawback of standard models is the lack of an independent power supply. When the power goes out, most of the embryos will die.

In order for embryos to develop correctly, this requires certain conditions for incubation. Air humidity, temperature, and the freshness of eggs all affect their development. Let's take a closer look:

The chicks yield is 75%. The remaining 25% are considered unfertilized.

Homemade incubator

To breed chicks at home, you need to choose an incubator of the correct design. Therefore, some bird breeders have a question about how to choose and make a do-it-yourself quail incubator.

The design of the manufactured incubator for ducks or chickens is quite suitable for quails. There are five ways to make a product:

From the bedside table... Small holes are made in a wooden bedside table or drawer for ventilation. The floor is covered with metal mesh. Place 2-3 trays evenly inside the container. The trays are fixed with a metal plate attached to the walls of the bedside table with a movable mount.

Use a handle to turn the trays. It is installed in a hole drilled in the wall. To heat the incubator, you can use a simple fan heater... If you want to observe the incubation process, take a bedside table with glass doors for the base.

Out of the bucket

A simple bucket with a lid is used to make the product, so this option is suitable for a small amount of eggs. The net is placed in the middle of the bucket. A window is made in the lid for laying eggs and observing the incubation process.

From the bottom of the bucket measure 8 cm and make ventilation holes... A light bulb is attached from above, which will serve as a heating device. To create the necessary moisture, a little water is poured into the bucket. Placing a block under the bottom, the tray will change its position. The maximum tilt angle of the bucket is 45 degrees.

From the fridge

Perfect for making an incubator old refrigerator... It has large dimensions and good tightness. To keep the heat inside the refrigerator well, its walls are sheathed with foam, then holes are made for ventilation.

Egg trays are placed instead of shelves. Installing a steel plate with movable mount flips the trays... Heating lamps are mounted internally. The evaporator located at the bottom of the refrigerator will create the necessary humidity.

From bars

A frame for an incubator is made from wooden blocks. The frame is sheathed with plywood sheets and insulated with foam. To control the incubation process, a glass hole is made in the lid through which the eggs are laid.

The cover itself is installed on the side of the product or on top... An egg tray is attached at a height of ten centimeters from the floor. Ventilation holes are drilled in the bottom of the incubator. Light bulbs are installed under the cover, they will serve as a heating element.

Required number of bulbs for the camera determined by its size... The power of the heating elements must be 40 W. In this case, the humidity inside the chamber should be 50%, the temperature should be 22 degrees. These numbers are the most suitable for breeding chicks.

Double wall construction

The wooden frame is upholstered on all sides with plywood sheets so that a double wall is obtained. Sawdust or polystyrene is placed in the formed space between the plywood and the frame.

Holes are made in the floor and cover for ventilation. To ensure that the humidity in the incubator is always under control, the ventilation holes are equipped with closing plates. Finished construction be sure to test before laying eggs for the first time.

Making a grate for eggs

When assembling an incubator, do not forget about one more important detail- a grate for eggs. Its purpose is to place and securely fix the eggs in the desired position. Making a lattice for quail eggs with your own hands is easy.

For manufacturing you will need mosquito net and four wooden or metal pipes ... A frame is mounted from the pipes, then a mesh is pulled over it. Despite its simplicity and low price The lattice has several disadvantages:

1. Tightly stretched mesh sometimes breaks.
2. A wooden frame is short-lived, as it is subject to decay and deformation.
3. The mesh is stretched, and this threatens to sag. Because of this, the eggs will roll to one place or the heater will be touched.

Considering all the flaws, it is better to buy a ready-made mesh in the store... It is more reliable and easier to work with. The grilles are made of various materials and have an affordable price. For their manufacture, metal, plastic and wire materials are used. The most reliable material is metal. Metal nets hold eggs firmly, support any weight and do not deform.

When making a homemade incubator, you should adhere to some rules:

Attention, only TODAY!

An incubator is necessary for avid or professional poultry breeders to simplify the work of breeding young offspring, as well as to maintain high level hatchability of young animals.

By resorting to his help, you can be sure that the chicks will hatch at the appropriate temperature and humidity, which means that the percentage of hatching will be high.

You can buy a ready-made apparatus, modify the factory incubator to fit your requirements, or you can make it yourself from start to finish. It's easy, as you can see by reading our article.

It is known that quails are not good brood hens, therefore, in order to breed as many chicks as possible, it is necessary to resort to the help of an incubator. There are many models on sale that differ in the coup system, functionality, capacity, and price. Typically, high-quality, roomy incubators are quite expensive.

Poultry farmers-craftsmen prefer to purchase cheap household devices, modifying them on their own for their goals and preferences. If a person plans to breed a large number of chicks, then it is easier and cheaper for him to make an apparatus with his own hands, using materials at hand. We advise you to read about the most important in quail breeding at home, about the best quail breeds, as well as the peculiarities of growing Estonian, Chinese and Manchu quail breeds.

So, the main advantages homemade model incubator are:

• ease of manufacture;
• cheapness.

Incubator making

We suggest you consider 4 options for making an incubator with your own hands:

• from a wooden box;
• from an old refrigerator;
• from a foam box;
• from a plastic bucket.

From a wooden box

For the manufacture of an incubator, an ordinary wooden box is suitable, which must be insulated by covering the walls with plywood, foam or heat insulator.
Heating lamps and tanks for filling water are installed inside, which will maintain the required level of humidity.

Necessary materials

You will need:

• wooden case;
• lid;
• 3 wooden logs;
• 2 tanks for filling water;
• metal grid;
• retaining rails;
• 2 heating resistors (PEV-100, 300 Ohm);
• light indicator (suitable for an electric iron);
• thermostat;
• 4 brackets (10 mm, 30 x 30);
• 4 bolts М4;
• installation wire in heat-resistant insulation;
• 4 screws (5x12).

Instructions

1. We enclose the walls of the box with thick sheets of plywood, foam or heat insulator.
2. We make a window in the lid to observe the incubation process. Cover the window with glass.
3. We also drill holes in the lid through which ventilation will be carried out. Equip them with movable strips, which, as necessary, will carry out their closing or opening.
4. In each corner of the box we install 40 W lamps with wiring 20 cm below the lid.
5. We make a tray for eggs by pulling a mesh or lattice onto a metal frame.
6. Place the tray 10 cm above the floor.
7. We install a fan inside the box.
8. You should also install devices for measuring and regulating temperature and humidity - a thermostat, thermometers.
9. For a small incubator, you can set the auto-rotation in the form of a movable net with a roller. The eggs will gradually move and roll over.

Detailed diagrams of the incubator are as follows:

Important! The incubator should be installed in a room with room temperature, no direct sunlight and drafts, on an elevated surface.

From a non-working refrigerator

The body of a broken refrigerator is ideal for making an incubator, since it allows you to maintain the desired temperature. Heating sources and trays with water are placed inside it to maintain humidity, and they are also equipped with a thermostat, a fan and heat sources.

Necessary materials

For the arrangement, prepare the following materials:

• 3 egg trays with grates;
• fan;

• 6 bulbs 100 W;
• thermostat sensor;
• handle for turning trays;
• 2 thermometers for measuring air temperature and humidity;
• water tray;
• drill;
• Scotch;
• screwdrivers;
• screws;
• 2 metal plates;
• window glass (optional).

Instructions

1. We dismantle the freezer.
2. We drill 4 ventilation holes in the lid and bottom of the refrigerator.
3. We attach a fan to the upper wall of the refrigerator.
4. We install a thermostat on the roof.
5. On the side panels from above and below we attach light bulbs - 4 on top, 2 on the bottom, which are connected to the thermostat.
6. We attach temperature and humidity sensors in the inner part.
7. We fix metal plates on the side panels.
8. We attach the trays to the plates with screws - they should tilt to one side and the other at an angle of 45 degrees.
9. We attach a handle to rotate the trays at the same time.
10. We install a tray with water in the lower part.
11. If you wish, you can make observation windows in the door and glaze them. It is also possible to insulate interior refrigerator with foam.

Video: how to make an incubator from an old refrigerator

From the foam box

A homemade foam incubator is very similar in appearance to a factory one. Polyfoam perfectly keeps the temperature, so this material is very suitable for the manufacture of an incubator.

Necessary materials

Prepare:

• ready-made foam box or 2 foam sheets;
• glass or plastic;
• Scotch;
• glue;
• soldering iron;
• drill;
• 4 bulbs of 25 W each;
• egg tray;
• water tray;
• fan;
• thermostat;
• thermal insulation foil.

Instructions

1. Divide one foam sheet into 4 equal parts - the side walls of the incubator.
2. Glue the parts together in the form of a box.
3. Cut the second sheet into 2 equal parts, and then divide one of these parts into two with a width of 60 and 40 cm - the lid and bottom of the incubator.
4. Cut out a square window in the lid.
5. Close the window with glass or plastic.
6. Glue the bottom to the body.
7. Glue the seams with tape.
8. Cover the inside with thermal insulation foil.
9. Cut the legs from the remaining foam - bars with a height of 6 cm and a width of 4 cm.
10. Glue the legs to the bottom.
11. In the side walls at a height of 1 cm from the bottom, drill or burn through 3 ventilation holes with a diameter of 12 mm with a soldering iron.
12. Attach holders for 4 bulbs to the inside.
13. Fasten the thermostat to the outside of the cover.
14. Fix the sensor inside at a height of 1 cm from the egg tray.
15. Attach an egg tray.
16. Install a fan in the cover.
17. Place a tray of water on the bottom.

Video: making a foam incubator

From a plastic bucket

This is the simplest version of a home incubator, designed for a small number of eggs. Turning the eggs in this design is done manually. Water is poured into the bottom of the bucket. Every time water needs to be added, the incubator will need to be disconnected from the power supply. Did you know? Quails were the first birds to be born in space. In 1990, the astronauts took on board the spacecraft 60 eggs with embryos, which were placed in an incubator. The hatchability of chicks was 100%.

Necessary materials

You will need:

• 2 plastic buckets of the same volume;
• light bulb 60 W;
• bulb holder;
• digital or analog thermostat;
• grate from the fruit box;
• plywood.

Bucket incubator diagram

Instructions

1. Drill 2 ventilation holes of 10 mm on one and the other side of the bucket.
2. From another bucket, cut off the bottom about 8 cm high and cut a hole in it, leaving 5 cm edges.
3. Insert the second bottom into the bucket.
4. We install a grate on it.
5. We put on the wire rack mosquito net so that the legs of the chicks do not fall through the holes.
6. Cut the cover out of plywood.
7. We fix a reflector from a tin and a lamp holder on it.
8. We make a hole in the lid for the thermostat and 4 ventilation holes.
9. We connect the wires from the cartridge. We insulate the wires well.
10. We screw in the light bulb.
11. We mount the thermostat to the lid.
12. We install the sensor in the middle of the bucket.

Video: how to make an incubator from a bucket

Features of hatching chicks in an incubator

In order to successfully hatch young quail, you should select high-quality incubation material by inspection appearance and transillumination with an ovoscope and prepare the incubator. Important! The incubator must run for at least 24 hours before loading the eggs. Only after monitoring the parameters and compliance with their standards can the incubation material be loaded. Eggs are suitable for hatching:

• correct shape;
• average size and weight - about 9-11 g;
• not too light and not too dark in color, without significant pigmentation;
• with a clean shell.

Eggs should be discarded during ovoscopy:

• without air chamber;
• with damage, thickening, thinning of the shell;
• with a few yolks;
• with spots;
• with misplaced yolk.

The quail incubation process lasts 17 days. In the first 12 days, the temperature should be at 37.7 degrees, and the humidity should be around 50-60%. In the remaining period, the temperature is gradually lowered to 37.2 degrees, the humidity - by 5-6%. During hatching, temperature indicators are reduced to 37 degrees, and humidity indicators increase by 13-16%.

Egg turnover is carried out 6 times a day. After the 14th day of incubation, the incubation material is no longer inverted. The incubator is opened 2 times a day for 5 minutes to ventilate and remove carbon dioxide.

Video: incubating quail eggs Thus, since quails do not have a well-developed incubation instinct, it is better to hatch their eggs using an incubator. Read more about when the egg-laying period for a quail begins, how many eggs a quail carries per day, and also how to keep laying quails at home.

It can be purchased - almost every model is designed for hatching and quail eggs, including, or made with your own hands from improvised means, for example, from a broken refrigerator, a box made of wood, foam or plastic buckets.
Detailed diagrams and detailed step by step instructions allow to make models of incubation apparatus for people who do not even have special skills. Did you know? For a long time it was believed that quail eggs do not disappear for a long period, even when stored in indoor conditions, since they contain an amino acid that prevents spoilage, and also that they do not contain the causative agent of salmonellosis. However, these are myths - if the birds are not properly fed and kept, they can get sick with this disease and be its carrier. Therefore, like chicken eggs, quail require heat treatment before eating.

Quail breeding is not the most popular industry in the poultry industry. Meanwhile, this business has very good prospects, especially given the well-known usefulness of quail eggs. However, everyone who is going to breed these useful birds should remember that he will inevitably have to take care of the young. And for this, an incubator for quails is literally vital.

Of course, such a design can be purchased in specialized household or online stores, but the price of quail incubators will not seem satisfactory to everyone, so many novice (and even experienced) poultry farmers are inclined towards the option of self-production.

Assembling an incubator for quails with your own hands, even at home, is a completely feasible task, of course, if you approach it responsibly and carefully, without missing a single detail. And in the first place is the reason for the need for the design itself. The fact is that in the process of domestication, quails have lost their instincts for incubating eggs, and therefore an incubator is simply necessary here.

And the second point that needs to be taken into account and calculated even at the “pre-preparatory” stage is the approximate number of eggs that will be hatched in the incubator. Based on this, you can calculate the dimensions of the structure and think about where it can be installed. You can't place somewhere in the aisle - they will stumble. In a hard-to-reach place, too, this will greatly complicate operation. In a word, here you will have to look for the notorious middle ground.

It's worth mentioning that all home incubators have one major advantage. Most manufacturers produce designs for 100-300 eggs. For small households, this is sufficient. But if large-scale industrial production is planned, where will the number of embryos be measured in the thousands? Here already such small incubators are indispensable.

Finally, there are many commercial designs equipped with self-contained power supplies. And if, for one reason or another, the electricity is cut off? It is easy to lose the whole next brood here, and this is a serious loss. Whereas the "home" design can also be equipped with a similar improvement and not worry.

Construction requirements

Some of this has already been said, in particular, on the topic of the size of the cage. However, if the given moment can vary, then now we will talk about what kind of General requirements for all quail incubators.

Regarding the temperature in the incubator, here the numbers should be between 37.3 and 38.3 ° C. It will be lower - the embryos will freeze, higher - "will cook". None of the outcomes are favorable unless the owner wants an omelet. Whereas in the room where the structure will be located, the temperature should be at least 20 ° C with a humidity of 20%.

Of course, given this difference in performance, a homemade incubator should have good thermal insulation. Otherwise, again, the embryos in the eggs will freeze immediately.

Standard 40 W incandescent lamps are well suited for heating. For a relatively small space, up to 3-5 m2, 4 pieces are quite enough. If you want to make a more impressive and modern incubator, heating elements would be a good option.

Finally, every home and hand-made device must be "idle" tested. Otherwise, if you lay quail eggs without checking, there is a chance of losing your first possible brood entirely. The check will show how well and correctly the desired temperature is maintained in the room, how automatic sensors, measuring devices and everything else work.

Design options

Of course, during the development of poultry farming, craftsmen have come up with many different methods and designs for assembling home incubators. Although they have the same goal, they can vary greatly in many ways. The number of eggs, the efficiency of maintaining the temperature, reliability, ease of setting and operation - all these and many other points have their own differences.

Construction No. 1

Of course, you first need to figure out what materials are required for this version of the quail incubator. There is nothing unusual, expensive or difficult to access here:

• wooden blocks;
• plywood sheets;
• Styrofoam;
• incandescent lamps with a power of 40 W;
• plexiglass;
• fine mesh mesh.

First, a square frame is made, the basis of the structure. It needs to be sheathed with sheets of plywood and insulated with foam. The cover should be located either on top or on the side. It all depends on personal preference and convenience (in terms of how to lay eggs inside).

It is highly desirable to equip a small window in one of the walls or on the lid of the incubator. The reason is obvious: the need to independently conduct visual observation and control of the egg incubation process.

Construction No. 2

In many respects, with regard to the assembly process and the materials used, the second incubator option is almost identical to the first. However, there are also a couple of features and differences here.

The first is that plywood sheets need to be stuffed on both sides of the frame. This forms double walls that promote effective insulation incubator.

For ventilation, special holes are drilled in the lid and floor. The empty space that forms between the timber and the plywood is filled with foam. If you do not want or do not want to use it, tow or sawdust is suitable as alternative materials.

It will not be superfluous to equip automatic pull-out plates near the ventilation holes. This should be done to better control the humidity level inside the incubator.

Construction No. 3

For this version of a homemade incubator, you will need an unnecessary cabinet made of chipboard (often constructions from under old TVs are used, for example) or thick enough plywood. At the top of the tube, you need to drill holes for ventilation. For automatic heating, you can use both the aforementioned incandescent lamps and a conventional household fan heater.

For the floor, a fine-mesh metal mesh or lattice is used. This design usually only fits three trays for laying eggs. They need to be positioned at approximately the same distance, secured with a special steel plate with holes drilled for this purpose.

The plate itself is attached to the walls. For this, movable fasteners are used, like door hinges (having found the corresponding videos, you can see how they look and how to fix them). A hole should be made on one of the walls and a handle like a well gate should be installed there. It will be used to periodically flip the trays. This is usually done at two hour intervals.

Construction No. 4

The above structures can also be used on an industrial scale, although in this case you will have to collect at least a dozen of them, while this do-it-yourself version of the quail incubator is suitable exclusively for home conditions. The reason for this is small size and volume. This is compensated by the convenience in terms of portability.

A plastic bucket with a lid is usually used as the basis of the design, in which you need to cut a window. The heating element is represented by a single 40 W incandescent lamp (no more is required for this size) and is installed in the upper half of this makeshift incubator.

The ventilation holes are drilled 7-8 cm from the bottom. A net for laying eggs is fixed in the middle of the bucket.

Before using this mini-incubator for quail, you need to fill in some water in order to maintain a certain level of humidity. Egg position can be controlled by tilting the entire incubator. In any case, it should not exceed 45 ° C.

Construction No. 5

Of course, something like an old refrigerator is asking for the role of the basis of the design. Such a "frame" has two serious advantages at once: tightness (and, as a result, thermal insulation) and rather large dimensions. It is very easy to convert the shelves yourself into trays or nets for laying eggs.

If there are doubts about the tightness of the structure, you can insulate the walls with an additional layer of foam. They also need to drill ventilation holes and install heating components. Best of all - all the same incandescent lamps, 2-3 on each shelf. The exact amount must be learned empirically by measuring the resulting temperature under different conditions.

To turn over the trays after laying the eggs, you need to mount the corresponding handles attached to the metal plate into the side of the refrigerator (for more detailed instructions better refer to the tutorial videos). The latter is located inside, under each of the trays.

Now it's time for a couple of points that every novice poultry breeder needs to know about. Unfortunately, they are not always and not obvious to everyone, but meanwhile they can turn out to be vital (especially for little quails). As in any business related to the breeding of living things, there are no trifles here.

Thermoregulation

Temperature regime is one of the most important points when breeding poultry... And here it is not enough to cram the heaters and wrap the incubator with everything you can. On the contrary, this approach will lead to the loss of the entire brood, no worse than the cold.

First, the temperature needs to be controlled. And for this, you cannot use street thermometers, since they have too high an error. Medical devices are much more accurate in this regard.

Secondly, the measuring devices should be located directly next to the eggs. At the same time, they must not touch the shell, otherwise the temperature readings will be incorrect.

Thirdly, if the incubator for quail eggs is large, it is worth resorting to using a standard home fan. The problem is that the temperature at the bottom and at the top can vary greatly, and the device that distills and "mixes" warm and cold air can solve the problem with the temperature balance.

Finally, fourth. To achieve more accurate indicators measuring instruments, you need to carry out regular measurements. The first one - after a certain interval after turning on the incubator, and the rest - with equal time intervals.

Incubation period

A few words about the operation of any, including a homemade quail incubator. Due to the fact that their eggs are not large in size, even a relatively small structure can accommodate many future quails. At the same time, you should not store them for longer than a week, otherwise the embryos will not be able to develop.

The incubation period of quails is about 17-18 days, so after the second week of keeping the eggs in the incubator, they need to stop turning over and regularly check for hatched babies. Newborn quails are also very small, but in their "nimbleness" they surpass chickens, turkey poults and even ducklings. So attentiveness and again attentiveness!

Conclusion

Making an incubator for quails with your own hands according to drawings is not an easy task. In addition to written instructions, it is imperative to have on hand a photo with these same drawings and a video that explains in detail the entire assembly process. In addition, when the structure is assembled, do not forget to regularly check and turn the eggs. Subject to all these nuances, there is good chance get a large brood of small quails, which will become the basis for the future poultry farming.

Quail eggs and meat are valued all over the world for their high nutritional value and abundance of nutrients in the composition. This bird is quite easy to grow, but it is through an incubator that it is most often bred at home. You can buy a quail incubator by choosing the type that suits your specific needs. And experienced farmers often make incubators with their own hands, because it is not difficult and the quality of the device is no worse than the purchased one.

Types of incubators

The quail egg incubator is a sealed box, inside of which there are insulating materials, ventilation, heating and egg-folding compartment. Egg incubation devices may differ depending on capabilities, functions.

• There are incubators with manual egg turning and automatic.
• The operating mode in some structures during incubation is constantly adjusted manually, and there are also fully automated models, where all the necessary parameters are set in advance, after laying the eggs.
• There are models on sale with and without an additional battery.
• Incubators also differ in size, number of laid eggs, power, price and many other indicators.

Experts recommend not buying an expensive model of an incubator right away, but a simple one. Thus, you can familiarize yourself with the features of the device and then quickly get used to working with other, more professional versions.

The best models of incubators for quails

Check out these articles as well

Among the wide variety of quail incubators, it is worth highlighting only a few of the most popular models.

It is better to purchase incubators of domestic producers. It is easier to buy parts from them separately or from the company where this model is produced, which greatly simplifies the repair of the device.

DIY quail incubator

Making an incubator for quails with your own hands at home is not difficult. A wide variety of materials can be used for this, from an old refrigerator to cardboard box or a wooden box. The main thing is that the materials are durable, reliable, otherwise the device will not last long.

• Incubator from a wooden box

In this option, you will need to find a small wooden box. It is better not to take plywood or chipboard, because as they heat up, they will emit harmful resins that are dangerous to humans, animals and birds, including. You will also need foam sheets, a net for eggs, incandescent lamps.

From the inside in the box, insulation is made from foam sheets. If it is small, then the foam sheets can be placed not inside, but outside. Only the walls of the box are sheathed with foam. In the bottom of the wooden box, holes are drilled for ventilation with a diameter of 1 cm. It is enough to make up to 5 such holes. An inspection window is cut into the cover. Glass is inserted into it so that it is convenient to look at the eggs through it.

On the opposite walls of the box, closer to the top cover, cartridges for incandescent lamps are mounted. They are wired. It is advisable to try the bulbs right away. If the box is large, then the lamps are installed in 4 corners, if it is small, then two lamps on opposite walls will be enough. Incubator bulbs take 15 watts each.

At a height of 10 cm from the bottom of the box, a tray is fixed - a grid on which eggs can be placed without problems without falling down. It is important to make sure that the tray is 15-20 cm away from the lamps!

That's it, the construction is ready. You need to put a hygrometer and a thermometer inside to measure humidity and temperature. If it is too hot, the incubator is ventilated; if it is cold, it is closed. Moisture is increased by spraying eggs. Alternatively, you can place saucers of water under the eggs at the bottom of the box.

To measure the temperature in a homemade incubator, use a simple medical thermometer... It is placed next to the eggs, but so that the device does not touch the eggs themselves, and after 5 minutes you can check the indicators.

• Bucket quail incubator

This type of incubator is suitable for setting a small number of eggs. You will need a plastic bucket, a drill, a bucket lid, an incandescent lamp, and a net for placing eggs.

A window is cut through the lid of the bucket. It must be large enough to fit the lamp. The lamp is installed in this window so that it does not wobble or fall. An egg net is mounted in the middle of the bucket. It can be placed on a homemade wood or plastic, foam frame, for example.

Several holes with a diameter of 1 cm are drilled at a distance of 7-8 cm from the bottom of the bucket. To increase the humidity in the bucket, a little water is poured into the bottom. Now you can put eggs on the net, turn on the lamp and check the temperature and humidity in the bucket from time to time so that the eggs are not very hot or cold.

• Incubator from the refrigerator

This type of incubator is suitable if you need to breed poultry in large quantities at home. Use an old, unnecessary refrigerator. You will also need 3 egg trays, a thermostat, a fan, 6 bulbs (100 W each), a water tray, and a drill.

First dismantled freezer if there is one. In the lid and in the bottom of the refrigerator, 4 holes are drilled for ventilation, with a diameter of 1 cm. A fan is mounted on the upper wall of the refrigerator. A thermostat is placed on the top cover. Light bulbs are installed on the side walls. There should be 4 of them on top, and 2 on the bottom. They need to be connected, checked, connected to the thermostat.

Humidity and temperature sensors are hung inside the refrigerator. Egg trays are placed in the refrigerator instead of shelves. A tray with water is installed at the bottom of the refrigerator. If desired, a viewing window is made in the refrigerator door and closed with glass. If the refrigerator is blown out, then it can be sheathed with foam from the inside.

How to hatch quail in an incubator at home

It is not difficult to breed quails at home. The incubator can be used purchased or made by hand. Quail eggs develop in the incubator for 17 days. Before hatching quails in the incubator, preparatory procedures are carried out - preparation of eggs, cleaning the incubator. For incubation, whole, medium-sized eggs are taken. They should be fresh, flawless. It is advisable to check them on an ovoscope before use to make sure that they are fertilized.

Eggs are placed in an incubator and marked with a marker on one side - this is a reference point so that it is clear in which direction to turn them during incubation. After turning on the incubator, the eggs are not touched at all for the first 2 days. The temperature inside is maintained approximately within the range of + 37 ... + 38 ° C. The optimum humidity for hatching young animals is 60-70%.

From 3 to 15 days, the eggs are constantly turned over - every 2 hours. This is to prevent the embryo from sticking to the shell. 2 days before the chicks hatch, it is necessary to increase the air humidity to 90%. It is very simple to do this - the eggs are just sprinkled with water from time to time. After the chicks are born, they are kept in an incubator for another day or they are immediately transplanted into a brooder. It is important in the brooder to maintain a temperature of about + 38 ° C on the first day of the chicks' life, then they will quickly get used to environment and become mobile.

Domesticated quail females may lose their egg-hatching instinct. However, even if a bird is capable of hatching offspring, it will still not be able to take more than 15 eggs. In this regard, the breeder must definitely acquire an incubator, which will replace the hen. To do this, you do not have to go to a hardware store, because a modern type device can also be made in a home workshop.

Why do you need an incubator?

Quails are usually abundant due to their small size. However, for the desired population, sometimes the natural offspring is not enough, since one female can hatch no more than 12-15 eggs. In addition, she may completely refuse to hatch them.

To solve this problem, an incubator is needed - a hermetically made box that provides thermal insulation, special heating and egg trays. So, all the conditions are artificially created in it for the production of full-fledged chicks from fertilized eggs.

There are a large number of incubator models in hardware stores, but they are not cheap. To significantly reduce your costs, the device can be assembled with your own hands, using the available materials and ready-made drawings.

Requirements

If the device does not meet a number of requirements, during its operation all eggs can be lost at once. So, when making an incubator by hand, the following rules must be taken into account:

• The incubator must be kept at a temperature between 37.3-38.3 ° C. In the room itself, where the device will stand, it should not be lower than 20 ° C. As for humidity, in the chamber it should be 50-50%, and outside the chamber - 20%.
• The easiest way to heat the drawer is to use conventional 40 W incandescent lamps. To heat a small space of such lamps, 4 pieces are enough. As an alternative to them, you can use a heating element, but in this case, the design will be more complex.
• Heat should be evenly distributed throughout the incubator. This is not an easy task given that warm air tends to rise. For example, hatching eggs often have to be swapped. In industrial appliances, this requires swapping the trays, and in household appliances, transferring eggs from the middle to the edges. However, there is another option: equip the device with two heat sources, placing the first one under the lid, and the second one on the lid. As heating elements, you can use incandescent lamps with a power of 25 W (2 at the top and 2 at the bottom).
• To optimize temperature regime the bottom of the trays should be made of metal mesh, since it allows warm air to pass through much faster. It is better to make the trays themselves not stationary, but mobile, on each of the three rows having installed not one continuous tray, but two 1/3 of the row area. This will solve the problem of temperature fluctuations, since the egg will constantly be in the middle of the device, and the entire incubation process will take place in optimal mode.
• If possible, the cover of the device should not be made from the side (on the entire wall), but from above. This way, the incubator will not cool quickly when turning the eggs.
• For the manufacture of the device case, you can use various materials- from a wooden box to an old refrigerator. However, in any case, it will be necessary to provide the device with sufficient thermal insulation using modern insulation materials.

During the incubation period, the temperature inside the device must be maintained at 37.3-38.3 ° C and humidity up to 50-55%. These parameters should not depend on current fluctuations in the outlet, or from a power outage. You can read more about how the incubation of quail eggs takes place.

Construction principle

When making a homemade incubator, you can use a variety of materials and blueprints. At the same time, the principle of action is practically the same:

1. A box is used as a body the right size, and to maintain a stable temperature and humidity in it, heat-insulating walls are made. Outside, they can also be lined with expanded polystyrene plates or roll insulation, and on top - sheathed with plywood. You can also use an old refrigerator as a case, on top of which you need to drill several holes for ventilation and install a glass to observe the state of the eggs.
2. Inside the chamber or box, fine finishing for cleaning and disinfecting the cavity in the future.
3. To install the mesh with eggs, stops and a sealed hatch are made.
4. To maintain the desired humidity level, an evaporator is installed at the bottom of the chamber. The nets must be installed higher, otherwise the chicks may drown in the bath.
5. To ensure that all eggs are evenly heated, an internal fan with intermittent switching is installed on the upper and lower grid.
6. An airspace is organized in the chamber so that the nets with eggs can be turned 45 degrees. So, the distance from the floor to the tray must be at least 10 cm. As for the distance from the tray to the ceiling or the upper sight glass, it must be calculated depending on the heating method. If 40 W bulbs are used, then it should also be at least 10 cm.
7. To make trays for eggs, you can pull any suitable material, for example, nylon fishing line. The main thing is that the eggs do not roll when the tray is turned over, and the hatched chicks do not fall into the cells.
8. For incubation of birds, mains power is used. In this case, it is worth connecting the battery in case of emergencies.
9. To control the temperature in the chamber, set mercury thermometer, which is usually used to monitor the operation of temperature sensors. It shouldn't touch eggshell... To measure humidity, a psychrometer is installed.
10. When the chicks are born, a fine spray mist is created in the chamber so that the shell is easily separated when it is destroyed by its beak. Chicks dry in the chamber for 1-2 days.
11. The finished incubator is installed on a raised platform.

By assembling an incubator with your own hands, you can get a structure of this type:

How to make a foam box incubator?

Polyfoam has the property of maintaining the required temperature, therefore it can be used as the main material in the manufacture of an incubator.

Option number 1

How the device will look in section can be seen in the diagram:

Before assembling the device, you need to prepare:

• 2 sheets of styrofoam or a pre-made styrofoam box;
• incandescent lamp 40 W or 4 lamps of 15 W;
• glass or plastic;
• egg tray;
• water tray;
• fan;
• thermal insulation foil;
• thermostat;
• Scotch;
• glue;
• soldering iron;
• drill.

The structure is assembled in this order:

1. Cut the first sheet of polystyrene into 4 equal parts to get the sides of the box. Glue the resulting walls in the form of a box.
2. Cut the second foam sheet into 2 equal parts. Take the first of them and divide into 2 parts 60 cm and 40 cm wide to get the cover and bottom of the structure.
3. Cut out a window in the lid with equal sides (in the form of a square). Cover it with glass or plastic.
4. Glue the bottom to earlier assembled box... Glue the seams additionally with tape, and sheathe the inner walls with thermal insulation foil.
5. Cut the legs from the last sheet of polystyrene - bars 6 cm high and 4 cm wide. Glue them to the bottom.
6. Drill or burn through the sides with a soldering iron 3 holes for ventilation with a diameter of 12 mm. They should be 1 cm above the bottom.
7. Attach lamp holders inside the box.
8. Install a thermostat on the outside of the lid, and fix the sensor inside at a height of 1 cm from the egg tray.
9. Insert the egg tray.
10. Attach a fan to the cover of the structure.
11. Place a tray with water at the bottom of the incubator.

What a homemade foam incubator looks like, 4 cm thick, can be seen in the following video:

Option number 2

A more complex type of incubator from a foam box can be assembled. To do this, you will also need to prepare cans, aluminum sheet, 15W light bulbs and a cooler to maintain an even temperature inside the device. The structure is assembled in this order:

1. Cover the inner walls of the box with foil-clad polyethylene to keep the incubator warm.
2. Attach a cooler and light bulbs to a sheet of plywood, as a direct attachment to the foam will be unreliable. The cooler must be installed at an angle so that it blows over the light bulbs.
3. Cut out "screens" from cans to evenly distribute heat radiation from light bulbs.
4. Cut holes in the lid of the box and attach a piece of glass so that the farmer can observe the state of the eggs.
5. Punch a few small holes in the box to provide fresh air for the chicks.
6. Place a metal grate with 40x30 cells on the bottom. Sharpen all mesh points with a file.
7. Attach a piece of wire to the wire rack to form a handle to turn the tray over.
8. Place a container with water on the bottom of the structure to maintain the moisture level.

To regulate the temperature, a digital controller can be installed in the incubator. In addition, you should remember about the psychrometer, which will help maintain a constant level of humidity.

Options for assembling an incubator from a wooden box

The basis of such an incubator is wooden box or frame. From the inside, it is insulated with plywood, foam or heat insulator. For creating necessary conditions heating lamps and water trays are also installed. There are several options for assembling this design.

Option number 1

Simple construction, for the assembly of which you will need:

• box;
• foam sheets;
• plywood sheet;
• metal construction mesh;
• one 40 W incandescent lamp or 4 15 W lamps.

When assembling a product from a wooden frame made from bars, you can proceed from the following drawing:

The incubator is assembled in several stages:

1. Sheathe the box with pieces of plywood and additionally insulate the walls with foam.
2. Drill several ventilation holes with a diameter of 1 cm in the bottom.
3. Make a glass window in the lid so that in the future you can monitor the eggs in the trays and control the temperature inside the incubator.
4. Under the cover, mount the electrical wiring with lamp holders, which must be placed in each corner of the product.
5. Attach the egg tray to the foam support about 10 cm above the bottom.
6. Pull a metal mesh over the top of the tray.

Option number 2

Advantages of the model:

• wooden box;
• a sheet of plywood, foam or heat insulator;
• cover;
• 3 wooden logs;
• 2 water trays;
• metal mesh;
• retaining rails;
• 2 heating resistors (PEV-100, 300 Ohm);
• incandescent lamps with a power of 40 W;
• wire in heat-resistant insulation.

To make an incubator, you need to adhere to the following sequence:

1. Sheathe the sides of the box thermal insulation material- plywood, foam or heat insulator.
2. Make a viewing window in the lid, which is covered with glass.
3. Drill through holes in the lid and equip them with movable strips, which, if necessary, can be opened or closed.
4. Install 40W lamps in each corner. Route the wiring 20 cm below the cover.
5. Pull a wire mesh or wire rack over a metal frame to create an egg tray. Install it 10 cm above the bottom.
6. Install a fan, thermometers and a thermostat inside the box. Thus, it will be possible to control the microclimate inside the device, and, if necessary, change the temperature and humidity level.
7. Place trays of water on the "floor".

Homemade incubator according to Dulik's scheme

Amateur poultry breeder S. E. Dulik offers a rather complex design, equipped with a heating element in the form of an iron tank with water. However, this provides good results during operation, since this heating method does not depend on voltage and provides uniform heating. Even in the event of a power outage, the chicks will be fine.

Dulik's scheme looks like this:

To independently make such an incubator, you need to understand the principle of its construction:

1. Distinctive characteristic incubator - a heating element in the form of a tank with water (1). He is responsible for the even distribution of heat inside the device. The main thing is that it will function regardless of the presence of voltage. Such a tank is made of iron 4 mm thick. It can be made of galvanized iron, but the seams will need to be soldered in order.
2. Nozzles (2) with a height of 30 mm are made from 4 "pipe lengths and welded into the top tank cap. The inner hole must be 10 mm less than the diameter of the nozzle.
3. The formed side is necessary for the lamp stopper (3) made of 4-5 mm thick mold. You also need to cut out two discs from it - an outer diameter of 95 mm and an inner one, the size of which must match the size of the cartridge. The resulting fastening elements will also be indicators of the inclusion of heating, since through them you can see the process of heating the water.
4. In the design itself, the bulbs of 100 W lamps are lowered into the water up to the cartridges themselves. They must be selected with an external nut so that the lamps can be adjusted in relation to the height of the socket. In addition, 2 lamps are required to duplicate the heaters. They are connected in parallel with the load of the thermostat.
5. The tank is filled to the brim with water. To be able to drain it, the side of the container is equipped with a valve (4). Additionally, it is recommended to sheathe the tank with a heat insulator - 40 mm foam plastic. In this case, if the electricity is cut off within 10-12 hours, the water will only cool down by 0.5-1 ° C.
6. The structure itself is made of a wooden frame, consisting of 5 bars measuring 40x40 mm, as well as 2 trays: the lower one (6) is used for trays with water, and the upper one (7) is used for laying eggs. The upper tray must be made of 12 mm thick planks, and the bottom of the incubator must be sheathed with a mesh with 13x13 mm cells. It is already necessary to put a nylon mesh on it for storing eggs.
7. The front wall of the upper tray is sealed with double glass (8) to retain heat in the chamber and control the temperature inside it. Wooden pads are attached to the glazed frame (9). For this, screws and PVA glue are used. These pads should protrude approximately 20 mm on all sides beyond the front wall to seal the tray with foam cushions and prevent heat leakage from the hatch chamber.
8. The bottom wooden tray (6) must have a bottom made of fiberglass with a thickness of 2 mm (10). It must be attached to the frame with screws from the bottom. The bottom should protrude 20 mm from the sides of the tray, so that, if necessary, slide the container along the grooves sawn in the wooden plates (11) into the incubator itself. In front, to this tray, you need to attach the cover plate (12) with screws. It is advisable to glue the front part with foam.
9. In the lower part of the frame, there are bars with 9 holes on each side with a diameter of 12 mm. They must be opened to ventilate the incubator. Additionally, you should also make the upper through slots (14) 180 mm long. They should be right and left at the top of the frame. Thus, the top of the slots should be level with the bottom of the tank. In addition, they need to be equipped with small valves of two halves.
10. The finished frame is sheathed with foam and fiberboard on all sides.

Small-sized incubator from a plastic bucket

If the farm is hatching a small number of eggs, it is best to make a small-sized incubator from a plastic bucket with a lid. The scheme of this design is as follows:

Such an incubator is made very simply:

1. Cut a small viewing window into the cover.
2. Attach a heat source to the lid from the inside. It is enough to use 1-2 incandescent lamps.
3. Place a mesh egg tray in the middle of the bucket.
4. Drill several ventilation holes in the side wall at a distance of 70-80 mm from the bottom.
5. Pour some water on the bottom of the bucket to create the desired moisture level.

In such an incubator, the egg tray must be turned over regularly. To do this, it is enough to slightly change the slope of the bucket, but taking into account the fact that the angle of inclination should not be more than 45 degrees.

How to make an incubator from an old refrigerator?

The body of an old refrigerator is excellent for making an incubation unit, since it is spacious enough, has the required degree of tightness and thermal insulation. This option is especially attractive for amateur poultry breeders, since it involves simple installation, which is obvious from the design drawing:

To convert a refrigerator into an incubator, you need to do a few things:

• instead of shelves for storing food, install trays with eggs;
• insulate the walls from the inside with foam;
• make holes in the walls for ventilation and install a fan;
• install incandescent lamps for heating, and a thermostat for temperature control;
• to maintain the desired level of humidity, place pallets with water on the bottom;
• make a metal lever to turn the eggs.

Thus, in order to re-equip the refrigerator, it is necessary to prepare the following materials and tools:

• egg trays with grates - 3 pcs .;
• handle for turning trays;
• bulbs 100 W - 6 pcs.;
• fan;
• thermostat sensor;
• thermometer;
• psychrometer;
• water tray;
• metal plates - 2 pcs.;
• window glass;
• Scotch;
• drill;
• screwdrivers;
• screws.

Dismantling the refrigerator is carried out in the following order:

1. Drill 4 through holes with a diameter of 1-1.5 cm in the lid and bottom of the refrigerator to ensure natural air exchange.
2. Attach a fan to the upper wall.
3. Install a thermostat on the cover.
4. Attach light bulbs on the side panels - 4 on top, and 2 on the bottom. Connect them to the thermostat. You can simply attach 2-4 lamp holders to the ceiling of the camera, using ordinary self-tapping screws, and conduct electrical wiring to them.
5. Install temperature and humidity sensors to the inner walls.
6. Fix the metal plates on the side panels, and fasten the trays to them with screws. They should look to one side and the other at a 45 degree angle.
7. Attach a metal lever or handle to flip the trays at the same time.
8. Make a viewing window in the door and glaze it. Place a tray with water at the bottom.

To keep the heat in the chamber well, it is recommended to insulate the inside of the refrigerator with foam plates.

The scheme of the finished incubator will look like this:

When making an incubation box, experienced breeders recommend adhering to these recommendations:

• For uniform heating of the grid with eggs, incandescent lamps should be installed both below and under the lid.
• For natural ventilation, be sure to make several round holes in the lid.
• Provide a backup heat source in case of a power outage. To do this, make a special chamber at the bottom, which is separated from the rest of the incubator with three-layer plywood. Drill many holes in it. Release the aluminum canister into the resulting compartment. If the electricity turns off, you need to pour boiling water into the canister, and then close all the ventilation and cover the incubator with a blanket. The heat from a homemade battery will radiate for 12-14 hours.
• Prevent sharp shocks and noise in the room, otherwise the embryos can get scared and lag behind in development.
• Do not use outdoor thermometers for temperature control, as they involve a rather high error. The best way- medical devices. They can be placed next to the eggs, but they must not be allowed to come into contact with the shell, otherwise the accuracy of their readings will suffer. For the data to be accurate, measurements should be taken some time after turning on the incubator and at regular intervals.
• If the appliance is large, a regular fan can be used to help maintain the temperature balance inside the chamber.
• The incubator must be installed on an elevated surface in a room where the room temperature is maintained, no direct Sun rays and there are no drafts.

Video: homemade flip incubator

The following video shows you how you can make a flip incubator with two separate chambers. Its power supply is 12 W, and it is also possible to connect to a car battery. The temperature controller 1209 is used to control the temperature:

Town: Tomsk