Candle

[greatxtc04]

Can someone please tell me how and when to candle my eggs. I have 98 eggs in my incobator, started out with 100, but found 2 cracked.Hope to get at least 80 to 85 babies.With luck. My husband and I can't wait. Thanks..

[joe wares]

There are some good sites out there for candeling information. I candle eggs at 7 days and at 14 days then I leave them untill they hatch.
after you look at the following link you will know more about what to look for.

   animalscience.ucdavis.edu/Avian/pfs32.htm

   ohioline.osu.edu/b633/b633_.html

[greatxtc04]

Thanks Joe, that site was just what I needed, it will help me a lot. I printed it out so I can use it when I need it,,again thanks.

[britguy33]

Got a tip on here to use a 2 aa mini mag light. I used it in a dark room and the eggs showed up great. Cheaper than a store bought candler. if you wrap the end with foam you won't run the risk of accidentally cracking any eggs. Someone also said 11 days so I went with that and had good luck. You can also see ones you need to mark and give a few extra days of turning this way.

[Reeves]

Put your mini mag on tight focus & put it close to some sensitive skin, nose, behind your ear etc. You'll find it is very hot. I do not use them because of that. I do not know if it will hurt the egg, but why take the chance ?

[britguy33]

sorry reeves not to disagree but I don't leave it on the egg for more than 2 seconds. just to see dark color. And have not noticed mini mag get much hotter than 100 degrees. especially with the foam barrier. by doing it in a dark room you don't need to keep the light on for any time at all.

 I will let you know in a week  how bad it hurt my eggs. I have 101 fertile due to hatck the 23rd. This is my first try candeling s

///greatxtc04 if you want to wait I will give you the results so you don't ruin your eggs if reeves is right.

[Reeves]

I'm happy you replied ! For some reason it never crossed my mind to test it with a thermometer ! So you use a foam thing on the end to keep it off the egg ? I have something I think will work great ! I'll test & let you know the results ! Thanks !

[greatxtc04]

Sorry, guess I am dumb, but where do you buy a mini mag light?

[stewaw]

Mini-mag is a brand of high intensity flashlight. They come in sizes from aaa all the way up to 8 "D" cell. They are available in the sporting goods department of most larger retail stores (Wal-Mart, Bass-Pro Shops, Gun and Army Surplus etc..). They can get pretty warm.  I use mine by making a circle with my index finger and thumb. I shine the light through this circle from the outside to the inside (palm of my hand).  The egg is placed (and lightly grasped) in the palm side of my hand between the thumb and index finger. This creates an air gap of about 1/4 to 3/8 of an inch to avoid direct contact with the tip of the light.  By repositioning my thumb and index finger, I can adjust the size of the circle  to focus the beam more where I want it to be and minimizing stray light shining around the egg which makes it more difficult to see.  This technique while hard to explain clearly, allows you to easily transition from quail eggs to turkey eggs in the same tray.  The same thing could be made (and is sold as a commercial candler) by creating a dark cone that focuses the intense light in a very small area it's just that I'm too cheap/tight to buy anything I can reasonably make myself LOL. Just remember, we're not talking rocket science here...whatever it takes to allow you to see clearly enough to determine the development or lack thereof.
 
David

[Reeves]

Learn something every day ! I guess the saying "never assume" is true in this case. :oops:

I tested the temp, through styrofoam. The tight focus light about 1 inch from the thermometer bulb. It took 1 minute to raise the temp 1 degree.
I then put the light against the bulb & it took 10 seconds to raise it 1 degree.

I guess I can now go back to using the mini mag  :oops:

[greatxtc04]

I've always heard that we never get to old to learn, but in my case that's a different story.

[greatxtc04]

Hey guys, found a mini mag light at Wal-Mart, going to try it later. Wish me luck.

[britguy33]

let us know how it works out for you.