spring cleaning tip

[kcgamebirdfarm]

to all of you that still have to clean your incubators out or even if you have and missed this
this is for all gqf and similar style incubators - take the back of the machine off - not hard its a 1/4" drive or just a flat head screwdriver - if you have never done this b4 your will probably surprised and how much chick fuzz is back there - get all this cleaned out - i recommend using a pressure washer i do this every couple months on these small machines-  this will help insure the life of your incubator as well as help your hatch and everything
2 of my gqfs are 15 years old and have always been taken care of in this fashion and never once have i had anything go wrong with them same parts as the had the day they were made
hope this helps
Kyle

[Pheasant Hollow Farm]

to all of you that still have to clean your incubators out or even if you have and missed this
this is for all gqf and similar style incubators - take the back of the machine off - not hard its a 1/4" drive or just a flat head screwdriver - if you have never done this b4 your will probably surprised and how much chick fuzz is back there - get all this cleaned out - i recommend using a pressure washer i do this every couple months on these small machines-  this will help insure the life of your incubator as well as help your hatch and everything
2 of my gqfs are 15 years old and have always been taken care of in this fashion and never once have i had anything go wrong with them same parts as the had the day they were made
hope this helps
Kyle

Would you like to explain this procedure in more detail?

Steve
Pheasant Hollow Farm

[CharlieHorse]

 

Although, I would never use a pressure washer on any part of an incubator.  Pressure washers force water into places that water was never meant to be.  I won't even use one on my dunebuggy or ATV for that very reason. Nothing works as good as good ole elbow grease, a rag, and some soapy water.

[MtBullion Gamebirds]

Besides getting water into all the components, what about the damage to the particle board, I would imagine it would start to bubble and fall apart.  I do take the back off, but to use a pressure washer, I don't think I would do that.  Tec-trol and a sponge works just fine.  Now we do use an air compressor to blow out our brooders and I use a vacuum on the incubators for all the egg chips.

[Pheasant Hollow Farm]

I am still waiting to here his detailed method with the pressure wash.

I didn't want to come off as some wise so I left it at that. You people know how I am...

Steve
Pheasant Hollow Farm

[birddog]

well you learn something new every day. when I first purchased my gqf incubator I was told by someone who has been in the poultry biz for some time that he tried to remove the back  of his and found it was glued together along with the screws. and in the process of getting it apart it was badly damaged. so I never thought about trying.  I guess I'll  give it a shot.

[kcgamebirdfarm]

so i pretty much just had this huge reply and deleted it so here goes again
my greatest apologies on it taking me so long to reply as i am sure that some of you are eagerly awaiting my post

A pressure washer is amazing especially on my natureforms!

as far as the back of the gqfs being glued together this is true if you think it needs to be glued again do so but the front is not glued so no big worry

now onto my detailed cleaning process

I am still waiting to here his detailed method with the pressure wash.

I didn't want to come off as some wise so I left it at that. You people know how I am...

Steve
Pheasant Hollow Farm

s15
I like to load up the back of the truck with the gqfs and take a drive into town to the local fire department and open up the incubators and have the good firefighters open the valve and just blow the machines out, takes about 2 seconds each and the job is done!  JUST A JOKE!!!  see steve you are the only wise 

as far as damaging the components with the pressure washer - i take about 3 fast swipes across the fan and turner to blow off the fuzz. to some extent they can withstand water if not you would never be able to put water in the machine for humidity a constant moisture in the whole thing....

if it is a gqf good chance it is made out of plywood not a particle board aka OSB gqf puts a heck of a coat of paint on there i have yet to blow any paint off and no bubbling anywhere  the reason i said something about plywood and particle board is because they are made up completely different and particle board yes you might have a problem if they were made out of particle board

charlie horse you said you would never use a pressure washer on any part of an incubator... what about your hatching trays??

Everyone has there own way of doing things but this just happens to be the way i do it and i have been doing it for years without any problems but the main part of this post is to get people to clean out the backs of those incubators because it can cause some problems - I am sure you will all agree with me there.... i would rather have the turner or fan go out than that fuzz build up and cause a fire....

[Bird Brained]

Instead of the back, I took the top off my GQF hatcher unit to change the fan motor last season and I could clean the back portion with no problem.  I left the aluminum metal angle brackets attached to the top board and removed the screws holding the brackets onto the sides and lifted the lid right off....I think I did use a box knife to cut the gasket in two places that seal the front door so not to destroy the gasket by trying to remove and reattach it.

There wasn't any glue holding it the top to worry about either.

[CharlieHorse]

 

charlie horse you said you would never use a pressure washer on any part of an incubator... what about your hatching trays??

 

Now, C'mon.  They aren't a electrical device......at least mine aren't.    If I remember correctly, I do believe that the fan motor in the GQF is sealed?  That would be the only reason that you've been lucky enough to get away with the drenching of an electric component.
  You had me going there for a milisecond on the fire department story....I know for sure that those kind of characters would destroy the whole thing, I know what they do to houses in short order. Fire line would blast the whole thing down the road like a piece of paper in a tornado...........and they'd enjoy doin' it!        I'd kinda like to see that for myself.   

The back comes right off of mine (GQF ratite hatcher) with no problem.

[labmancan]

Where I got my Sportsman (Dirt Willy), he has all the screws removed from the tops, he uses an air compressor to blow the dust and crude out of the incubators then he has one of those sprayers you can get for pesticides, he mixes up Tektrol and sprays the insides. Make sure to wear a dust mask as the dust and chick dander can be harmful to human lungs.
All the GQF Sportsman are solid wood. with an exterior type waterproof paint.

[TLsgamebirdfarm]

Kyle, wouldn't hair spray and a lighter be more safe and faster? TL

[kcgamebirdfarm]

huh.... i don't get it - enlighten me tommy....
maybe a torch?

[slider]

I will say that the 1st time that u take the back off, it is kinda hard, but just take ur time and all is well..just did my 2 1502`s and the hatcher and if u have never cleaned them out then u r in for a big suprise...I used a air hose with the pressure set at 70lbs and blew all the dust out of that compartment while the unit was running...on the rest of it soap water and a sponge...with the unit off its great now and they r all really clean...I am also putting electronic thermostats on them...good luck to all this season...and I do know that u make ur own luck...

[Reeves]

I let my incubators bath in sand