Homemade Incubator

My friend Tom sent me these plans and pictures for a homemade incubator he was using.

Interesting side note on this incubator is that Tom has since bought a Hovabator, because it is much easier to keep a constant temperature with.

Here's the plans Tom has given me for the incubator below.  Thanks again, Tom:

Tools:
Sharp knife or razor
Patience

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Construction:

 Cut 5” X 7” rectangle hole in Styrofoam box lid 

Use a small bead of silicone around the Plexiglas and place over rectangle hold.  This creates the viewing window and a place to attach the nightlight.

 Attach nightlight with bulb to the inside portion of the Plexiglas window using silicone.  Be sure to allow all the silicone minimum 4 hours to harden. 

 Plug-in nightlight and extension cord. Replace lid on box and allow 24 hours to stabilize the temperature.

 You should create a notch in the Styrofoam box for your cables to exit without leaving a gap and causing even more temperature fluctuations.

 I used this set-up in the 1999-breeding season.  The incubator maintained a temperature some where near 16 degrees above the room temperature.  So if the room was 70 degrees, I had a temp inside of about 86.  There are also 4-watt bulbs that I used in late summer when the room’s temperature rose above 75 degrees.

 Instead of a digital thermometer one could use a normal aquarium or terrarium thermometer also.  This would cut down on cost too.

 I used a shoe box with vermiculite as a base material and a lid with holes in it to incubate my eggs.  You could also use small deli cups with holes in the sides to allow for circulation.  Good luck with your endeavors.

Other Incubator Instructions

Silas's Homemade Incubator Flash

Jeff Fisher's Incubator - Another one, using a refrigerator, no pics

Aquarium Incubator - Classic everyone talks about

Really cool, Large size Incubator - Dwight Good's incubator made with a 33 Gallon Storage container - very nice