Our Tips To Help You Successfully Hatch Goose Eggs article is one of the most popular articles on our website. In that article we picture a homemade incubator/hatcher that we use. We are frequently asked how we made that goose egg incubator. So today, we are going to show you how we made our basic hatcher. While it is not the cheapest DIY incubator we could have made, it is much more fool proof than many DIY versions.
Because most people only have a few geese, and they only lay a few eggs a week, incubating multiple batches of eggs due to hatch at various times often works best. However, you CANNOT hatch eggs in the same incubator where you are incubating eggs that are not ready to hatch. That is a good recipe for losing your later hatches. The losses are either due to bacterial contamination, or failure to lose enough water due to the increased humidity from the hatch.
This is where having a second hatching incubator comes in very handy.
We do not ever hatch eggs in our incubator. Hatching eggs is a wet, messy, bacteria contaminated process. Thus, we think it’s best to keep hatching out of our incubator. We want a separate easy to clean hatcher to move the eggs to. If you are hatching goose eggs, it is also important to take into consideration that goslings are very tall and need enough headroom to stand up. This is something most off the shelf incubators do not provide.
If you are using your DIY incubator exclusively as a hatcher, you do not need to worry about an egg turner. This simplifies the design and building process. The control module we use can accommodate an egg turner. So if you want to add one, it can certainly be done.
The first thing you are going to need is a container to make your incubator out of.
Many people use things like coolers, and you can choose to use whatever you might have around that is suitable. We decided that a $5 plastic tote from Walmart was the best option. It was inexpensive. It’s clear so we can view the hatch without opening the incubator. The goslings can stand up, and it is easy to clean.
When selecting a container, please keep in mind that size and insulation matter. If it is too big you won’t be able to keep it warm enough unless you use a different setup than what we are using. The tote we are using is approximately 16” x 12” x 6”. If the weather is cold we wrap the sides and part of the top with towels to provide some insulation. Anything larger, and our heat source would probably not be sufficient. That being said, you can hatch quite a few goose eggs in a 12” x 16” space.
Next, you will need a floor for inside your hatcher.
This needs to be something that is sturdy, flat and smooth to set your eggs on to keep them off the bottom of the incubator. You need to be able to put water in the bottom, and do not want your eggs to be sitting in it. Our floor is simply a folded over piece of chicken wire with a mesh over the top of it. It doesn’t have to be fancy. Some well supported plastic mesh from a craft store is sufficient.
Lastly, you will need the most expensive component.
The control module. We are using the Incukit Mini(TM) from Incubator Warehouse. It is compatible with their egg turner motor if you wish to add an egg turner to your hatcher/incubator. While this is one of the more expensive DIY options, all in one unit with the proportional thermostat is very good at keeping temperatures very stable. We think it is worth the cost to have a stable,well regulated environment.
You will also need a few basic tools like a drill, sharp utility knife and a screwdriver.
To make the incubator, you will need to use the utility knife to cut out a square hole in the lid of your tote for the screen and buttons of the control module to fit through. Then you will need to drill small holes to put the screws through.
Before you attach the control module to the lid, drill a few larger holes in the lid. One of them should be in a location that the power cord can be fed through it. The others are to allow ample oxygen to your hatching eggs. Once you have drilled your holes, you can screw the control module onto the lid. Then you can place your floor into the incubator and plug it in.
You should test it before putting the eggs in.
Make sure it maintains the correct temperature! To do that you can place some small containers of water in it to simulate eggs. Adjust your thermostat and insulation until the temperature maintains a steady temperature of 99.5 degrees. You are then ready to start hatching eggs.
The reason you want to test your hatcher with something like containers of water is that without the thermal mass of the eggs it is more difficult for the incubator to stabilize temperature because it changes too quickly and easily. You will get a much more accurate trial run with water.
We are strongly considering designing and making an incubator similar to this that has an automatic egg turner. When we do so we will add that information. If you don’t want to miss out on that update, consider signing up for our newsletter so that our new articles will be delivered directly to your inbox!
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