# Building an Incubator for Tortoise Eggs



## vickihale (Jul 31, 2012)

Several people have asked me for information about how I built my incubator.
I have uploaded a detailed video on YouTube showing how I built it. If you are planning on building an incubator, I think this video will help you.

Here is a link to the YouTube video:
http://youtu.be/uDIBeLe2HeQ

I had trouble talking and filming at the same time and I have an awful southern accent, so don't laugh too hard! <g>
Vicki Hale
http://tortoiseyard.com


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## RonHays (Jul 31, 2012)

[QUOTE=" I have an awful southern accent, so don't laugh too hard! <g>
Vicki Hale
http://tortoiseyard.com[/QUOTE]

I have one of those. It's not awful.


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## Yvonne G (Jul 31, 2012)

That's interesting...I've always figured that people don't think of themselves as having an accent. Its OTHER people who have the accent, not me!


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## Blakem (Jul 31, 2012)

I actually like any accent. Yours is very clear and you don't talk too slow. Very informative! Thanks for the video.


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## vickihale (Jul 31, 2012)

Thanks guys.
Talking on a video was a little unnerving so my twangy Alabama accent got even more twangy. <vbg>
I just hope the video helps others who are trying to find info on incubators. I put in a lot of hours and never found any useful information on wattage and air exchange.


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## Mgridgaway (Aug 3, 2012)

You've done a great job with this video. Very informative and the payoff of baby redfoots at the end was worth watching the whole thing


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## JoeTurtleKing (Aug 11, 2012)

Great video/info and your accent was not awful at all


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## CactusVinnie (Aug 12, 2012)

Thanks!! 
You are very handy and you did a fine job! I liked how you approximated the wattage/volume- did you calculate it considering the ambient temperature, for minimum of work for the thermostate?
Accent very pleasant! In fact, I like southern accent very much!


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## vickihale (Aug 18, 2012)

CactusVinnie said:


> Thanks!!
> You are very handy and you did a fine job! I liked how you approximated the wattage/volume- did you calculate it considering the ambient temperature, for minimum of work for the thermostate?
> Accent very pleasant! In fact, I like southern accent very much!



Thank you very much.
My main concern was having too little wattage which would cause the heat tape to stay on all the time. I was afraid it would overheat the egg cartons at the back of the incubator, closest to the heat tape. This is the first incubator Iâ€™ve ever built so I didnâ€™t have any experience with heat tape.

After searching for information and not finding any, I started looking at the specification sheets for the small ready-made incubators. Most of them have 1 to 3 cubic feet of interior space and had 24 to 55+ watts of heat. I pretty much did my wattage estimation by looking at the wattage range used with these small ready to use incubators.


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## Eweezyfosheezy (Aug 18, 2012)

I love your videos and accent lol!!! You did a great job!


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## bigred21220 (Aug 18, 2012)

Great job, I have built several like this from wine coolers. These work great and if you find a thermoelectric unit you can reverse the power wires and it will heat, but you will still have to add a T-Stat.


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## Redstrike (Aug 22, 2012)

This is sensational! Can we put this up as a sticky or important thread for future reference? 

Well done Vicki, thanks for sharing!


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## DesertGrandma (Aug 25, 2012)

Vicky that was very well done. It is so kind of you to share your experience with the forum members. I have two questions. How do you maintain the humidity at the level you want it. And, how many eggs can you keep in it? Thanks


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## vickihale (Aug 29, 2012)

DesertGrandma said:


> Vicky that was very well done. It is so kind of you to share your experience with the forum members. I have two questions. How do you maintain the humidity at the level you want it. And, how many eggs can you keep in it? Thanks



Thank you Joy.
It will hold 150 to 170 eggs depending on how many eggs I can place per container.
When I first started using the incubator it kept 100% humidity inside which is too high. I didn't have enough air holes in the box so there wasn't enough fresh air exchange. After drilling the two 2" holes it kept 85% humidity which is right where I wanted it. Just dumb luck the two holes worked. The water containers placed in the top and bottom creates humidity in the incubator as the water evaporates.


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