Box Turtle Incubator

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turtlemann2

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Okie Dokie here are the pictures of the Incubator


the bowl of rocks is to keep a tight seal for the lid, preventing the escape of humidity and heat
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Dont mind the temp gauge due to the angle they both look off* the small thermometer is a few degree cooler then the brown one but it should be okay, the brown one also has a built in humidity gauge
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as you can kinda see here at the bottom of the cooler there is a rubbermaid container full of water (water Basin) with a 100 watt aquarium heater turned all the way up, then another up side down container which in effect provides a shelf, followed by the glad container filled with 50 % peat 50 % vermiculight (as suggested by turtletails.com) this has dranage holes in the bottom thats pretty much it :)

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i copied the idea from turtlestation, its the same general idea :) this setup is a perfect DIY for any aquatic or semi aquatic turtle such as wood spotted box turtles along with sliders cooters painteds snapping and ETC :)
http://www.turtlestation.com/diy-homemade-incubator.html
 

Yvonne G

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Looks good. Be sure to keep us apprised of the egg situation.
 

tortuga_please

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That's a really neat setup, thanks for the links too :) Let us know how the eggs are doing and when they start hatching please :-D :tort:
 

jojodesca

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how long until they hatch?...30-50 days?..idk......I am excited for you!!!!
 

turtlemann2

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oh trust me i will keep everyone informed :), 50-120 days 50 under perfect conditions as long as 120 under bad conditions outside but under artificial incubation im expecting it to take between 50-70 days so uhhh about april 1st ill start checking them Daily, not that im not already :)
 

Tccarolina

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Since I usually incubate for female, mine nearly all hatch exactly on day 53. I have a similar incubator design, only I use transparent plastic tubs in place of the styrofoam.

Keep an eye on whether condensation collects on the lid and then drips onto the eggs. I have to have lids on the egg tubs, with holes drilled under the lip to allow air flow. If the eggs have too much moisture in the last third of the incubation, they can split.

Good luck!
 

zesty_17

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looks good, the only thing i did different with mine, was to put a moat around the bottom to keep ants from getting to it at all. I am paranoid when it comes to the safety of my turtle. It was pretty much just a plastic pan lid filled with water & the cooler sat in the middle.
 

turtlemann2

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supremelysteve said:
Since I usually incubate for female, mine nearly all hatch exactly on day 53. I have a similar incubator design, only I use transparent plastic tubs in place of the styrofoam.

Keep an eye on whether condensation collects on the lid and then drips onto the eggs. I have to have lids on the egg tubs, with holes drilled under the lip to allow air flow. If the eggs have too much moisture in the last third of the incubation, they can split.

Good luck!

53 days sounds so much nicer then 70+, ill fashion some sort of lid to cover the eggs at an angle so then the direct condensation will roll off and onto one side away from the eggs, what % humidity do you strive to maintain? id HATE to lose them right there at the end... :( do you keep the temp at 84 degrees for female? i do wish the two thermometers matched in temp so i knew for sure what the temp was, perhaps ill go out and buy another higher quality gauge, thanks for the input btw :)

zesty_17 said:
looks good, the only thing i did different with mine, was to put a moat around the bottom to keep ants from getting to it at all. I am paranoid when it comes to the safety of my turtle. It was pretty much just a plastic pan lid filled with water & the cooler sat in the middle.

oops i didnt even see your reply, not sure how it got above my post by such is life :)

we dont really have a problem with ants in the house in the garden yes but not the house but ill keep that in mind if they show up :)
 

Tccarolina

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turtlemann2 said:
53 days sounds so much nicer then 70+, ill fashion some sort of lid to cover the eggs at an angle so then the direct condensation will roll off and onto one side away from the eggs, what % humidity do you strive to maintain? id HATE to lose them right there at the end... :( do you keep the temp at 84 degrees for female? i do wish the two thermometers matched in temp so i knew for sure what the temp was, perhaps ill go out and buy another higher quality gauge, thanks for the input btw :)

I incubate for female at 85-86 degrees. And I checked my records, and my average hatch days at that temp is 52.2 with the first egg in a clutch pipping at 51 days, and all in the process of hatching by 53 days.
Here is my incubator. I try for 100% humidity, but don't measure for it. This incubator simply works well for me. The only thing I have to do is to open each egg container every week to make sure there is proper air circulation, to prevent extra scutes. If any eggs are dented, I add a little water to that tub, and check back the next day. If eggs are sweating a lot, or I feel the vermiculate looks too wet, I'll replace it. I've had eggs split, and that's no fun. The first pic shows a lower temp because it was still being warmed.
Last year (shortly after taking these pictures) I added a rack in the water for the egg boats to rest on, instead of free floating. The year before, a clutch hatched while we were away, and they tipped their egg tub over, flooding it and drowning all five babies. These are older photos, so they don't show the rack.
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turtlemann2

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yeah that does look good! man! im sorry to hear about the babies tipping over and....... thats terrible. i would be completely heart broken yes me the big ol manly guy heart broken :(, thanks for the pics

so thats the only thermometer you use? have most of your babies turned out female? and 100% humidity thats crazy talk LOL i used to think 100% meant rain but it doesnt, Stupid Public School System!LOL
 

ripper7777777

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Great pics and info, keep us posted turtlemann2.

I look forward to the day I can post some egg pics.
 

turtlemann2

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ripper7777777 said:
Great pics and info, keep us posted turtlemann2.

I look forward to the day I can post some egg pics.

it looks like you have alot of variety in your turtle pens :) perhaps you need a few breeding pairs :)
 
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