How to Turn Chicken Eggs During Incubation

Incubating chicken eggs is one of those hobbies that can easily turn around and pay for itself in many ways. Incubator enthusiasts the world over have developed some pretty impressive lore about which eggs result in males or females and what conditions create the highest hatch rates. The truth of the matter is that once the temperature is set and as long as you're maintaining the proper humidity, the only thing you can do is turn your eggs and wait.

Things You'll Need

  • Pencil
Show More

Instructions

    • 1

      Turn your incubator on a few days ahead of the day you wish to set your eggs. Measure the temperature and humidity using a digital thermometer with a hygrometer. Incubate chicken eggs between 99 and 102 degrees Fahrenheit. Keep humidity as close to 60 percent as possible (though this may be difficult in a still air incubator).

    • 2

      Set your eggs in to the incubator once the temperature and humidity are stable. Mark one side of the egg with an X and the other with an O, using a soft-leaded pencil. Place each egg gently in the tray with either the X or the O facing up, but be sure that all eggs are set on the same side.

    • 3

      Turn eggs at least three times a day, from the X side to the O side and vise-versa. Turn eggs by grasping the fat end and rolling with your thumb and index fingers. Turning the eggs this way mimics the action of a hen and will result in few embryonic deaths. Never turn your eggs end-to-end, in a somersaulting motion.

    • 4

      Turn your eggs religiously for the first 15 days. Allow them to rest and prepare for hatching for the last six days. Raise the humidity to around 70 percent and monitor the eggs for pips. Candling can be done at this stage, though it is not generally recommended for home producers because chicken eggs can chill quickly when outside of the incubator. Temperature fluctuations inside the can cause fetal deaths. The less you open the incubator, the greater your chances of success.