Egg incubators › Hatching guide
How to Hatch Chicken Eggs in an Incubator
A practical, day-by-day guide for South African farmers and hobby breeders. It works for any of our hobby or industrial incubators.
1. Choose and store hatching eggs
- Use eggs from healthy hens that run with a rooster. Unfertilised supermarket eggs will not hatch.
- Pick clean, normal-sized eggs with sound shells. Skip cracked, very dirty, tiny or double-yolk eggs.
- Don’t wash eggs: it removes the natural protective layer. Gently dry-brush light dirt instead.
- Store eggs pointed end down in a cool place (about 13–16°C), not the fridge. Set them within 7 days; hatch rates drop after that.
- Let stored eggs warm up to room temperature for a few hours before setting them, so condensation doesn’t form on the shell.
2. Set up the incubator
- Clean and disinfect the incubator, trays and water channels.
- Put it in a room with a steady temperature, out of direct sun and away from draughts and windows.
- Switch on and run it empty for at least 24 hours. Check temperature and humidity with a separate thermometer and hygrometer, and calibrate if needed.
- Set 37.5–37.8°C and the humidity for your eggs (see the table). Fill the water tray.
- Load the eggs. In roller and tray machines, lay them on their side or pointed end down, as the tray is designed for.
3. Day by day: 21 days for chickens
- Day 1–7: automatic turning on. Keep the lid closed and check water daily. Don’t worry if the temperature dips for a few minutes after loading.
- Day 7: first candling. Remove clear (infertile) eggs and any with a blood ring.
- Day 8–17: keep temperature and humidity steady. Top up water. Open the incubator as little as possible.
- Day 14: second candling (optional). Remove eggs that stopped growing.
- Day 18: lockdown. Stop turning, raise humidity, and don’t open the lid again until the hatch is done.
- Day 19–21: chicks pip (make the first hole), then zip around the shell and hatch.
- After hatching: leave chicks in the incubator until they are dry and fluffy (up to 24 hours), then move them to a warm brooder.
4. Candling: check which eggs are growing
In a dark room, shine an LED egg tester through each egg (most of our hobby incubators have a candler built in).
- Growing: a dark spot with spidery blood vessels around it; later the egg looks mostly dark with an air pocket at the round end.
- Clear: the egg looks the same as a fresh egg. It was not fertile; remove it.
- Blood ring: a red ring inside the shell means the embryo died early. Remove it so it doesn’t go bad and contaminate other eggs.
5. Lockdown and hatch day
- Stop turning 3 days before hatch day and raise humidity, so the membrane stays soft and chicks can turn inside the shell.
- Our industrial machines have hatching baskets, so eggs hatch in place without moving them.
- Resist opening the lid: each opening drops the humidity and can shrink-wrap chicks in the membrane.
- Hatching can take up to 24 hours from first pip. Don’t help a chick out unless it has been stuck for a long time; helping too early often causes bleeding.
- Have the brooder ready before hatch day: about 32–35°C under a brooder light or heating plate, with a shallow drinker.
6. Other birds: quail, duck, turkey, goose
| Bird | Days to hatch | Stop turning | Temperature* | Humidity: setting / last 3 days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 21 | Day 18 | 37.5–37.8°C | 45–55% / 65–70% |
| Quail (Coturnix) | 17–18 | Day 14–15 | 37.5–37.8°C | 45–55% / 65–70% |
| Guinea fowl | 26–28 | Day 24 | 37.5–37.8°C | 45–55% / 65–70% |
| Turkey | 28 | Day 25 | 37.5–37.8°C | 50–55% / 65–70% |
| Duck (Pekin and most breeds) | 28 | Day 25 | 37.5–37.8°C | 55–60% / 70–75% |
| Muscovy duck | 35 | Day 32 | 37.5–37.8°C | 55–60% / 70–75% |
| Goose | 28–32 | 3 days before hatch | 37.3–37.5°C | 55–60% / 70–75% |
*For fan-assisted (forced-air) incubators, which includes all our automatic incubators. Measure with a calibrated thermometer at egg height. Days can vary by a day either way.
More detail: hatching quail eggs · hatching duck and goose eggs.
7. Poor hatch? Common causes
| What you see | Likely cause |
|---|---|
| Many clear eggs at day 7 | Eggs not fertile (too few roosters, old rooster), or eggs stored too long or too warm |
| Chicks hatch early (day 19–20), small | Temperature too high |
| Chicks hatch late, sticky or with big bellies | Temperature too low or humidity too high |
| Fully grown chicks dead in the shell, not pipped | Humidity too low or too high, turning not stopped, poor ventilation, or a long power cut late in incubation |
| Chicks stuck to the shell membrane | Humidity too low at hatch, or lid opened during lockdown |
| Splayed legs | Slippery hatching floor: use a mesh or textured liner |
Thermometers in cheap incubators can be a degree out. A separate, checked thermometer solves most hatch problems.
Want to read more? Download our incubation guide (PDF) and small flock management guide (PDF).
Questions
How long do chicken eggs take to hatch?
About 21 days at 37.5 to 37.8°C in a fan-assisted incubator. A day early or late is normal.
What temperature should an egg incubator be?
For most poultry eggs in a fan-assisted incubator, 37.5 to 37.8°C, measured at egg height.
When do I stop turning the eggs?
Three days before hatch day: day 18 for chickens, day 25 for ducks and turkeys, day 14 to 15 for quail.
Can I hatch supermarket eggs?
No. Supermarket eggs are almost always unfertilised. You need fertile eggs from hens kept with a rooster.
How many eggs will hatch?
With fresh, fertile eggs and steady conditions, most eggs that are still growing at the last candling should hatch. Fertility and egg age make the biggest difference.
Need an incubator or advice?
We keep hobby and industrial incubators, spares, egg testers and brooders in stock in Midrand. Call, WhatsApp or send an enquiry, and we’ll help you pick the right size.