The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1919-01-07
NCUBATORS And BROOD.
ERS FOR PROFITABLE
CHICKEN. RAISING.

V1x4V1AAAN' 4uAA0NOs
Clemson College, S. C.-Rece1t'
ly many letters have been re-
ceiyed by the Poultry Division asking
Tor information relative to the use OF
incubators and breeders in Matching
and rearing chickens. The high cost
OF poultry foods and the great demand
for fresh eggs and frys have convinced
poultry raisers that it will pay to use
dependable system to obtain chicks
this year.
The old sitting hen will not work
when we want her to. She and her
friends refuse to go broody in January
and February, but they fill every avail.
able nest as soon as the weather turns
warm and the time Of Matching the
best chickens is over.
sMy hens would nos sit early and ]
could not buy any early sitters," is
heard every summer and fall by own
ers OF little chickens.
Any one who likes poultry can op'
crate an incubator successfully. 1t is
necessary to turn the eggs morning
and night and fill the lamp once day.
It is not necessary to examine good
machine more often than two or three
times daily, when the above work can
be done.
Every incubator is equipped with
thermostat to regulate the tempera'
ture.
The more popular types of kerosene
lamp hcubatots are heated by hot air.
although there are some good styles
heated blythe circulation Of hot water.
The main advantage Of the hot air ma,
chine IS that OF durability.
The past yearhas found the electric
incubator springing rapidly to fhe
front. This machine can now be OBJ.
tanned for use on any voltage 1t is
also made to be used with one Of the
home lighting systems found on many
South Carolina farms. The cost OF
operating an electric incubator is no
greater than that Ct lamp machine.
The temperature can, be maintained
at a uniform degree and the machine
can be placed in any room OF the
house.
1t is usually found that a profitable
size Incubator to buy is one with a
capacity ;of about 240 eggs. The size
containing from 12o to $50 eggs is also
popular with poultrymen who do not
desire to raise more than 200 or 300
chickens year. However, a large in.
cubator when only ons-half filed will
give as good Matching results as a
smaller machine, so that big ma,
chine gives you an opportunity to
hatch eggs for others or hatch suffi-
cient chicks to sell the surplus to your
meighbors. The best size for an cleo.
trio machine is about $50 eggs. Just
now these machines are rather high
IN price owing to little es-. petition,
hut it is hoped that within g s,.os's sii..
the price Of the electric W i l.e ASA.
the same as the lamp-heated incubator.
The better types Of incubators are
built with double walls with one inch
or more Of insulating material between
the walls. This prevents the tempera-
tue of the egg chamber being affect.
ed vitality by changes in the outside
temperature of the room. The cheap
er incubators have simply single
wall or a double wall with a piece OF
pasteboard between. It does not pay
to buy the cheaper incubators made in
this way
Some machines have q separate
compartment below the eggs into
which the chicks drop as soon as they
are hatched. This is a convenience,
but it is of no special advantage.
The average number of chicks
matched from the eggs placed in an
incubator is about one-half- When
you buy an incubator it is well to or
der one or more portable brooders, al.
lowing so chicks to each brooder. Most
OF the manufacturers rate the capacity
OF their brooders at about twice as
many chicks as they will satisfactorily
rear.
These portable brooders are about
two feet in diameSsr and stand on
three cast iron legs. The kerosene
lamp is under one side and wooden
curtain surrounds the lower part OF
me hrooder. The baby chicks push
rnder this wooden curtain and the
heat of the lamp keeps the inside OF
the brooder at the required tempera-
ture OF ninety to ninety-fve degrees
f is a simple matter to raise in
cold weather almost all the chickens
in q brooder Of this kind when it is
placed in a bright room. Later on in