As noted in our book Quail-esstentials ($19 Amazon) we dedicate a lengthy chapter on incubation, DIY incubator builds, and issues to consider when adding an incubator to your Quail Business or Homestead.
The accuracy of the incubator controller varies with quality of build, price point, environmental temperature variations and age of the unit. Here we address changing the Lilytech ZL-7901A used in our DIY repurposed dishwasher incubator, the primary incubator we use for our own business.
Over time, the supplied sensors with even the higher quality incubator controllers may lose their efficiency. Buildup from dust or calcification from not using distilled water in your humidity reservoir can affect the digital sensitivity and therefore, along with routine cleaning, it is always a good idea to compare the actual temperature with the Reading of your controllers display. this video shows you how to adjust the "calibration" of the sensors to provide an accurate temperature setting and therefore more successful quail babies.
we suggest using at least 3 additional external or accessory temperature instruments to determine a true reading. we also suggest you take these accurate readings at "egg level", either the eggs themselves or at the tray level of your most used incubation tray in multiple tray units. it's not a bad idea to take and record readings from various tray levels as well as various locations of thee same tray to determine and account for any cold or hot spots. keep these in a note book and adjust your temp settings as needed when using such tray levels (tray 1 = +.4°C, tray 5 = -.3°C for example). For this example video, we are calibrating to the middle level tray, and the middle of that tray or Tray 3, center position to standardize the entire unit.
To calculate the true temperature we suggest using 3 high quality thermometers. after all, recalibration to an inaccurate true reading is well, inaccurate. We suggest using different types or styles with the idea that if each provide the same reading, then you can be pretty sure you have a good true reading to begin with.
we suggest an infrared 12:1 "point and shoot" laser thermometer such as the Ames Instruments sold at Harbor Freight. this is also good for setting up brooders and adjusting brooder temperature throughout the daily temp changes where the noon temp may be different from a chilly morn or overnight and the distance from the brooder heater to the babies could be adjusted. the second thermometer we use is an Aquarium Thermometer with external probe or sensor. this allows you to place the sensor in various locations and compare with the instantaneous infrared readings. note that probed thermometers and well as self contained units take time to come to temperature so wait a few minutes before taking your reading. thirdly, we keep a digital thermometer on the middle tray so that we can always have a quick look and see if anything is ever out of sync... or "whack" as they say.
once you determine a true, triple verified reading of the actual temperature, now you can compare with the reading on your controller's readout or LCD screen. often the "factory settings" are spot on, especially when you purchase a complete incubator system such as the GQF Sportsman cabinette or even a Hovabator or Farm Innovations desktop unit. but pending the location of your incubation area (in your basement, garage, shed or kitchen) the outside temp may affect the reading. it's almost impossible to get a %100 insulation R value, especially when fresh air needs to be available to the inner chamber. if that air is cold or hot, it may cause inaccuracies.
placement of the sensors in a DIY model may often require calibration, so let's look at that.
Now for the Lilytech ZL-7901A calibration process:
1) determine the Actual true temperature of the unit by adjusting the setting until you get your desired temperature. For quail, we use 37.5°C or 99.5°F
2) to Calibrate the Reading Temperature (TR) to the Settings or desired Temperature (TS), you must subtract or add in the units (°C/°F) you are using to compensate for the difference.
For Example
TR is 38.4°C, to get to 37.5°C, in this case your readout is .9°C too high, so it must be subtracted from the control read out.
38.4°C minus 37.5°C = 0.9°C.
you must subtract -0.9°C from the reading to correct the read out.
if you have to set your incubator to a lower setting to get your desired 37.5°C Actual inside Temp determined by your 3 aux thermometers, then do the math to find the "difference". In this case ADD this difference to the read out on your controller unit.
EX2: If 36.5°C is actually 37.5°C inside, then your readout is 1.0°C too low, and you add 1.0 to the T20 setting menu as the video describes.
Hold Settings + Return for 5 secs. scroll using the setting button
Psd, T10, T11, ..., T16 (jumps to) T20 (calibration). Use arrows to adjust
enter or wait 5 sec.
Stay Free - TRQ
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