Cleaning out incubator

[Leisha]

Can anyone tell me what is the best thing to use to clean and dissinfect you incubator after hatching?

Leisha

[Evy]

Originally Posted by Leisha

Can anyone tell me what is the best thing to use to clean and dissinfect you incubator after hatching?

Leisha

Plain old bleach & sun. I also use Tek-Trol , diluted according to direction, to spray inside between hatches.

[jungle]

I also use bleach to disinfect and the UV rays of sunlight are an amazing source of disinfection as well. I use the 1588 Genesis and find that it can be hard to get rid of that nasty "hatching smell" from the electronic fan/heater unit, even after wiping it down with bleach. I have found that lightly misting the fan/heating unit with Nature's Miracle Odor Eliminator and then plugging it in and letting it run till dry will usually do the trick. I typically have to repeat the cycle a few times but eventually it gets rid of the odor. I will also sometimes do a light mist just in front of the fan and let it pull the product through. Since the process involves spraying an electrical part with liquid I am NOT recommending you do this with your unit as I don't want to get hate-mail if it fries your machine or YOU! I am just telling you what I do and it works for me. I am very careful when I do it to not actually wet any electrical parts and have done this many times and have not had any problems yet. If you do it- it is at your own risk. I will also spray the entire inside of the incubator with the NM as a last step as it really is amazing how effective it is at deodorizing even styro and leaving the unit with a clean smell and no residue.

[Pathfinders]

Originally Posted by Evy

Plain old bleach & sun. I also use Tek-Trol , diluted according to direction, to spray inside between hatches.

What she said. I dilute bleach to a 10 percent solution, then use a mist bottle. You can also buy Tek-Trol in a spray can (which is very convenient.) Or you can use Oxine to disinfect and clean.

For me the biggest PITA is cleaning the darned hatching trays and the bottom catch tray (from the Sportsman.) I settled on soaking them in the bathtub with some Palmolive Oxygen dish detergent, scrub, rinse, then let air dry.

[Evy]

Originally Posted by Pathfinders

What she said. I dilute bleach to a 10 percent solution, then use a mist bottle. You can also buy Tek-Trol in a spray can (which is very convenient.) Or you can use Oxine to disinfect and clean.

For me the biggest PITA is cleaning the darned hatching trays and the bottom catch tray (from the Sportsman.) I settled on soaking them in the bathtub with some Palmolive Oxygen dish detergent, scrub, rinse, then let air dry.

I always covered the catch tray with clean paper towels after every hatch. Saved a lot of scrubbing.

[Patrick]

I use bleach, and the sun too, but my favorite disinfectant is chlorhexidine (Nolvasan). It is very safe for both the birds and myself, and is effective against a broad spectrum of bacteria and viruses. The concentrate can seem a little expensive, but it is very concentrated, and makes a lot of useable solution. Bleach and TekTrol can be very corrosive to certain substances like some metals, and they're very harsh on lungs, eyes and skin. I use a similar method as jungle to disinfect incubators, with the same precautions. Remember that most disinfectants to be fully effective need to be in contact with the surface for a full 10 minutes, wet the entire time, not sprayed on and left to dry after a minute or two. Bleach is ineffective in the presence of any organic matter, and it rapidly breaks down once mixed, so a fresh solution needs to be made up every time you use it. Chlorhexidine solution can be kept in spray bottles or jugs for long periods of time until you need it.

No disinfectant is 100% effective at killing all organisms. I use chlorhex for day to day cleaning, alternating with bleach every so often, or for end of season cleanup. I will let utensils dry in the sun for added protection, but I hesitate to recommend that, as I often see people being cheap or lazy, using that method of disinfection alone, fooling themselves into thinking that they are using good protection.

[jungle]

I used to use chlorhexidine quite a bit when I was still working in the vet field and agree that it is a great disinfectant. The generic types are a lot less costly than the brand name version (Nolvasan). I personally hate the smell of bleach but it is convenient to use simply because it is available everywhere and it is cheap. Laura brings up a good point about the dilution as well. 10% is an ideal solution as some organisms can actually be stimulated to encyst to a protected state by greater concentrations and not be killed by the bleach whereas the lower precentage does not elicit that response allowing it to be a more effective disinfectant.

[Pathfinders]

Originally Posted by Evy

I always covered the catch tray with clean paper towels after every hatch. Saved a lot of scrubbing.

Well jeez, why didn't I think of that? Great idea.

[jungle]

I now have a question on how best to disinfect a wooden incubator. I recently picked-up an old redwood cabinet Sears/David Bradley style incubator. It is in pretty good shape and I know I have heard that their reputation is good. I obviously want to disinfect it as best I can but also do not want to damage it. If I remember correctly, bleach tends to stain wood black and the chlorhex usually stains it blue. I have never used Oxine so do not know how well that would work. Additionally, the interior of the cabinet appears to be painted with some sort of grey/metallic looking paint. I have another, much older model of this same unit that has the same paint so am prety sure it is manufactured that way. I do not want to remove that either. The unit is not particularly filthy, just typical bits of shell here and there from previous hatches as well as the obligatory rodent nest from being stored in the shed. If it still functions well, I plan to use it as an incubator and then move batches to another incubator for hatching. Any ideas would be appreciated.

[MKG]

Here is what I what I would do. When the cabinet is good and dry I would first vacuum it out using a brush attachment to loosen any crud. Then fog it well using a solution of Oxine according to the directions that come with it. I believe First State Vet Supply has a sale on it right now. Oxine is about the only thing I use anymore. I even use a warm solution to disinfect the eggs before setting them. It works, is noncorrosive, easy on the hands, and pathogens can't build up immunity.

[goosedragon]

Originally Posted by jungle

I now have a question on how best to disinfect a wooden incubator. I recently picked-up an old redwood cabinet Sears/David Bradley style incubator. It is in pretty good shape and I know I have heard that their reputation is good. I obviously want to disinfect it as best I can but also do not want to damage it. If I remember correctly, bleach tends to stain wood black and the chlorhex usually stains it blue. I have never used Oxine so do not know how well that would work. Additionally, the interior of the cabinet appears to be painted with some sort of grey/metallic looking paint. I have another, much older model of this same unit that has the same paint so am prety sure it is manufactured that way. I do not want to remove that either. The unit is not particularly filthy, just typical bits of shell here and there from previous hatches as well as the obligatory rodent nest from being stored in the shed. If it still functions well, I plan to use it as an incubator and then move batches to another incubator for hatching. Any ideas would be appreciated.

I was going to stay out of this thread because the term cleaning and disinfection seemed to being used interchangeably. Not true! first you clean to get all the extra material out and then you disinfect. May I suggest that you clean your incubator using a mild cleaning agent so as to not damage it.
Since it is old it was probably made to be disinfected the old fashioned way by treating with formaldehyde gas produced by the reaction of Formalin (formaldehyde gas dissolved in water) and Potassium Permanganate. This can be a violent reaction resulting in fires and Potassium Permanganate can be hard to come by these days because it can be used for homemade bombs (Homeland Security and all that!) Formaldehyde isn't very Nice either so if you go this route and manage to get the materials I suggest you don't disinfect in a dwelling.
It has been years since I messed with this stuff but I suspect that the "grey/metallic looking paint" might be a coating of Manganese that came from the breakdown of Permanganate In the above reaction. (You can check this with a strong magnet, since Manganese and its oxides are Paramagnetic)
Anyways if you are bound by tradition the method can be found in any number of old poultry books, as it was the standard method. Fumigation with formaldehyde is still a very effective disinfective method but there are safer ways to do it today.
BTW my degree was in Chemistry.

[Patrick]

Originally Posted by jungle

I now have a question on how best to disinfect a wooden incubator. I recently picked-up an old redwood cabinet Sears/David Bradley style incubator. It is in pretty good shape and I know I have heard that their reputation is good. I obviously want to disinfect it as best I can but also do not want to damage it. If I remember correctly, bleach tends to stain wood black and the chlorhex usually stains it blue. I have never used Oxine so do not know how well that would work. Additionally, the interior of the cabinet appears to be painted with some sort of grey/metallic looking paint. I have another, much older model of this same unit that has the same paint so am prety sure it is manufactured that way. I do not want to remove that either. The unit is not particularly filthy, just typical bits of shell here and there from previous hatches as well as the obligatory rodent nest from being stored in the shed. If it still functions well, I plan to use it as an incubator and then move batches to another incubator for hatching. Any ideas would be appreciated.

I do the same thing as I do for anything else. If I can't soak the item in a tub, I'll sray or sponge it on. Doing it once a year for the final clean up of the season, I've never had a problem with warping of wood, or any other issues. I do try to air it out well in the sun, door open, on a hot day to be sure that it's completely dried before closing it back up. I don't fool myself into thinking that I'm completely disinfecting, because you cannot do that with wood, but it's better than what most people do. Like exhibiting, it's a calculated risk if you want to use wood, but one I can live with. I mist like we discussed around the electrical components. I've never had any issues with staining anything with Nolvasan, even with the concentrate, but certainly not with the solution. Maybe that's the difference between the brand name and generics? Other than cost, of course.

In the old days they fumigated. It probably was very effective. Most of the poultry supply catalogs carried the ingredients, but they stopped long before 911, probably because some idiot wasn't careful. Still, it wasn't the safest thing to use. DDT was very effective too, but I wouldn't want to bring it back either, despite nostalgia for the old ways.

[Evy]

I never worried about really soaking a Redwood or Cedar machine. That stuff lasts ''forever'', doesn't rot or warp & holds the humidity better than foam or pressed board or whatever they make them of now. I fumagated a few times, years ago. Amazing that you could do it with eggs in there & have them survive, but they did.

[jungle]

Originally Posted by Patrick

I I've never had any issues with staining anything with Nolvasan, even with the concentrate, but certainly not with the solution. Maybe that's the difference between the brand name and generics? Other than cost, of course.

You know, I'm not sure if it did or not. I just have this memory of blue stained wood but honestly, it could be from something else completely. I am anxious to try this wooden unit out and just have to find the time to get it cleaned up first. Thanks for the suggestions!

Richard