We often get asked questions about egg sizes and incubation. The size of the egg has an influence on the time the embryo needs to grow to fill the shell and with that on the hatch time. Bigger eggs need more total incubation time, as at the same egg shell temperature the embryo will grow at more or less the same rate, but as there are more grammes of egg and grammes of chick, it will take longer to hatch. If incubating eggs of different sizes this will need to be taken into account.
Capacity also depends on the size and shape of your eggs, as eggs of one species can vary in size quite a lot. Capacity also depends and whether you are using egg disks in the Mini and Maxi machines, the size of the egg carriers being used in the Ovation machines and the type of egg trays used in the OvaEasy machines.
Our ‘Choosing an Incubator’ page gives an indication of numbers of eggs that can fit into each machine, these are based on the following ‘nominal’ dimensions:
| Type of Egg | Length | Diameter |
|---|---|---|
| Quail | 35mm | 27mm |
| Pheasant | 45mm | 30mm |
| Bantam | 58mm | 40mm |
| Large Hen | 62mm | 43mm |
| Duck | 65mm | 44mm |
| Large Duck | 70mm | 47mm |
| Turkey | 65mm | 44mm |
| Goose | 90mm | 55mm |
| Amazon/Macaw | 62mm | 43mm |
You may also find this table useful:
| Diameter mm | Length mm | |
|---|---|---|
| Mini II Eco | 60 | N/A |
| Mini II Small Egg Disk (Quail) | 30 | 44 |
| Mini II Large Egg Disk (Hen) | 48 | 65 |
| Maxi II Eco | 65 | N/A |
| Maxi II Small Egg Disk (Quail) | 30 | 44 |
| Maxi II Large Egg Disk (Hen) | 48 | 65 |
| Maxi 24 Quail Quadrant | 30 | 40 |
| Maxi 24 Hen Quadrant | 45 | 55 |
| Maxi 24 Duck/Turkey/Large Hen Quadrant | 50 | 65 |
| Maxi 24 Goose Quadrant | 60 | 95 |
| Octagon 20 (eggs on side) | 75 | N/A |
| Ovation Standard Egg Carrier (eggs upright) | 44 | 65 |
| Ovation Standard Egg Carrier (eggs on side) | 44 | N/A |
| Ovation Large Egg Carrier (eggs upright) | 58 | 72 |
| Ovation Large Egg Carrier (eggs on side) | 58 | N/A |
| OvaEasy Universal Tray TOP SHELF (eggs on side) | 70 | N/A |
| OvaEasy Universal Tray OTHER SHELVES (eggs on side) | 85 | N/A |
| OvaEasy Quail Egg Tray | 31 | 37+ |
| OvaEasy Quail Egg Tray (stacked) | 31 | 37 |
| OvaEasy Pheasant Egg Tray TOP SHELF | 38 | 50 |
| OvaEasy Pheasant Egg Tray OTHER SHELVES | 38 | 65 |
| OvaEasy Hen Egg Tray TOP SHELF | 45 | 60 |
| OvaEasy Hen Egg Tray OTHER SHELVES | 45 | 75 |
| OvaEasy Duck Egg Tray TOP SHELF | 52 | 60 |
| OvaEasy Duck Egg Tray OTHER SHELVES | 52 | 75 |
| Z7 & K7 (eggs on side) | 80 | N/A |
