Brinsea Ovation 56 EX Egg Incubator With Automatic Humidity Control and Egg Turning for Hatching 56 Chicken, Duck, Other Bird Eggs, Precision Digital Controls, Temperature Alarms

I’m really impressed with this incubator! I used it for my most recent hatch with shipped eggs, and I’m thrilled to report a 90% hatch rate, which is amazing considering how delicate shipped eggs can be. The temperature and humidity controls are accurate and easy to adjust, and I love how quiet it runs. The design is user-friendly, with clear instructions that made the process straightforward, even for a first-time user like me. The automated turning feature was a huge plus, saving me time and effort. I’m definitely confident in using this incubator for future hatches, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for reliable results!

I’m new to egg hatching and have now seamlessly hatched three separate batches of eggs thanks to this awesome incubator! It’s extremely easy to use (Brinsea’s YouTube setup video really helps), self manages and provides consistent results. I know it more expensive than alternative brands, but well worth it for the quality and consistently. It provides a very steady temperature, manages rotating the eggs on its own and adds whatever water is needed to keep the humidity consistent (simple attach an ice cream bucket of water to the provided tubing). I literally went on vacation for two weeks and came back to well developed eggs ready to hatch! Awesome and well worth the money for someone who wants a low maintenance experience with all the fun of hatching eggs!

IMO Brinsea really does make the best incubators. But they are very expensive. But I have learned through the years “buy once cry once”. Not to be foolish with ones hard earned money, but these really are routinely rated the best for a reason.That being said, in setting mine up, when running the hose around the peristaltic pump the hose would slip off of the plastic fitting once it was inserted back in to its holder. Every. Time. It seemed once there was tension on that bit of hose it would not remain attached. Fortunately we had a small zip tie and were able to secure it in place. The last thing we wanted was a faulty water supply to they automatic humidity control system. If I didn’t have eggs to set straight away I would have followed the instructions to replace that section of tubing, but the zip tie was a simple remedy.I also had an issue with the humidity running very high, above my setting. Directions said not to add water to the internal wells, but to place the sponge in. I found I had to remove the sponge to get the proper humidity (57%). Otherwise it kept running up to 70%The other thing I’d like to point out is that Brinsea states that you only require the large carriers for goose and quail/bantam eggs. I was setting welsh harlequin duck eggs. They were precariously on the edges of the cradles, I.e. they did not sit in to them. They managed until the large cradles arrived. These are not from a large duck, so maybe call duck eggs would be ok.Overall, it’s been set it and forget it. Follow your plan and it’s incredibly stable. Just that one minor hiccup during set up and having to get the large trays. Which BTW are half the price elsewhere.Now that I have it figured out, I look forward to hatching everything from chickens, ducks, and geese in this incubator.

Best incubator I've used in decades of poultry raising. The Brinsea is rock solid on temperature control. It's excellent on humidity for most of incubation period and decent to good on late stage humidity. The latter is one of those get-to-know the device issues. And the humidity for 7/8th of the process is flawless.I am in my fifth year of using my Brinsea 56 Ex. So my review is unusual in that it's a rather long-term evaluation. Two maintenance issues are a pain, but only one of them is serious. The more minor issue is the need to replace, every year, the short internal humidity tube that winds around the capstan pump. I get anxious every time, but it's not that big a deal. Especially if you refresh your memory with one of Brinsea's excellent YouTube videos. I guess I am getting old and don't want to fiddle! And for the price, I wish I didn't have to.Which brings me to the cleaning issue and the related serious durability problem. To continue to see through the top, you must clean off the chick down that collects on the inside of the top. Wiping off the down is easy. But doing this requires you to remove six small screws that hold the inner liner below the top. Four of the screws are tiny and do not unscrew easily, even with a small screwdriver I've dedicated to this task.Furthermore, the screws insert into plastic housings that join the top and the inner liner together. In the fifth year/fifth time I cleaned, two of those housings cracked, one seriously. Probably Brinsea would say it's an over-tightening issue. And it probably is. But it's uber challenging to always stop the screws perfectly. And it frustrates me that there aren't small wingnut style bolts or some such instead of these tiny screws. Most of all, there should be a steel sleeve in the plastic for the screws.This year, my inner liner appears to be sagging in one corner because the screw won't hold in the cracked housing. The key role of the inner liner seems to be to keep chicks away from the fan. But since I hatch in separate baskets or mesh bags, for pedigree purposes, I hope I can remove the inner liner without much consequence. Otherwise, this mostly great, expensive incubator is shot after five uses.

I LOVE this incubator! I will never buy another brand at this point. I was having such issues with humidity and temp in my NR360s, and when I use this, perfect every single time! The auto humidity feature is amazing, its really a set and forget situation. I do wish the incubator came with more replacement sponges, but you only get the one. Mine came without the power cable as well, I called brinsea and they sent one out immediately via fedex! I was so impressed with their customer service! My ONLY complaint about this is that it can be hard to clean the top, you have to unscrew it all and clean each section, but I'm sure they will improve that with time. All in all, extremely happy with my purchase.