Ovatekly · Guides
Lockdown: the last three days.
What changes on day 18 for chicken eggs (day 15 for quail, day 25 for ducks and turkeys), the order to do it in, and why the lid stays shut until the chicks are dry.
Short answer
Three days before the hatch: candle one last time, stop turning, raise relative humidity to 65 to 75 %, lower the temperature by about 1 °F, open the vents more, and do not open the incubator again until the chicks have hatched and dried (Texas A&M AgriLife, Mississippi State, Kansas State).
When it starts
Lockdown day by species
| Species | Hatch due | Lockdown: stop turning | Lockdown humidity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | Day 21 | Day 18 | 66–75 % |
| Japanese (coturnix) quail | Day 17–18 | Day 15 | 66–74 % |
| Duck (most breeds) | Day 28 | Day 25 | 66–75 % |
| Muscovy duck | Day 35–37 | Day 31–33 | 66–75 % |
| Turkey | Day 28 | Day 25 | 66–75 % |
| Domestic goose | Day 30 | Day 27 (Mississippi State: after day 25) | 66–75 % |
| Guinea fowl | Day 28 | Day 22 to 25 (sources differ) | 66–74 % |
| Bobwhite quail | Day 23 | Day 20–21 | 66–74 % |
| Ring-necked pheasant | Day 24 | Day 21 | 66–74 % |
Sources: Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Incubating and Hatching Eggs (POSC-PU-018, 2022), Table 1 (transfer day and hatcher humidity); Mississippi State University Extension, Important Incubation Factors (“do not turn after”).
Day 18, for chickens
Lockdown, step by step
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Step 1
Candle one last time
Take out clear eggs and any with a blood ring or a bad smell (Illinois Extension). After this you will not handle the eggs again. See candling day by day.
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Step 2
Stop turning
Turning stops for the last three days (Texas A&M; Mississippi State). Switch the turner off, or take the eggs out of it and lay them on the hatching tray, or on cloth or rough paper (not newspaper) that does not cover the vents or touch the water or the heater (Texas A&M).
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Step 3
Raise the humidity
Texas A&M takes relative humidity to 65 to 70 % in its text and 66 to 75 % in its table; Mississippi State asks for 65 % or more. Add water surface, not depth: a second pan, a wet sponge or wet paper towels. For ducks and geese, stop the twice-weekly misting at day 25 (Kansas State).
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Step 4
Lower the temperature slightly
Texas A&M lowers it by about 1 °F, for chickens from 99.5 to 98.5 °F. Mississippi State’s table keeps its 100 °F forced-air figure. Either way, no big swings.
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Step 5
Give them more air
The chicks now need much more oxygen. Texas A&M increases ventilation in the last third of incubation, and Mississippi State has the vents nearly fully open in the final stages.
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Step 6
Close the lid and leave it shut
Opening the incubator lowers the temperature and humidity, which delays hatching and may lower hatchability. Wait until most chicks are hatched and dry (Kansas State).
Sources: Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Incubating and Hatching Eggs (POSC-PU-018, 2022); Mississippi State University Extension, Important Incubation Factors; Kansas State University, Incubation and Reproduction (poultry Q&A); Illinois Extension, Candling Eggs.
Days 19 to 21
During the hatch
The first sign is a pip, a small crack in the shell. Then the chick rests, works, rests again and finally cuts round the shell and pushes out. Texas A&M puts the whole process at 10 to 20 hours and says not to worry unless a chick takes longer than 20. Kansas State says about 80 % of a batch hatch within 15 hours after the first chick, and the hatch should be over within 24 hours.
Do not help a chick out. Chicks that cannot hatch on their own usually die, and those that are helped and live usually do not thrive (Texas A&M; Kansas State).
Once they are out, leave them in the incubator for about 24 hours, until they are dry. Texas A&M takes them out when more than 90 % are dry, because leaving chicks in too long can dehydrate them, and moves them to a warm brooder with water and feed.
Past day 21 with nothing happening? Read eggs not hatching on day 21 or 22.
Sources: Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Incubating and Hatching Eggs (POSC-PU-018, 2022); Kansas State University, Incubation and Reproduction (poultry Q&A).
If you run an Ovatekly
Lockdown on an Ovatekly
The day counter on the display tells you when you have reached day 18. The water bottles sit outside the chamber and feed the reservoir from outside, so you can raise the humidity for lockdown and top it up through the hatch without lifting the lid. The Home, Pro and Farm show the humidity on the display; with the 9-egg Compact, use a separate hygrometer if you want a reading.
Every Ovatekly comes with Hatch Support: email contact@ovatekly.com on day 17 with a photo of the display, and a person walks you through lockdown on your model.
Questions
Questions people ask
What is incubator lockdown?
What humidity should the incubator be during lockdown?
Do you stop turning eggs at lockdown?
Can I open the incubator during lockdown?
When is lockdown for quail and duck eggs?
How long after lockdown do chicks hatch?
Sources
Where the numbers come from
- Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Incubating and Hatching Eggs (POSC-PU-018, 2022).
- Mississippi State University Extension, Important Incubation Factors.
- Kansas State University, Incubation and Reproduction (poultry Q&A).
- Illinois Extension, Candling Eggs.
Updated October 17, 2026. Written by the Ovatekly team. Temperatures, humidity levels and incubation periods on this page are general references from the extension publications named beside them, not Ovatekly specifications.
More from the hatch guides
A person for the whole hatch.
Every Ovatekly comes with Hatch Support: email a photo of your display or a candled egg to contact@ovatekly.com and a real person answers, from the day you set your eggs until they hatch.