In this video I’m taking y’all behind the scenes at Paragon Hatchery, because there’s a whole lot of work that happens that I don’t usually grab the phone for. I’m breaking down how I clean and sterilize my GQF 1550 hatcher after a hatch, and let me tell you—this thing gets disgustingly dirty. Baby fuzz, eggshells, and all the “poo poo” end up everywhere, and if you open that door too fast you’ll get bombarded with fuzz right in your face. I show you my routine: vacuum first (slowly), then spray with Virkon S, let it soak, wipe it down, and repeat. I also started power washing it when it gets gunky because those rails and the back corners will absolutely cut your arms up trying to reach them. Then we get set up for hatch day: I refill the water reservoir, dial in humidity (I like about 60% for hatch), and I explain how I watch humidity spikes to know when chicks are actively hatching. I also share why I always run a secondary hygrometer/thermometer and why I tell folks not to start their first incubator hatch with expensive rare eggs. Finally, I pull eggs from my GQF 1502 incubators on day 18, candle them, organize by breed (including my valuable lines), bag them to keep them pure, and we check in on pipping and hatching—because hatching baby chicks never gets old.