There are all kinds of incubators around and all work well but most people who breed alot, just build their own. As your signature lists alot of snakes, and I know I have seen you ask this same question in a few other forums in the last week, you are always going to get different opinions on what incubators are being used. Hovabators are a common low cost small incubator which is great for small clutches. Add in many clutches or large clutches with big eggs, a hovabator or two isn't going to give you the room you need. Hence why most people just make their own.
Incubators need to provide three things really, and you can create incubators in hundreds of different ways. Just remember incubators need to keep in heat and humidity efficiently. So all you need is some sort of container, a heat source and humidity source. To ensure these things are controlled, the next thing you need is a thermostat to regulate the heat.
People have used coolers, both Styrofoam and plastic, small and large fridges and freezers, and even cabinets that have been insulated. For heat, heat cable or tape is often use, or other heating elements, even a space heater designed to work in a humid environment. To increase humidity, most just leave a open water dish near the heating element (but not in contact with it) to provide humidity by evaporation. Separate containers with eggs and a dampened medium such as vermiculite or perlite are also used, with lids and one or two holes for ventilation, also help keep humidity at the levels needed (for most species this seems to be around 80-100%).
It may be cheaper to build your own incubator, than buying several smaller incubators, especially if you expect to need to incubate alot of eggs of the same species, or species that require the same incubation temperature (or have overlapping incubation temperatures). Or, if you are incubating alot of different species who have very specific and different incubation temperatures (say one at 70-75F, another 75-80F, and a third at 80-88F, it may be hard to find a comfortable range within a few degree of flexibility that will work with them all without risking one getting too hot)
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PHLdyPayne
