Solar incubators have enabled a farmer in Bomet to move from just selling kienyeji eggs to hatching and selling his own improved day-old kienyeji chicks quadrupling his income.
Every month for the last two years Gilbert Korir hatches at least 400 KARI-improved kienyeji, Kuroiler, and Kenbro chicks from his two solar-powered incubators. He sells these chicks in Bomet and Eldoret towns for Sh100 each, four times the amount he previously earned selling eggs.
Gilbert’s village in Sigor Sub-County, four kilometers off the Bomet Narok highway, is unfortunately among the 13 per cent of Kenya with no electricity access. “Thanks to solar incubators I am the first farmer around here to start hatching their own chicks. Now the many farmers who ordered chicks up to 232 km away in Eldoret town just reach me,” Gilbert said.
Solar incubators in Kenya range in size from ones that hold 64 eggs up to 2,012 eggs.
They not only give poultry farmers like Gilbert who have no access to Kenya’s power grid an opportunity to get access to power their incubators, but they are also handy for Kenyans with access to electricity, 53 per cent of who report their electricity power supply to be unreliable.
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“Because we are at the equator, most days once I have charged my solar batteries from sunset until 11 am, I am sure the incubator will have enough power to run throughout the day. Even on not-so-sunny days, I do not have to charge the solar batteries for much longer than that,” he pointed out.
The incubators use minimal power because they are fitted with a thermostat which switches off the battery and stops it from transmitting any more power letting the incubator keep the eggs warm with its own gained heat.
A solar incubator consists of the incubator itself, the solar panel(s), battery(ies), and a solar charge controller which protects against overcharging.
A 256-egg incubator and below for example runs on one battery, Gilbert who also installs solar incubators for farmers recommends they use the more expensive but durable 200ah British-made model rather than cheaper Chinese ones. The 67-kilogram battery costs Sh31,000.
An incubator of this capacity also requires at least one 480-watt solar panel which costs Sh13,000 when buying one piece and Sh12,500 per piece when buying more than five in one go.
A hybrid charge controller that has both solar and electric terminals costs Sh21,000. A Chinese solar-only charge controller costs Sh6,000.
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Gilbert mentions that despite the steep initial costs, solar incubators are cheaper in the long run because they do not cost much of anything to run.
“Running a 192 egg incubator consumes three Kilowatt-hours every day. Every 21 days it takes you to hatch the eggs you are hit with an electricity bill of about Sh 1,277 – 1,606 electricity bill,” explained Gilbert.
Gilbert Korir: 0701659901