My experiences incubating Duck eggs

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Hatching under cluckly Hens
Last year I tried 4 or 5 cluckly hens but I had them at my mum's place and could not keep a close eye on them. They were all in December; it was really hot and pretty unsuccessful. I didn’t spray the eggs, and I think because of the heat and dry, some hens didn’t hatch eggs at all. The pekin that hatched ducklings, I sprayed the eggs the day before the hatch and on the day. Out of eight eggs, 4 hatched, and the other 4 eggs I 'helped' hatch, probably a mistake, the ducklings died within 2 hours.
This year I put the eggs under the hen when she is sitting really well. The duck pond site (http://www.users.on.net/~greggles/duckpond/ go to "about ducks", on the 2nd or 3rd page) says to spray the eggs only after the seventh day and stop on the 25th day. So keeping good records is a must. I have had one hen sit this year, a silky. I left her sit for the first couple of days and then after that, at the same time each afternoon, I would lift her off the nest and give her grain, other wise some hens will not leave the nest, and duck eggs take 28 days to hatch and some hens get very poor. After she has been off for 10-15 mins I spray the eggs with water; soon after she got back on the eggs. She hatched 5 out of 5 eggs!
I had one hen, a gold laced Wyandotte; go cluckly so I put some eggs under. Half the time the eggs were uncovered, and she was very cranky and would not get off the nest to eat and when she did get off, would not sit back on the eggs. So I put the eggs in the incubator and put her back in a pen. I have a white Wyandotte sitting at moment; I put eggs from an incubator under her so she only has to sit for a week! Due on Friday, so I will let you know.
I tried very hard not to peek a look on the hatching day, leave the hen until the day after when they start sticking their heads out, I had to move her and ducklings into another pen, as the one she was in, the ducklings would have fallen out, so the night they hatched, I moved them all. otherwise I would leave her be, the ducks with babies don’t get off the nest for at least 24 hours after the ducklings have all hatched, so don’t worry about food or water yet.

Feeding Ducklings
I have only used chicken feed with the antibodies in it as that is what I have, have look for something else but couldn’t find much. This year I had some turkey feed from last year, so the medication should have deteriorated by now, so I thought it was ok? Some people have said they use turkey feed instead of chicken feed, as it doesn’t have medication in it, but most turkey feed has more, not less, medication in it.
Last year I lost 2 ducklings, about a week and a half old. I wasn’t sure why, and duck mum was pretty crazy and would walk on the babies all the time. And it was 3 days after my daughter was born, so didn’t see them much. This week I lost a 9 day old duckling, with its mum also. I have lost none under lights or with hens, so I don’t think this was related to feed.
I like this fact sheet on feeding from http://www.agric.nsw.gov.au/reader/poultry/duck-raising-part-e.htm NSW Department of Primary Industries. I don’t worry too much about vitamin percentages, mainly look at reducing protein at 2 weeks of age, you can do this by add bran/pollard or bread to the chicken feed, to reduce the protein. And feeding shell grit.
I have found large shallow pot plant trays to be great for ducklings; sometimes they still need a little step up for a few days. When hatching under hens, I put the ducklings in the water a few times a day, just to make sure they learn to wash them selves. I have found with my ducks, the mums spend all morning on the first day off the nest drinking from the dish and pretending to wash herself, then over to the feed and eating, then back to the water, and standing then quaking at the ducklings to get in. and only until after, say 12 noon, the ducklings get in the water for the first time, does she stop and take a break.