What can I do with half filled honey frames?

You can put all the partially capped frames in a super above an inner cover. As long as the days remain warm enough for the bees to move around, they will move the honey from the super down close to the brood nest. If you want them to remove all of it, scratch open the capped cells.

What to do with wet frames after extracting honey?

The most common way is to put the frames back in the supers just harvested and put the supers back on your hives. Then in a few days, the bees will have cleaned up the mess and you're left with a super full of clean, dry, not sticky frames. Usually.

Can you reuse frames from a dead hive?

In most cases, reusing comb from dead colonies is okay. If I am confident that what killed the hive is not the result of something contagious, like American Foulbrood, I save newer frames of comb for reuse. Reusing comb from colonies that died from mites, starvation, or cold is not an issue.

Can you harvest honey with mold on the frames?

The bees are very thorough. After they are done, the combs can be used for brood or honey production. It's amazing, but no taste or smell of mold will remain on the combs. If you have more than one colony, you can divide the moldy frames between them, or you can give a few at a time.

Can I use old frames for new bees?

It's okay to put some nasty old frames in a new hive, the bees will clean it and use it.

You can re-use your dead out frames!!

How long can you store honey frames?

You can store capped honey frames for two to three days at the most. But you need to ensure they are wrapped really, really, well to keep bugs and pests out and stored securely to keep away any hungry animals. Any longer than a couple of days and it is best to freeze your honey frames.

Do honey bees reuse comb?

Research does suggest that size of the wax cells decreases as combs age and are used and reused by the bees for brood rearing; bees reared in old comb are slightly smaller and less productive.

How long does it take bees to clean wet frames?

If you don't want to make multiple trips, I would say 1 super can be cleaned by 1 strong hive in 2-3 hours - more or less. I just put my frames in front of my hives 3-4 hours before dark. After an hour or so of darkness, I put them in a chest freezer for 24-48 hours.

Can I feed extracted honey back to bees?

Do not feed bees honey unless it is from your own disease-free hives. Spores of American foulbrood disease can be present in honey. Feeding honey from an unknown source, such as a supermarket or even another beekeeper, can cause infection in your hives. If you feed suitable honey to your bees, place it inside the hive.

Why are my bees building comb on top of frames?

Burr Comb

Burr comb is extra chunks of comb that the bees often build between and on top of frames or on the walls of the hive. Basically, they are combs that are built “out of place”. Sometimes if the space is big enough they will fill these small combs with honey or drone brood.

What does black honeycomb mean?

When areas of a hive's honeycomb turn dark-colored or black, it indicates that those combs are being used to rear baby bees. The same honeycomb cells are used to house baby bees again and again, and a build-up of pollen, bee spit, and other debris is what causes the bee frames to blacken.

What do you do with black honeycomb?

It should be safe to eat dark honeycomb that is dark in color only because of time in the hive. Personally, I would not consume black comb. Once the honey is extracted it should be okay. However, in the case of eating raw honeycomb, a lighter variety might taste better.

Can I freeze a frame of honey?

In any case, the frames of honey can be fed back to the bees, either now or later. Freezing the frames is certainly not necessary for storage, but it does ensure that any parasites on the frames are killed. Freezing kills organisms because water expands as it freezes.

Can you freeze uncapped honey frames?

Uncapped honey is okay in the freezer but it may ooze out before it freezes and then you have a big old mess. Don't ask me how I know this. If you want to keep frames of uncapped honey in the freezer, be sure to place each one in a plastic bag or wrap it with plastic wrap before adding it to the freezer.

Will uncapped honey ferment?

Even when uncapped, it will not absorb (or release) moisture, and it will not ferment.

How do you reuse hive frames?

You should remove the old dark comb from frames and melt it or use it to make wax products. The frames can be reused in the beehive after cleaning.

How often should you cull your frames?

After a period of time, 5 years, the chemical traces now become a toxic environment within the hive. A good rule is to begin replacing frames and foundation at year 4 and only replace half of the frames.

Will bees build comb above a queen excluder?

A beekeeper should make sure drawn comb is directly above the queen excluder with any foundation above that. Better for comb. Use of a queen excluder will almost certainly mean less honey production, but the main benefit of it is that the combs will remain light colored, because no young bees are reared in them.

Can you put a honey super on too early?

Try not to add supers too early or too late, but if you are uncertain, then do it sooner. Also, remember to only harvest surplus honey and leave enough for your bees to make it through the year.

Why you shouldn't feed honey to bees?

Do not give bumblebees honey as this can contain pathogens (which is why honeybee keepers never feed shop-bought honey to their bees).

How do you store honey frames?

If you are storing honey supers of a small number, the freezer method can work well. Freeze your frames of comb for 2 or 3 days to kill any wax moth eggs. Remove the frames of comb from the freezer (let thaw & dry in a secure place (where moths can't get) and then seal in plastic bags or bins.