Advice on moving Brood + Super

[beestingjohn]

We have WBC hives two of which have brood and a half (brood box with super on top with no QE)
Some books seem to say put the super on the bottom for the winter, when does this need to be done?
We have one other hive with a double brood box, presume we just leave this as is and in the spring that off the bottom one as the bees will be up in the top one?
The hives are solid with brood and honey on top boxes.

 

[oliver90owner]

I always left them with food above brood - the natural way. Bees tend to move upwards at all times, so starting at the bottom and going up just seems the more obvious way for them, after all these millions of years. A Q/E in spring and maximum three weeks will sort any brood upstairs if necessary. They would probably need a shallow for brood in addition to the deep, anyway.

If you are going to change them round, now is a good time. They will likely move food up as the brood nest contracts. I have had supers cleaned out of some granulated honey this season, by putting them under the broods. More reliable than putting them over a crownboard, but more effort required.

RAB

 

[Erichalfbee]

I had a colony in a National last year and a super half filled/capped which I put under mid Sept. They moved all the stores up in a few days. I left the box there all winter and removed it in the spring.
I have a 14 x 12 this season which I treated similarly. The bees moved the stores and replaced them with brood.
If there is room in the brood box for the bees to move the stores up I would put it under now and remove in spring.
If the brood box is full as you say then I would put the stores on the top.