Moldy brood frame

[Bee Boys]

Hello
I have inspected one of my hives and found one frame at the edge of the brood Box coverd in mold . This frame had been used in a split that got chilled and had the brood die. The bees have cleaned the frame out but will not fill it will honey. Do I throw the wax away or will the bees clean it up?
Thank you

 

[Ian123]

Unusual to get a mouldy frame in summer....if it’s bad chuck it in the melting pot it’s only 1 frame after all!!!

 

[Bee Boys]

Thank you

 

[Erichalfbee]

Welcome to the forum, by the way

 

[enrico]

Sure you haven't got a leaky roof?
E

 

[Bee Boys]

Sure you haven't got a leaky roof?
E

I do not think I have a leaking roof . I am using a new paynes poly hive but I have seen a bit of water on the supper edges. There were also two slugs and a millipede in the cells on the moldy frame.

 

[Antipodes]

I tend to see mouldy frames in hives with lower numbers of bees in them....there seems to be an association with mould and unoccupied frames.

 

[Bee Boys]

The bee hive has 7 frames of bees and a laying queen.

 

[Poly Hive]

You may be seeing 7 "frames of bees" but at 2am how many are there?

The way to assess the strength of a colony is frames of brood.

How many of them are there I wonder and a super is mentioned too? I suspect over reaching here.

PH

 

[Bee Boys]

I have 7 frames of brood in the coloney, and one supper which they are drawing and filling with honey.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I have 7 frames of brood in the coloney, and one supper which they are drawing and filling with honey.

How much of the super is drawn and filling?
If most of it and If you have seven frames of brood rather than brood on seven frames and you still have a flow then throw away the mouldy frame and put a frame of foundation in the middle of the brood nest.
If there are quite a few frames to draw in the super then you can do the above when you feed.

 

[Bee Boys]

Thank you Erichalfbee
They have drawn 4 frames in the super.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Thank you Erichalfbee
They have drawn 4 frames in the super.

And the rest?
It helps if we have a proper picture of what you’re seeing. It stops us guessing

 

[Bee Boys]

The brood box has 12 frames, 7 of these are brood and 3 are honey.
In the super 4 have honey 1 has brood and the other 7 frames are empty.
I also have an empty super on the top for feeding.

 

[pargyle]

The brood box has 12 frames, 7 of these are brood and 3 are honey.
In the super 4 have honey 1 has brood and the other 7 frames are empty.
I also have an empty super on the top for feeding.

I hope that super is above the crown board and you don't have any holes in the crown board ?

 

[Bee Boys]

It is not above the crown board and I do not have any holes in it.

 

[pargyle]

It is not above the croun bord

You are asking too much of them .. a super that is less than half drawn and an empty super .. too much space for them to manage. Move the crown board (is it one of those thin plastic ones that Paynes supply ?) below the empty super and put some insulation in the empty one above the crownboard ... 50mm of Kingspan insulation board would be good ... keep them nice and warm.

Look out for some clear polycarbonate about 6mm thick and make a crown board that will take the weight of a feeder. Drill a 50mm hole in the middle with a tank cutter .. stick the piece you have cut out onto a square of ply and use it to fill the hole .. until you need to feed them.

Then dead easy to feed them with syrup when you've taken your honey off ... won't be long now - a couple of weeks or so at most.

 

[Bee Boys]

You are asking too much of them .. a super that is less than half drawn and an empty super .. too much space for them to manage. Move the crown board (is it one of those thin plastic ones that Paynes supply ?) below the empty super and put some insulation in the empty one above the crownboard ... 50mm of Kingspan insulation board would be good ... keep them nice and warm.

Thank you
It is a thin plastic paynes crown board.

 

[Erichalfbee]

crown board (is it one of those thin plastic ones that Paynes supply ?)

.

I love those
I put them every three supers when I stack them wet in the shed.
I always pick up a few at the conventions
They are also good cut up into squares to cover the crown board feeder holes. The bees propolise them into place.

 

[pargyle]

I love those
I put them every three supers when I stack them wet in the shed.
I always pick up a few at the conventions
.

Yes .. that's what I use them for as well ... if I have any spare I put them on the top of the super I leave on my hives all the time with insulation in it and when I have a feeder on .. keeps the earwigs and woodlice out ...