Part capped frames

[Hux70]

Im about to extract a few supers but i have a few frames that are part capped or not capped at all. Ive kept my eye on them for the last few weeks and the capping seems to have stopped. What should i do with those frames. Im planning on taking the supers off for the winter but wont it ferment ?

 

[Erichalfbee]

Check with a refractometer. You might be able to extract some

Extract all uncapped and feed back to bees

Extract uncapped and put in freezer to use as needed for yourself

Freeze the frames and keep for next years flow when you can give them back.

Nadir the super of uncapped so that the bees move the stores up into the brood.You can leave the super under over winter or take it away in a week or so

Put the uncapped frames on top over a crownboard with a small hole fir the bees to rob down.

Plenty of choices.

 

[enrico]

Check with a refractometer. You might be able to extract some

Extract all uncapped and feed back to bees

Extract uncapped and put in freezer to use as needed for yourself

Freeze the frames and keep for next years flow when you can give them back.

Nadir the super of uncapped so that the bees move the stores up into the brood.You can leave the super under over winter or take it away in a week or so

Put the uncapped frames on top over a crownboard with a small hole fir the bees to rob down.

Plenty of choices.

And that should be there for all to see as it is a common question

 

[Patrick1]

Im about to extract a few supers but i have a few frames that are part capped or not capped at all. Ive kept my eye on them for the last few weeks and the capping seems to have stopped. What should i do with those frames. Im planning on taking the supers off for the winter but wont it ferment ?

I shake vigorously any uncapped frame, if it does not displace then I uncap it, if it dribbles out feed it back over the crown board, if it's high in moisture it will fament. alternatively invest in a refractometer .

 

[The Poot in Somerset]

Check with a refractometer. You might be able to extract some

Extract all uncapped and feed back to bees

Extract uncapped and put in freezer to use as needed for yourself

Freeze the frames and keep for next years flow when you can give them back.

Nadir the super of uncapped so that the bees move the stores up into the brood.You can leave the super under over winter or take it away in a week or so

Put the uncapped frames on top over a crownboard with a small hole fir the bees to rob down.

Plenty of choices.

Please remind me - how small is the hole when feeding back above a crown board?

 

[Erichalfbee]

Please remind me - how small is the hole when feeding back above a crown board?

I use two beespace. Although it's bit bigger an old CD seems to work well
I had singular bad luck with this method but adding an empty super underneath seems to help no end

 

[drex]

I give them a bee space

 

[The Poot in Somerset]

I use two beespace. Although it's bit bigger an old CD seems to work well
I had singular bad luck with this method but adding an empty super underneath seems to help no end
[/QUOTE

Hmmm, I think I’ll nadir - I feel more confident about it.
I’ve certainly got a lot of unsealed honey to feed back this year.
Jarred up seven pounds of honey from two supers yesterday and even that was at 19.5 percent so will be used straight away.
I have three more supers to remove tomorrow, so hoping for better results, but not too confident.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Your unripe honey
You can take the water content down if you leave the honey in the frames by putting the supers in a small room with a fan heater and a dehumidifier. Or spin out and freeze in small buckets
Defrost when needed

 

[Newbeeneil]

I extracted a small batch from one of my apiaries (2 buckets - about 40lb) that did not shake out in a shake test but when tested with a refractometer showed 19%. I don't like anything under 18% so I put it in my warming cabinet at 40deg for 24 hours and the RH came down to just under 18% but a further 24hrs did not reduce any more.

 

[Swarm]

Anything under 18% is fine with me.

 

[citrus]

Freeze the frames and keep for next years flow when you can give them back.

Currently doing this .... partly cos I dont know about spraying certan on frames that i might want to extract later !

 

[drex]

N

Currently doing this .... partly cos I dont know about spraying certan on frames that i might want to extract later !

No problem. It contains a bacterium that kills the larvae, and not noxious chemicals. Other strains of the bacillus are used on food crops to kill caterpillars etc