What to do with old frames?

[Erichalfbee]

I have a whole box worth of old brood frames stuffed with nectar and pollen ;they are really knackered.....lots of holes, coming away from the bottom bars and wires waving about. I sometimes nadir uncapped frames over Winter and they are always empty in the Spring. Might this work with a brood frame under (they are 14 x 12)? I hate to throw all that hard labour on the bonfire.
Cutting them up maybe to super size and putting the remains in feeders has crossed my mind but would the bees take down the pollen?

 

[pargyle]

I have a whole box worth of old brood frames stuffed with nectar and pollen ;they are really knackered.....lots of holes, coming away from the bottom bars and wires waving about. I sometimes nadir uncapped frames over Winter and they are always empty in the Spring. Might this work with a brood frame under (they are 14 x 12)? I hate to throw all that hard labour on the bonfire.
Cutting them up maybe to super size and putting the remains in feeders has crossed my mind but would the bees take down the pollen?

Well ... I had a piece of comb that was stuffed with pollen and some nectar - not a whole frame just about a quarter of a 14 x 12 that I had broken out separating two frames. I chucked it in the bottom of my hive (there's a bit of space under the frames - yeh -I know -design error !) and over a few days they cleared the lot out - nectar and pollen, took them a bit longer to clean out the pollen ... then they started refilling the bit of comb with more nectar before I grabbed it and took it out !!

 

[dn170221]

Would be good lures for bait hives, not sure if they would be ok to wait until next May though

 

[oliver90owner]

Would be good lures for bait hives

Most certainly NOT! You do not put stores into bait hives. Just asking for robbing out and spreading any diseases among the bees that find it. So definitely a no-no. (I know the OP would not do this, btw.)

 

[Finman]

.
Bees do not pick pollen from feeder or from outside box.
Only way is to let queen lay the frame. Then bees eate pollen. When brood is capped, lift it to super box for emerging. Bees fill combs with honey.

 

[dn170221]

Would be good lures for bait hives

Most certainly NOT! You do not put stores into bait hives. Just asking for robbing out and spreading any diseases among the bees that find it. So definitely a no-no. (I know the OP would not do this, btw.)

Apologies,
I saw the old frames bit and that was the answer I thought I would reply with!! I didn't engage the brain enough after that to hold back.
I sometimes get so excited when posting

 

[Sean.]

I would put a crown board over the suppers, then an empty super then the broad box on top of this. You can then scrape the frames to encourage them to move the honey down and be stored where it should be.

This assumes the honey / nectar is all ok. Then the frames could be used in a bait hive. I tend to put one of two old frames in the bait hive, and then 4 new frames. So plenty of bait hives can be made with the old combs.

Sean

 

[oliver90owner]

How many bait hives would the OP be needing??

 

[Sean.]

As many as they want to really. Maybe 5. I'm planning on putting a load out next year, maybe 5 to cover the area around my apiary sites.

 

[Travelator]

I sometimes lay a couple of part-filled brood frames in the roof space on top of the crown board, and leave one of the feed holes open (don't flame me, solid crown board police!). The bees have usually cleaned out all or most of the stores by the time I come back a week later.

Alternative option is to use them as the bottom half of a double brood configuration for the winter. Come spring the frames should be clean and the bees should all be in the top box.

 

[oliver90owner]

Personally, I only put one manky frame in to attract the bees. After all, it would be removed as soon as possible. I would expect the OP to have other old frames without any stores as well as these.

OP has 4 hives. I doubt there is a need for bait hives to be anywhere near double figures.

I should generate around 50 frames each year for replenishment but no longer put out any bait hives as I could best do with reducing, not increasing, my colony numbers.

 

[Erichalfbee]

OP has 4 hives.

Ah...well...........
I actually now have nine boxes. I had to AS all the colonies and two have been re combined but I did catch a couple of swarms....why??? I don't really want any more bees. It's the free lunch thing isn't it.
I WILL be back to 4 for the winter but all the brood boxes are too strong to combine at present.

Thanks, everybody for the advice. much to think about. I shan't waste the stores.

 

[REDWOOD]

If the frames are OK I put them in the steamer, not much wax is recycled from the black one's but it makes it easier to fit new foundation.

 

[Swarm]

Guessing they are really surplus, as in you have plenty of comb besides (from 4 to 9 = pretty good chance ) I'd consider using them as fire lighters.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Yes yes......no problem with the empty ones but looking at a whole frame which though disintegrating (SBI nearly dropped one down his wellies the other day)is a patchwork of myriad colours......seems such a shame.