Re-filling empty comb to feed?

[chefbeek]

Happy holidays y'all!
Has anyone ever attempted to fill empty comb in order to feed extracted honey back to the bees? Just curious.....

[alpha6]

Nope...but if you do better hope its some kind of think honey. :scratch:

[Swobee]

I suppose you could lay a frame flat and pour some honey along the upper half of the frame. Then stand the frame up to or near it's normal vertical position. The honey would flow and much of it would flow into comb cells. This would be an experiment to say the least, but I think it can be done.

[brooksbeefarm]

Have seen demo!s but never tried it.Take a coffee can drill or punch holes in the bottom(works as a shower).Pour 2 to 1 sugar syurp in a tub.The amount will depend on how many you do?Hold empty frame on an angle on it!s side over the tub,dip coffee can in syurp and shower the syurp into the cells.Do one side then the other,then put in hive.The instructor said if you just submerged the frames in the syurp you would trap air in the bottom of the cells and the syurp wouldn!t stay in the cells.I thought the syurp would run out when you hung the frames in the hive but it stayed.Of course this is for emergency feeding only.Several club members tried it,and were happy with their results.Jack

[Rob-bee]

I have not done it with honey, but I have taken sugar and water and made a thick paste and smeared it along empty comb. Just as an experiment, and it worked well. Just labor intensive. I only did it in the coldest time of winter because I thought the bees would have an easier time accessing it, than feeding them sugar water in a top feeder.

[Jim Stevens]

I never tried extracted honey,maby if its cut with warm water, make a 1:1 or 2;1mix.
give it a try!

I use a hand held spray bottle with 1:1 or 2:1 sugar syrup mix.
I found it works best if set at medium mist or single stream.
You will have more runoff with fine mist.

I practiced on empty comb before going to the Bee yard.
I laid frame on its side, and then found it just as easy to hold by top bar.
I mix sugar syrup right in spray bottle,(for small jobs) use warm water 100 -120*F is ok, you don’t need it boiling.
Give it a try and adjust as needed I think you will find it works well.
Like I said I use sugar syurp.

I do this in summer on small nucs and 3 frame queen matting boxes

Hope this helps
Jim.

I think I'm goin to try a Honey/wtr mix right now.
I'll let you know the result.

[HVH]

I have done it with syrup using a cheap pump from Home Depot. Some small pumps are fitted on both side with garden hose fittings. One end of a short garden hose is submerged in syrup the other clamped to the trough side wall with a hand clamp and enough hose left for spraying into the frames. I use one of my uncapping troughs partially filled with syrup and just laid the frame flat. Then flip the frame over and fill the other side. It is really surprising how well the syrup stays in the cells when not vertical.

[sqkcrk]

Happy holidays y'all!
Has anyone ever attempted to fill empty comb in order to feed extracted honey back to the bees? Just curious.....

Not honey, but corn syrup. I go a little more low tech than HVH. All I used was a drum of corn syrup and an empty coffee can w/ holes punched into it's bottom so the syrup would rain down on the comb and fill it.

I wouldn't try that w/ honey. But that's just me.

[Michael Bush]

I've tried dunking which never worked very well. I'd done spraying which did work pretty well. With PermaComb which can take a bit of heat, you can put it in warm by dunking. The syrup can be up to 200 F but I'd shoot for more like 140 F or so. This will melt wax, of course.

[sqkcrk]

Showering the liquid into the cells of the comb will get it filled better than dunking. When one dunks the comb apparently the liquid is prevented from going into the cells.

[drobbins]

I've done something similar by laying the frames on their side and pouring granulated sugar in the cells, then spaying water on them to get them wet
worked well
easy
I used it to get bees to accept HSC frames which they aren't to fond of

Dave

[Aspera]

Get an large empty container of liquid dish washing soap. Rinse it obsessively and repeatedly with hot water. This can then be used to spray 1:1 sugar water into empty honey comb. This comb can then be used for warm weather emergency feeding, such as in late spring for nucs. Fondant or cane sugar is better for the winter IMHO.

[Pete0]

Bee Cluture magazine had a how to article on this topic last year about this time. Forget the author, may have been Walt Wright?? I did it this fall after being neglegent on getting feed onto some smaller colonies I'm trying to overwinter. They are all flying so it must have done some good getting them all through our colder than usual November.

Good Luck,

Pete0
Bena, VA

[pcelar]

I've done something similar by laying the frames on their side and pouring granulated sugar in the cells, then spaying water on them to get them wet
worked well
easy
I used it to get bees to accept HSC frames which they aren't to fond of

Dave
Good idea!:thumbsup: