[mignolan]

I have one deep (due to my receiving a starter nuc deep) and to encourage a more even distribution of brood and straight comb, I've considered moving frames from a deep to a medium by pulling a deep frame and dropping it into the same position in the medium above it but not putting a replacement frame in the deep, so it would descend into the deep a few inches. Any thoughts on that? It'd make a nice bridge, I think, out of the deep into the medium.

Another strategy I'm considering is to pull a deep frame and to place it in a second medium above the deep, so it would extend down into the two medium boxes, but not the deep box. In the deep, at that point, I would put an empty medium frame. Once (or if!) the activity in and around those frames have the desired result, I'd swap them back.

I'm sure this isn't an original idea (or two) but I'm wondering if anyone's had success or failure with these approaches.

Thank you!

Mig

 

[Deeptime]

If I understand you correctly, your actions wil leave open voids of space inside the hive. Bees dispise open voids (larger than "bee space), and usually fil them in with burr comb.:no:

 

[mignolan]

I should have mentioned that -- my expectation is that I would simply cut that away when the time came.

(I wanted to add that burr comb creeps me out. I'm not sure why, but it looks pretty spooky to me -- those empty, unused, misshapen cells. Yeesh!)

 

[Countryboy]

The bees won't fill the void with burr comb. They will draw regular comb.

It will be a royal pain trying to separate the boxes. You will likely have to remove the deep frame from the medium box before you can split the boxes, which will result in tearing the new comb built on the bottom of the deep frame, and you will end up with a lot of unhappy bees.

People have tried what you are proposing before. There is a reason those people now advocate using all boxes the same size.

Why are you so concerned with how the bees are arranging the broodnest? Why do you feel that you know better than the bees how the brood should be distributed?

Put a medium box on top of the deep if you wish, but allow the bees to arrange the hive in the manner they think is best. They'll move into the medium when they are ready.

 

[beekeeper1756]

Let me encourage you. I am trying to do the very same thing. Please let me share my recent experience.

I'm adding mediums on top of other mediums and I didn't realize that the bottom medium was missing a frame on the edge. The results was an open slot beneath the frame and the bees built comb underneath. Now, ALL the spots are filled with frames.