[Tigger19687]

Backstory.......My nuc was installed 2 Sundays ago, it's now Thursday. 5 frames it came with in the nuc. I added 2 used frames of open comb plus 3 foundationless frames mixed in between eachof those. I am feeding sugar syrup inside a super medium above the deep. As of 2 days ago the 2 FL were drawn out 1 not and it was moved to #2 position.
In the nuc were 2 medium frames of brood ( not overly happy about that but meh). They have drawn down those 2 to a deep size. Great but one had a side attached to the wall. Small section ripped off and I left it on the bottom for now.

Question, and I might already know the answer..
I want those 2 medium frames swapped for deep frames. Should I just keep moving them little by little toward the outer most ends so they will be filled with stores (necter/honey/ pollen) and then move them up into the meydi super. How long you think that might take?
Or cut them out and band into deep frames and get it over with?
I'm thinking the 1st because I am new
Thanks

 

[Absinthe]

As soon as they don't have brood in them you can do what you please. Or you can move them above a queen excluder and she won't lay in them anymore. Or cage her until all the brood on that frame hatch out. Which will give you a brood cycle break, if you need that at this time where you are, could be a nice time to get your OA treatments done.

While they have capped brood in them, they are helping heat the adjacent frames, and while they have brood in them at all they want to be attended to in conjunction with the rest of the nest. If you can cut the comb out and rubber band it into a frame that will be your quickest move. You could move it outward away from the entrance reducer opening if you are using one, but if she wants to she will lay right up to the wall Lots of things you can do to try and impose your will, sometimes some of them will work.

The bigger question here is why you had medium frames in a deep nuc. I don't think a reputable dealer here in NC would do that whether it is allowed or not.

This is the description of what should be in a NUCLEAR hive in NC. Notice the "equivalent of 2 deep frames of brood in all stages" and "equivalent of 2 deep frames of resources" .. so you can see that it is possible to satisfy all that in 3 deep and 2 medium. But sounds kind of odd. We do have people in our county organization that actually sell "medium" nucs. Many people that do vertical, try to move to all medium equipment to reduce the weight they have to lift, and to have consistency across equipment. So theres's that.

The other thing to consider. If you are doing your brood nest as 2 deep or 3 medium or whatever, the bees will move up over the winter, and normally, come march or april (depending on your area) you would pull the very bottom box and swap it above the other since they should have moved up during the cold consuming resources. At that time you can pull whatever frames you like since they "should" be abandoned and you don't want the bees to fill them with honey and become honey bound. So all in all, you can get those medium out of there lots of different ways. But know that they aren't hurting anything.They will build comb underneath the bottom bar if they are so inclined, and may even use it specifically for drone comb, which might be convenient to cull for the sake of mite issues, if you are so inclined.

https://www.ncbeekeepers.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/NUCLEUS-BEEHIVESrecmd2017.pdf

 

[Gray Goose]

Hi Linda

Question, and I might already know the answer..
I want those 2 medium frames swapped for deep frames. Should I just keep moving them little by little toward the outer most ends so they will be filled with stores (necter/honey/ pollen) and then move them up into the meydi super. How long you think that might take?
Or cut them out and band into deep frames and get it over with?
I'm thinking the 1st because I am new

Yes keep them going to the edge. then one could leave them and get them in the spring.
your idea is also good, when you add the first super presuming it is medium, slice off the bottom 2 inches and set it in your super.
If using an excluder confirm the queen is not on the frame, shake a few off is too many to look well.
By moving them to the edge the drone brood if present will tend to hatch and these be filled with honey.
If you want to do a deep + Medium for brood the excluder discussion is voided.

if those pieces are full of honey could be the first snak of the season.

timing "it depends" 3 brood cycles ish 6 weeks, be my guess. they can double in 30 days so 5 to 10 frames in a month is doable, keep in mind 10 to 20 in the next month is doable as well, so stay on top of giving room.

good luck

GG