Double brood boxes

[GRIZZLY]

What are your preferences ? New brood box plus undrawn frames over? or under? existing brood box or,doesn't it make any difference?? (changeing to D.Brood later on in the year)

[gavin]

They like to go up. Any I have that are powerful early in the spring get a second brood box, and three are heading that way this year already. Need to make up some boxes!

I would only do it as they approach the filling of their first box. Foundation is fine as long as they have some time to think about it before they need the space.

My doubles come down to singles in the summer at nuc raising and splitting time. No way could they go to the hills in that state, and inspecting such monsters is not for the fainthearted, especially if the bees have any tendency to grumpiness.

[GRIZZLY]

Fortunately my bees are very gentle - rather like Murrays and can be almost handled sans veil and smoke.

[GRIZZLY]

Do you think they would take more readily to bare foundation if some of the brood frames got moved up and some of the foundation was place down ?They would also need feeding to get drawing comb methinks.

[EmsE]

I've needed to use foundation with mine and haven't had any problems with the bees drawing it out, but I only increase to a double when there is a flow on so there is no need to feed. One colony got a full box of foundation to work on just before I took the supers off in august (placed on top of the original brood box) so that the workers would have plenty of space when the supers were removed. Within a couple of weeks it was all drawn out and full of nectar- one of the benefits of having the himalayan balsam.

[gavin]

I perfectly agree - put it on when there's a flow starting and they will draw it fine. For me, the start of the rape in mid April is when the strong colonies need the space.