Getting bees to draw out super?

[harvey]

This year I am trying all foundation less frames with starter strips.  I have two hives that are bursting with bees and they have more honey in the top deep than they need.  They don't have room for brood in the second deep right now as they are using it for honey.  I have supers on these two hives but they are not drawing them out yet.  Could I or would it be a good thing to put the super below the top deep?  Would they then start drawing it and I could later put it back up top?  or when they need the room will they draw the super and move the honey to the top on there own?  Kinda worried the queen will run out of places to lay and want to bail out on me.

[bassman1977]

Instead of putting the empty boxes on top, add them to the bottom.  Bees naturally work from the top down, not vice versa.  The bottoms should hopefully get drawn out and filled with brood, the tops back filled with honey once the bees emerge.

[gardeningfireman]

Like Bassman said, bees naturally work downward. They will not make comb if there is no flow going on. I would pull a couple of the deep frames of honey. Place them near the hives and scrape the caps off them. Your bees will re-collect the honey and then draw new comb on the empty frames. The only alternatives would be to feed syrup or wait for a nectar flow. I had a new hive swarm last year. I was in exactly the same position; they didn't draw out any comb in the second box and got too crowded. I then started feeding them and they drew new comb quickly.

[beekeeper1756]

I agree, put the new super on top of the brood boxes and beneath the other supers.  The bees should draw it out quick, thinking "we thought we we're done but we aren't".

[skflyfish]

I think Brian D. Bray's words fit well here.

Bees will build comb under their feet, if there isn't enough bees to move to a new frame they won't begin building comb on it until there is.


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