caught swarm into odd nuc box - what is next step

[tandemrx]

Got a call from a neighbor this afternoon.  Swarm in bush.  I Had limited supplies available at the house.  A standard 5-frame wax/cardboard nuc box and some super frames.  So, grabbed that and got to the swarm.  Decent size, maybe a 4lb package size or so.  Shook some into box, put rest out in front on a tarp and they marched into the nuc box  I think I even saw the queen march in.  Evening was coming so over the next hour pretty much 99% of the bees were in the box, so we took it home and set it up in the back yard (we were just saying hours before that we would like to have one hive at home, our other hives are about 6 miles away at a friends farm).

Anyway, so now I have a bundle of bees in a nuc box that intended to have regular hive body sized frames in it but it has SUPER frames in it  instead (a couple drawn, 3 not drawn).  I assume they will do some crazy comb in the empty space below the frames, and who knows, maybe the queen is already laying eggs in those drawn out super frames. (could be a virgin queen of course).

So, we are planning on just transfering these frames into a regular super box this weekend and just use a regular hive body on top of that when the time comes, so that super will be an overwinter super body and not a honey collection super anymore.

But, when should I do the transfer? 

Seems like most people say to leave the swarm alone for a couple days, but I also don't want them to go too crazy in the space below the frames building crazy comb.  Should I just transfer the super frames into a regular superbody tomorrow?  Or should I leave them in the nuc box with the super frames while they get established?

thanks for the help.

[Highlandsfreedom]

I would transfer them over and if you have one use a queen excluder to help hold them in.  Crazy comb can be a waist of wax and time in my eyes.

[iddee]

The super frames I have had in deeps were just finished out in natural comb, very straight. The end result was a deep frame with the bottom strip going through the middle. They were straight and worked just as well as a normal deep. I would wait for 4 to 6 days and transfer them to a deep, using the super frames that they have drawn out and replacing any that they had not drawn.

[fish_stix]

I'm with iddee; just leave them with the super frames and move them into a box. They will build comb (usually drone comb) on the bottom of the frames to make them the same size as deep frames. You can then use the drone comb for varroa control by cutting it off and melting it down. Make sure you squeeze all the frames together in the middle of the hive body.

[montauk170]

You can then use the drone comb for varroa control by cutting it off and melting it down. Make sure you squeeze all the frames together in the middle of the hive body.

How do you use wax for varroa control?

[jhs494]

If you leave it this way, they will draw out the space with comb. Which is no problem until you go into the hive after you have forgotten about it and you try to inspect and you have an "oh crap" moment. I found this out when I tried to reverse boxes and had a medium box with only nine shallow frames in it.(I was given this hive in this condition, Free Bees)
This was on the bottom and they had drawn comb below the bottom of the box right up to the Screened bottom board.
Leave it but at some point you may have to deal with it.

[AllenF]

The bees will make comb on the lid in open spaces before they work the frames.   I have see it.   I even left an empty shallow box on top of a hive I just put a swarm in and got busy and forgot to get it off.   In just a couple of days, there were several rows of comb on the inner lid started.   Big mess moving the bees down to the frames below.  Never leave open space in a hive.

[tandemrx]

Allen,  re: "never leave open space in the hive"

Note my original post.  Its the equipment I had on hand.  I certainly understand not to leave open space.  The question was what to do with the situation at hand.

If I would have had a little more time I probably could have put some plywood or something on the bottom of the nuc box to create proper bee space under the super frames, but alas, time was of an essence.  I will follow iddee suggestion (thanks iddee) and in a couple days transfer any built up/lengthened super frames into a regular deep. (unless other good suggestions come up). 

If queen has laid eggs in the super frames, but they didn't lengthen them (or even if they did a bit), I wonder if I should add on a block of wood of proper dimension (say 1-inch wide by 2 & 3/4") and add it onto these frames attached to the bottom frame support somehow (couple staples on the sides aught to do it) to make them proper size for a deep frame, just to keep them in the deep box.  :?

Nuc seems nice and busy with orientation flights today.  We'll see if we got the queen and if they decide to stay.

[AllenF]

Shallow frames in a deep box.   The open space is below the frames.

[iddee]

The open space is no more below the frames than a top bar hive, and about equal to foundationless frames.