Dumb Question #1

[wunderdawg]

Ok. As previously posted, I got 2 established hives and things are going quite nicely.  I have an extra hive in the shop, and installed new frames and foundation, and went about my business.  I came back in a couple of hours and noticed some, (4 or 5) bees hanging around the open hive.  So I was wondering, If I put this hive out with the others,  will some bees migrate to it?  Will they make a new queen? Would it confuse them?   Is this a dumb idea? 

[kathyp]

they may be curious bees, but they may be scout bees for a hive about to swarm.  if you don't need it, leave it where it is for a few days and see what happens.  workers can't make a queen without eggs, or very young larva. 

[iddee]

The only chance of anything good coming from it would be if a swarm moved into it. The bad possibilities of Texas heat, mice, dust, ETC. far outweighs the slim chance of success. Keep it ready in case someone calls you for a swarm or one of your hives swarm. It is always good to have an extra hive ready.

[doak]

Don't think I ever noticed it mentioned on this forum.
Be very careful leaving boxes out with foundation or drawn comb in side.
Not only will the wax moth get to it but bees will also rob wax supplies.
You will notice this in an ongoing hive, when no honey storage or nectar collecting is going on.
You will notice some part of foundations disappearing.
The bees are taking it to repair other places that are needed more than the space where the wax is being taken from.
You don't want to leave empty or unfilled supers on long after the honey flow stops
You will run into "uncapped" cells. All you have to do is hold the frame up side ways, or just tilt it till you can see if the nectar/honey is thin enough to run freely. if it does not it is ok to mix a few uncapped frames with a bunch of well capped frames.
If the honey will not be readily needed by the bees, they will cap half filled cells if the honey is cured.
doak

[Michael Bush]

It's doubtful, but not impossible that a swarm may decide to move in.  Some lemongrass oil would sweeten the deal considerably.

[Brian D. Bray]

Not only will the wax moth get to it but bees will also rob wax supplies.

Actually the wax moths will only go after the combs that have had brood raised in them.  It doesn't matter whether it was worker or drone brood but it is the materials the hatching bees leave behind that the wax moth larvae feed on.  Take to frames of comb, 1 from which the honey was extracted and never had brood and the 2nd taken from the brood chamber.  They'll eat the brood frame and leave the honey frame alone, time after time.  I've seen a wax moth larvae on a frame with only a few drone cells in one corner, it ate out the drone cells, left its silk and left the rest of the frame alone.

[rast]

 They may just be really good foragers. Just wait until you have extracted supers stored that have already been cleaned by bees. Every new generation of good foragers think they have found something new. Now "just how to get into em?"