Restoring Old Hives

I just received about 20 bodies and supers but they have been stored in a storage building for the last 4 years and have been eaten up by wax moths.
My plan is to clean them up by sanding and painting the outsides. I also plan to throw away all the old frames and just buy new since they are less than $1 each and have been eaten up by the moths so bad.

Is there anything else I should do?

Kevin Mace wrote:I also plan to throw away all the old frames and just buy new since they are less than $1 each and have been eaten up by the moths so bad.

I think you'll find that frames with foundation cost more than $1 each. in your situation, I wouldn't throw the old frames away. I would, however, cut everything but the top bars away and manage the hives as Perone hives. but, then, I'm rather severely biased against frame beekeeping.

also: the bees can repair damage due to wax moths pretty effectively. at the very least, you could use those chewed up frames as swarm bait come swarm season.

Kevin Mace wrote:I just received about 20 bodies and supers but they have been stored in a storage building for the last 4 years and have been eaten up by wax moths.
My plan is to clean them up by sanding and painting the outsides. I also plan to throw away all the old frames and just buy new since they are less than $1 each and have been eaten up by the moths so bad.

Is there anything else I should do?

I would definitely have a read of Michael Bush's website

You may want to cut down the supers to medium/ideal depth before you guy and buy a heap of frames.
I would also definitely go for foundationless frames, even if you just make a few to try out - they are by far the most sustainable way to run a Langstroth hive.
If you can find someone with the setup I would get them 'waxed dipped' instead of painted - that will protect the wood, as well as kill off most bugs/pathogens.

Mat

Hi,
you really should look up more information on this topic because I can only give you couple of the most important pointers.
This topic is the most important one that you may encounter when beekeeping. YOU should really know all about it before rushing in and doing something that you may regret.

1. Determine why there are no bees in your hives first.
a. If they were all moved to new hives it is OK.

b. If they all died in your hives, the bees that you put in will suffer for a year and then will have most gruesome death .
(and I truly wish I was kidding here)
Question is why? because the hive is filled with spores of many illness such as american, European foul-brood, nosemosa and so on.
Beekeepers avoid going to people that have couple of old hives in the yard. That is how bad it is.

On the other hand if the bees were moved and the wax moth came after you need to sterilize the hive. You do it by a strong blowtorch. Use it until the wood becomes black. After that use bleach to sterilize them for the second time. Filling a barrel and tossing hives in it would be the best solution.
(naturally it comes in some percentage I do not know from the top of my head -something like 5%) Washing them up also works but not as well.

You are much better off with 2 healthy colonies than with 10 sick ones that you will end up burning (it is the law to burn if some diseases are spotted).

If I would need to sum it up in a short sentence it would be:

OLD HIVES IN WHICH BEES DIED = PLAGUE