So while the remaining hive continues to prosper. . .I hope, and you can read about its progress on the "Bee Journal by Visit" page, this page is about what else is going on.
I drown the hive and then realized that the comb is probably pretty hydroscopic. How was I going to get the water out, since I didn't have a good outdoor or airy location for the 10 frames each from the honey super and brood box. Besides, each set of frames were very different.
After the drowning, I froze the brood box and frames for two days. Took them out and used the convection/dehydrate mode on the oven. The first and oldest set of frames, I could only fit five at a time in the oven, were in there overnight. About 12 hours at 100 degrees. It worked somewhat, but there seemed to be some mold over a couple of cells. I processed the other five frames at 110.
I took both sets out, set them on plastic sheeting and made sure there was air space all around. I left them in a room with the ceiling fan set to low to keep the air moving.
That was two weeks ago. The frames seem to have dried out, and there was no additional growth of the mold.
This weekend, I processed the honey super frames - five at a time in a 110 dehydration oven for 10-12 hours for each batch of frames. None of these frames had any mold on them. The wax was much more brittle and delicate when I took it out of the freezer. These were all "new" wax which flaked off when jarred. This made it a bit messier than the older frames, but I was able to collect it in a small pile and then because it is a little sticky or adhesive, it was easy to gather up the random flakes on the kitchen counter.
I read about using glacial acetic acid to disinfect frames. This is used in England. 5% acetic acid is vinegar. Ear medicine is available at 8%. Since swimmer's ear is cured with half alcohol half vinegar I thought, perhaps that will work!
I mixed up a batch and sprayed it on the offending areas of the older brood comb. It seems to be working. I won't be using this again until the spring so there's a number of months for the comb to air out before it will be used again.
Right now all 20 frames are stacked criss-crossed so that air circulates on all size in the room with the fan turning.
There is a very nice scent that comes from the frames, especially since this is a room that kept closed most of the time. Right after spraying with the vinegar/alcohol mix that was the primary scent, but within one day it had almost faded totally.
