If n when I go Flow-super … I’d have one Flow on each of my 3 hives that I have built. I would need 7 flow frames as I am using 10 frame langstroths hive bodies … I don’t want to mix … If I don’t buy flows I will just use 10 frame mediums like when I was a teenager in the 1950’s n early to mid 60’s
All my hives will be very busy just buding comb this season as I use two deep 10 frames in my brood n first super.
@Gerald_Nickel the Flow Frames are Brood depth not mediums as for normal supers. Don’t forget to factor that in
Yah ! I understand Flows are deep. That okay if I inventuslly go that way. I would be draining the hive n not lifting it to harvest. But until my hives get mature … I have plenty of medium bodies with frames. Bought some used ones. Been cleaning n freezing to remove any unwanted problems or guests!
Newbie here. Bought a full flow hive. In MI, USA so a few months before I buy my nuc. I’d like to harvest honey but mainly I want bees for pollination and for fun. I’m trying to roughly outline my upcoming year , please help me fill in the gaps.
So I install my nuc in the brood box. Initially I will top feed (how long?). I wait for the brood box to be pretty well full before adding the excluder and flow super. I at some point harvest and it’s awesome. Then I decide at some point that they need the rest of the honey for overwintering. Winters here are pretty cold. I swap out the flow frames for regular frames because flow frames shouldn’t over winter (yes?)(or do I add another regular super and just remove the flow super before winter?).
Thanks for the help!
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Keep another super on top of the flow one and remove flow in the autumn ?
If you haven’t already ordered your nuc, I would look into placing an advance order very soon. Many reputable sources near me run out in late fall for March/April delivery. Your answers to the other points are scattered all over the forum, but here a few thoughts.
- How long to feed the brood box? I presume you have joined a local beekeepers club, and know whether they run on one or two brood boxes? With your northern location, people may prefer one, but down here in the south, most people use at least two. What I would do is feed until comb has been drawn on all frames in the lower brood box. If you are going to add a second deep, add it at this point with frames in place. Continue feeding until comb is drawn on on all frames and there are lots of bees on the frames. If you have very strong nectar flow, you may not need to feed the whole time, but it is better to assume that they need it if they still have a lot of comb to build. Depending on the size of your nuc (they come in 2-6 frame sizes, with 4 or 5 being most common), and the vigor of your bees, feeding may last from 2-8 weeks, but the only way to know is by inspecting them weekly and watching the syrup level in the feeder.
- Flow frames shouldn’t overwinter (yes?). Well, there may be some issues with leaving the Flow super on the hive over winter. First, any remaining honey may crystallize in the cold weather, making it hard to remove next season. Second, the gaps between the cells may irritate the bees with a draft, inducing them to glue everything shut with propolis = stuck Flow frame with no flow
Third, the space of the Flow frame may make the hive too big for the bees to keep warm enough. So personally I would take it off after the last harvest - July or August, depending on your local nectar flow. - Do I add another regular super before winter? I would ask your local beekeepers what they do. This really is key in getting your bees through the winter. The fact that you have a Flow hive makes no difference to the best local methods of overwintering. If you have taken the Flow super off in July/August, and the brood box(es) are overflowing with honey (the bees are still gathering tons), you will want to have a super on top (Flow or not), otherwise you risk making the hive honey bound, with no space for the queen to lay. However, if all local beekeepers are down to one brood box by late Fall, make sure you do the same, and take that super off, even if it isn’t capped. You don’t want to freeze your bees. I am sorry that specifics are hard to give, but local climate has a huge effect on best practice, and it really would be best to ask beekeepers who live near you. Most people are more than happy to share their experience.
If they tell you something, and you don’t understand, please ask here again, and we will try to help.
All the best,
Dawn
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The flow super has spacers on the sides to accommodate the flow frames. Will the spacer gaps become an issue in winter if the flow frames are replaced with regular frames?
As I don’t have my Flow super yet, I can’t really answer your specific question from experience. However, I can tell you that if you put empty (no honey) traditional frames on top of your brood box over winter, you are expanding the space which the bee cluster has to keep warm during the chilly months. From what my husband is packing to come to DC next week, I gather your winters can be pretty brutal on occasion. So I would not leave ANY empty super on top of the hive over winter. If it has food, and there isn’t enough honey in the brood box, then fine, leave them an extra 40-50lb of honey in a medium super. But empty supers increase the chance of losing the colony to cold weather.
I’m with Dawn
You take the whole super away
A local beekeeper advised me to take the (made from sugar-water) honey frames out after early spring, freeze them, then thaw and return them to the hive after the last summer harvest, so that empty frames wouldn’t go back into the hive. That’s what I figured on doing, assuming I get any harvest at all in the first year.
But now I’ll consider whether it will be better to swap out the entire flow super for a regular honey super, due to those spacers.
@zepto really not sure what spacers you are talking about??
I have my Flow Hive and Frames.
before my hive arrived I put the Flow frames in a normal Super no worries and the normal frames fit in the Flow super so I cannot see any problem?
Ah, now that makes more sense! 
If you are going to swap the entire Flow super (as you should, imho), I would get a medium super to replace it with, instead of another deep. I know it is a pain to have different frame sizes on the same hive, but it is more of a pain to lift 60-70lb of honey/sugar syrup in a deep, than 40-50lb in a medium. Plus the medium is less space for the bees to keep warm. Out of curiosity, are going to run your brood in double deeps, or just a single? If you are already in doubles, you probably won’t need any supers over winter, providing there are sufficient stores of honey in the brood boxes.
If you want to get matching supers/deeps to the Flow hive, you can buy them here:
Make sure you choose the 8-frame size, if that is what you have from Flow.
Hope that helps, and thanks for clarifying!
Dawn
Strange I don’t remember those? I’m not home so I can’t check mine perhaps someone else can tell you
My original inclination was to fill the flow super w/ regular frames, but if I do end up getting an entirely separate honey super to swap out for winter I’ll consider this. Mediums would probably be easier to store in the long run.
I figured I’d start with single and grow as needed. Obviously I don’t have to make the decision now…but it’s helpful to have all of this good advice and alternate options in my back pocket.
PS. I hope your husband doesn’t get trapped here next week! Our forecasts are sounding more and more ominous.
Could be a new addition to the manufacturing process, that they decided made the Flow frames fit better. The how-to-assemble videos show those spacers in the honey super, but I can’t remember if they mention them. I’ll have to rewatch to see if they explain.
ETA: after re-watching the walkthrough videos, it looks like those spacers are just there to keep the Flow frames from shifting. 8 Langstroth frames will still fit into the super - they’ll just have a slightly larger gap on the outside frames.
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Just want to make sure we are all on the same page here “Flow super w/ regular frames” means traditional deep frames, not medium frames? Weight could be huge on those - it is too much for me to lift on my own, when they are full. That is why I super with mediums, except for the Flow super. 
You can’t put medium frames into a deep box, as I am sure you are aware. Unless you are in love with pretty bridging comb patterns… 
You don’t have to decide right now, but… beekeeping is seasonal, as you well know, and supplies can get tight between April and June. That especially applies if you want matching wood boxes as Western Red Cedar is not commonly used for hives in the US. The bees won’t care if you put some pine boxes in from a local bee store, but in an urban setting, appearances can be important. 
My hubby isn’t coming until the end of the week, and he just told me that they may move the meeting into February because of that nasty weather coming your way. Hope you stay safe and warm!
Dawn
heehee…yeah, we’re on the same page. I"m not used to writing in beekeeper language yet. So I did intend to refer to the deep frames that will fit the flow super. If I stick with the deep for a super, I do have 2 big strong helpers who need to earn their share of honey, and was planning to buy a simple winch to make moving materials on and off the deck easier.
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Very well-planned and sensible!
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