After extracting honey, there's always a thin film left on the comb that attracts your bees—and everyone else's. Even if you've got your campaign signs out, the smell draws a crowd.
Here’s what I do:
I put the wet supers back on top of the hives—right over an active brood box or super—then replace the inner and top covers. Leave them there for no more than 24 hours. The bees will clean them out completely, polish the comb, and straighten it up so it looks good and ready for next year.
Before storing them for the season, take a hive tool and scrape off any propolis or wax from the tops, bottoms, and sides of each frame—and the inside edges of the boxes too. It’s a lot easier to do this while it’s still soft. When you're done, everything's clean and ready for storage.
