Need help to make a home for some honey bees

[Dana]

The Veroa Mite has really hurt the beekeeping industry here in Michigan. The bees can usually handle them, until winter. Heavy losses occure then. Most commercial beekeepers  take their bees south for the winter.

As to getting the bees out of the log. There is a one way bee gate that the suppliers sell. Seal up the log and install it with the end leading into your hive. The queen most likely won't follow. So, you will need to purchase a queen from the supplier. Which is a good idea anyway as the queen offspring is where the temperment of the hive comes from.

[DaveInVT]

As far as old hives goes, it has always been recomended to me to burn the inside of the hive bodies and buy new frames and foundation. I make my own hives and frames. Plans are available from http://www.beesource.com They also have a forums section that I would ask about how to transfer the bees to a new hive. I am sure that you will get plenty of advice as you do here. 

[Tom]

I used a 50 gal drum full of water, built a fire beneath it, and boiled my hives.

[HOOF-ER]

The idea of setting a brood box on the log is a good one. Bees will go up and use the new space. If you use a trap make sure that they are using the new brood first. The queen may move up and start using. You would just have to keep checking for eggs and brood. All this could be done at you leisure . If there is brood in the new box just put an queen excluder under the new box. If there continues to be eggs in the new box the queen has to be in it. When the new brood is full you could get rid of the log.  Separate it away from the hive and they will clean it out.

[Sawyerfortyish]

The log is on it's side and the bees arn't using the hollow ends that the hay bale is against they are landing about 18" from one end crawling under the log and disappearing so there must be an entry hole there. I have contacted a beekeeper that has many hives and done it for several years and he said he would gladly help me get the queen out of the log but I have to get a hive box. He told me what to get so I ordered it all new so I don't have to deal with any diseases right now.