Nuc lazy, in need of help or OK?

[220]

Installed a 5 frame nuc 2 weeks ago in a 8 frame deep along with 3 empty frames with timber starter strips. Probably had 4 frames with a solid covering of bees, when I inspected today I have a few more bees (5 frames) but they haven't started drawing comb on the 3 empty frames. It also looks like they are starting to backfill some comb that did have brood with honey after it hatches. Spotted the queen and there is uncapped brood so she is laying. I was feeding 1:1 but it was attracting ants so have stopped as we should have a good flow currently.
For comparison 6 days ago I picked up another 2 hives one had pretty much 7 frames of bees, the other about 6 the 7 frame hive  had the most capped brood and has exploded. Plenty hanging on the outside of the hive today I thought it might have been due to heat but after inspecting it I think due to over crowding. They had fully drawn out the one empty frame with a starter strip from 6 days ago and filled almost 50% of the lid space with burr comb. Probably 50% of the new comb they had built was already filled with honey. I have given them another deep.
The other hive hadn't yet started building on the empty frame but looked like they were about to start with a few chains of bees hanging from the top of the frame. They had built a fair bit of bracing comb between the tops of the frames and a little burr comb in the lid.
I picked up some wax foundation through the week so replaced the starter strip frames with foundation frames in the nuc hive as I don't have any drawn frames to give them.
I'm new to bees so not sure if my nuc progress is normal or slow or anything else I could be doing to help them along.

[BeeMaster2]

Give them some time.
It may be that you have a new queen and she is just getting started. The queen should have been established in the NYC but a common trick is to add a new queen and sell the nuc.
Stopping the feeding was the right thing to do since you have a flow on. Sounds like they are back filling.
Jim

[rwlaw]

Might be there's a predominant population of older bees also. Once bees hit a certain age (21 days if I remember right), their wax making abilities start going downhill.   

[220]

Thanks for the replies, hadn't thought of the young bees building comb, it would  certainly explain the activity in hive 2. The nuc hive does appear to have more bees that when I installed it so I guess just a matter of giving them time. There was brood emerging, watched one chewing its way out as we inspected and there was both larva and capped brood so queen is laying.
I guess it is just a matter of giving them time and letting them slowly build numbers up in the hive and they will build when they need more room.
Didn't see any evidence of ants on frames but there were still a few around even though I greased the stand legs and had stopped feeding. I'm guessing if they have been spending time defending the hive from ants it would slow them down with other activities like comb building and they would be reluctant to build more comb if flat out defending what they already have.

Think starting with 3 hives was a good move, after only a week I can already see differences in them. Looks like I will have one really strong hive so should at least have the ability to rob resources from it in a month or so if need to help out the other hives.

[Acebird]

I would guess if there is no queen cells they aren't backfilling but odd that they aren't drawing comb.  Apparently you are not using foundation but I would move the honey away and put in an empty frame to see what they do.  If you have another hive you can spike it with brood.