Oozing barrel

So my cheapy 30 liter Portuguese oak barrel continues to have an oozing problem between a couple of staves. I thought the initial swelling with water had tightened it up, it even went through a cider fermentation without a lot of problem. Then in the last day or so (the cider was still in it), it seemed to start oozing again, the outside of the barrel below was quite wet all over, as was the surface underneath.

What would make it start doing that again when the wood has been in constant contact with liquid?

Is there anything I can safely apply to the outside of the barrel to seal it up?

Brian

Reply to
Brian Lundeen
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You can try to tighten the hoops by pounding them (carefully) down on the perimeter, or use a little wax (like parrafin). Do you have pressure in the barrel?

Joe

Reply to
Joe Sallustio

I had a cheap 50 litre portuguese barrel too, fermented some chardonnay in it... it leaked out the head, even after I'd swelled it with some warm water... I ended up using parrafin wax to seal it... seemed to have done the job.

Reply to
Charles H

I've heard of a garlic and chalk mixture working in a stave crack.

Reply to
Patrick McDonald

No pressure, it had an airlock on it. But I like the wax idea. Can I apply it while its still oozing or do I have to wait until I've emptied the barrel, and the stave area has dried out some?

Brian

Reply to
Brian Lundeen

I guess it depends on how bad the leak is; but I would not pack it in with wine present on thesides of the leak. That could end up being something ugly sooner or later. If it's a decent leak, can you roll the barrel to clean it up and dry it while still filled? It's only 50 liters so maybe I would empty it, clean it well, dry it with a heat gun and pack it the wax while the barrel was hot, that way you have a better chance of caulking the leak deeper. Just mark the area with a pencil so you know how far to go.

Joe

Reply to
Joe Sallustio

Yeah, I'm just in the midst of some barrel fermentations right now, so it's no big deal to wait until this one has to be racked out. The oozing isn't that bad. I'm noticing a second stave below the original one is also starting to ooze. This makes me wonder....

With these consecutive barrel fermentations (I'm on number two of a planned three), could the upper portion not in contact with liquid be drying out, and this is causing the staves to open up a bit? Perhaps once I fill it completely for aging, the staves will fully swell again and the problem will go away. Is that possible?

Brian

Reply to
Brian Lundeen

- Yeah, I'm just in the midst of some barrel fermentations right now, so it's

- no big deal to wait until this one has to be racked out. The oozing isn't

- that bad. I'm noticing a second stave below the original one is also

-starting to ooze. This makes me wonder....

-With these consecutive barrel fermentations (I'm on number two of a planned

-three), could the upper portion not in contact with liquid be drying out,

- and this is causing the staves to open up a bit? Perhaps once I fill it

-completely for aging, the staves will fully swell again and the problem will

-go away. Is that possible?

-

-Brian

I've barrel fermented a number of times and I have never known this to cause leakage. Even when I have used American oak barrels of questionable cooperage. The top staves usually stay somewhat wet (probably due to condensation). I once had a leaker that sounds similar to yours. The leak was slow enough that it eventually plugged up. I'm not entirely sure how, but it took about 2 months before it stopped leaking (I would blot the leak almost daily). I've now had the barrel for about 4 years with no further leakage. Tim

Reply to
Tim O'Connor

Not too likely. You might consider stirring a slurry of bentonite into that barrel. That'll tend to plug any slow leaks.

The last time I had a leaker I isolated the *exact* place it was leaking from, which turned out to be a small pore at the end of one of the staves. I jabbed it right there with an ice pick and hammered a tank spile (a piece of wooden toothpick would have worked too) into the hole I'd just created. That did the trick.

Another possibility is to clean and dry the area where the leak is and apply some Elmer's wood glue to the area. That won't work unless the leak is really slow.

Tom S

Reply to
Tom S

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