# New barrel



## bpowell88 (Jan 9, 2013)

Hey guys after night one of soaking my barrel this is what it looks like, is this normal? It's still dripping a bit. Just a little concerned at the amount of water on the outside of the barrel


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## ibglowin (Jan 9, 2013)

Thats on the not so good end of things.

Did you follow the sealing instructions? Its very important that you follow them to a "T"

Do NOT add any wine until you have the barrel completely dry (no drips, staves are dry) for 24hrs minimum.

Drain it and then start over with the sealing process.


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## bpowell88 (Jan 9, 2013)

Yeah I followed the instructions as they are printed... One question however, when it says to put water on the head, does it mean to just pour the boiling water on the head of it? When I did this the water just seeped through the cracks. Also then it leads you to "Roll the barrel slowly on its belly so the boiling water hits all of the staves." How long should I roll it? 

Thanks Mike


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## bpowell88 (Jan 9, 2013)

The ends dont seem to be leaking at all, it mainly as the picture shows, on the bottom of the barrel


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## ibglowin (Jan 9, 2013)

You start with the outer heads first (one at a time obviously) then move to the inner heads (30min each head). After about 10-15 mins or so the water (inside staves) has cooled enough to fill the barrel full with the hottest tap water you have. Then let it sit for ~24 hours. Drain repeat until you have a successful seal.

You may need to use some wax if you have a stubborn spot or two. Just be prepared if it continues.

Did you order this from Vadai direct or through MoreWine?


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## bpowell88 (Jan 9, 2013)

Ok, I did the outer heads, I am doing those again right now and then will move onto the inner heads. 

I ordered it through MoreWine. The picture I posted was after about 15 hours. I will wait the full 24 again next time and check it.


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## Rocky (Jan 9, 2013)

bpowell, I had a similar problem with two barrels that I bought from Vadai. You might want to read through this post to see what I did to solve the problem. http://www.winemakingtalk.com/forum/f74/barrel-repair-worked-me-33517/


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## bpowell88 (Jan 9, 2013)

Thanks Rocky, I just read through the post. Hopefully the normal sealing works but if not, ill give that a shot! Its been soaking less than 24 hours now so Ill give it a few more days


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## robie (Jan 9, 2013)

Just stay with it. It sometimes takes several tries and some time. I had one barrel that never leaked a drop but another one that leaked for a week. The idea is to keep moisture on the staves until they swell and seal.

Like IBGLOWIN wrote, don't put wine in it until it doesn't leak a single drop.

I also like to fill it completely with water, then force the bung into place. This adds some slight internal pressure to help spot any leaks.


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## bpowell88 (Jan 9, 2013)

Great, It seems to be doing much better this second round. Ive got about 3/10th of the way full of boiling water and have the bung in place.. No leaks yet... Im occasionally turning it and will fill it up with hot water in about 2 hours and see what happens


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## robie (Jan 9, 2013)

Just be patient, it will seal.

For me the biggest problem was sealing the top stave, where the bung hole is. It doesn't stay wet enough most of the time, so some canning or bees wax works great for that spot.

I recently let my barrels dry out completely, then wanted to use them again. Using a hose, I would let water pour in at full force, but it would leak out the bottom as fast as it went in. The barrel would never get more than about 10% filled.

However, I would spray the inside with water, place the bung in it, and let it set for half a day. Then I would repeat. After a few days of this, the staves started swelling again and now, these totally leaky barrels are again sealed just fine and filled with wine. Patience is the key.


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## bpowell88 (Jan 9, 2013)

Patience ... A great word that Im learning in this winemaking venture! Patience it is then


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## Boatboy24 (Jan 9, 2013)

Another trick I've read is to fill the bathtub, and fill the barrel inside the bathtub, allowing you to seal/swell from both the inside and the outside. That's a lot of water though, and the patience thing is just as effective.


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## robie (Jan 9, 2013)

Boatboy24 said:


> Another trick I've read is to fill the bathtub, and fill the barrel inside the bathtub, allowing you to seal/swell from both the inside and the outside. That's a lot of water though, and the patience thing is just as effective.



Actually, I forgot that when resealing my barrels last time I did use a square plastic tub, which I bought at Wal-Mart. It was just slightly larger than a barrel, so it worked well and didn't waste as much water.


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## bpowell88 (Jan 13, 2013)

Ok guys, the barrel seems to be doing much better now. In the morning I put new hot water in the barrel and am still getting just a little seep from the end, it stops shortly after filling the barrel and then no leaks for the rest of the day. 

Should I try the bathtub technique?


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## bpowell88 (Jan 13, 2013)

I think I've narrowed it down to it only happens if It's full to the max, I put the stopper in and some comes out the top so I know there is a lot of pressure inside. Once the wood soaks up some to relieve some pressure it no longer leaks...


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## ibglowin (Jan 13, 2013)

Sounds like your getting close now!


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## bpowell88 (Jan 13, 2013)

What a process! I've submerged it into a bucket of water now, will let it sit about a day and see what happens!


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## Boatboy24 (Jan 13, 2013)

I imagine you'll be sealed up after this round. 

Quite a process. Is this what the big wineries go through? I can't imagine doing this for hundreds of new barrels.


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## ibglowin (Jan 13, 2013)

Nope, the smaller the barrel the tougher it is to get it to seal.


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## robie (Jan 14, 2013)

ibglowin said:


> Nope, the smaller the barrel the tougher it is to get it to seal.


 
I agree. And the wineries use steam to create even more heat. It is a process they have to go through every time they get new barrels, but with a little steam, water and patience, they get through it. And by using lots of barrels, I am sure they get petty good at it over time.


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## bpowell88 (Jan 14, 2013)

Update!

After the soaking, bath, and now waxing the one leaky spot I think (hope) its sealed up! After having water in for about a week do you guys think I should extend my first wine? I was thinking 4 weeks?


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## robie (Jan 14, 2013)

bpowell88 said:


> Update!
> 
> After the soaking, bath, and now waxing the one leaky spot I think (hope) its sealed up! After having water in for about a week do you guys think I should extend my first wine? I was thinking 4 weeks?



Great news!

You should taste the wine in the barrel periodically, anyway. With a new barrel, I would taste it once a week. Leave the wine in the barrel until it just starts tasting too oaky, then rack the wine out and into a carboy. The amount of oak flavor tends to back off some in a few months.


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## ibglowin (Jan 14, 2013)

Has it been out of the tub for 24 hours without a single drop leaking out? is every aspect of the outside of the barrel dry as a bone? If so then yes and 4 weeks is a good max time in the barrel depending on the wine type.


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## bpowell88 (Jan 14, 2013)

Im going to let it sit overnight and fill it up in the morning if all is well, for now... all is well.. Thanks for the help guys!


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## Boatboy24 (Jan 14, 2013)

After the trouble you've had, i wouldnt hesitate to put a little KMeta in 6 gallons of water and let it sit for 5-7 days, just to be sure. I didn't have any leaks when I broke mine in a few weeks back, but still filled it and let it go for 6 days before any wine went into it. I'd rather leak water than wine! It may be a little much, but I wanted to be sure.


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## bpowell88 (Jan 14, 2013)

That sounds like a pretty good idea... Did yours leak any wine once you filled it?


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## Boatboy24 (Jan 14, 2013)

bpowell88 said:


> That sounds like a pretty good idea... Did yours leak any wine once you filled it?



Only through the bung hole when I over-filled it. .


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## bpowell88 (Jan 14, 2013)

Hah I hope that's all mine leaks!


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## Boatboy24 (Jan 15, 2013)

I think my MO going forward will be to siphon a bottle or two from the carboy when I start. Then siphon the rest into the barrel and top off by hand with the bottle(s). That's the disadvantage of the barrel - very hard to see when it's getting full.


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## ibglowin (Jan 15, 2013)

I keep one of those small LED flashlights (actually a couple of them) in the winery. They are perfect for shining a light into the barrel opening so you can see just how close you are getting to the top of the barrel staves.


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## bpowell88 (Jan 16, 2013)

Well loaded the barrel up yesterday and no leaks! Thanks all for the help and pointers... I was a little surprised though, my 6 gallon carboy fully filled the barrel, was a perfect fit. I had read that most barrels were slightly under 6 gallons so I was expecting to have a little extra.


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## ibglowin (Jan 16, 2013)

I have four of them and they are all different. Some hold a little more, some a little less. If you have the 6G Italian ribbed glass carboys and they have been topped up full you should have anywhere from a full bottle left over to at least a split. Perfect for topping up with.


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## bpowell88 (Jan 16, 2013)

I dont know if I have the Italian carboys.. Either way... at least I had enough for a fill up the first time!


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