Repairing cracked barrel?

[ssteph2747]

I bought this 3L barrel in June, sealed it according to directions (took almost 48 hours with water), then filled with whiskey (I know, I know, it's a wine forum). Almost a month later, we realized there was whiskey leaking out of the bottom - a large crack had formed. I contacted the company, they've shipped out a replacement at no charge (awesome). But we're curious if there's a way to repair this crack in the barrel so we can continue to use it for our beer.

I'm thinking we let it dry out, try to realign the crack, sand it down, and then beeswax the top. Anyone ever dealt with this?

 

[Boatboy24]

Your approach sounds good. But I wouldn't get my hopes up - that looks like a pretty significant break and I'm not sure you'll get it completely sealed up w/ beeswax.

 

[ssteph2747]

Just found this from the barrelbuilders.com barrel maintenance and repair guide:

The application of epoxy is an effective means to stop most leaks. The
advantage to epoxy over paint is that it can be used on damp (not wet) wood.
Empty the barrel to relieve the pressure on the leak. Clean the area around the
leak and apply the sealer. We use and sell O'sullivans Wet Surface Liner. lt is
food grade, adheres to damp surfaces, and drys to a brown, "wood-like" color.
Curing time is heat dependent. ln a cool, damp cellar, curing may take several
days.

 

[ibglowin]

If you could get enough bees wax or canning wax in there (via melt and drip it in if need be) it would seal it.

 

[Treeman]

Once it dries out, you might be able to move the staves so the cracked ones are located on top adjacent to bung.