Oak Wine Barrels make great rain barrels...
.....but they do take a little care. Here are some trouble-shooting tips for you:
LEAKING BARREL?
All of our barrels are made to hold liquids and have done so for many years. If barrels are allowed to dry out the wood will shrink and the hoops may loosen. You will have to rehydrate the barrel.
Just as wood ship sailors swabbed the deck, a dry barrel that has been in storage needs to be whetted. (Those pirates weren't clean by any stretch, they just didn't want to spring a leak and end up swimming with the sharks.)
With your barrel securely installed in its destination location, spray down your barrel inside and out and fill it until it begins to leak. Wait a day and repeat until your barrel is water tight. Or do it the easy way and let nature take care of hydrating your barrel in the spring rains and with morning dew.
It is important to keep the barrel wet. During the summer dry season, leave a small amount of water in the barrel to be wicked up. During long periods of drought do spray it down occasionally.
If your barrel is leaking, we do not recommend tapping or hammering directly on the staves to adjust them. The pressure of the water as the barrel fills forces the staves into the rings. The moisture causes the expansion of the staves so they swell to make the barrel watertight.
If the barrel won't fill at all then the staves are probably loose. You may need to adjust the hoops. To tighten up the hoops tap them in toward the center of the barrel, this will squeeze the staves together and stop any leaks. Make sure you tap all hoops in. This means you will have to turn the barrel over and tap the lower hoops in as well.
MOSQUITOES AND CRITTERS
Add a screen to the down-spout-opening to block bugs, frogs, squirrels from claiming your barrel as their swimming pool. Any window screening attached with tacks or an upholstery stapler will work just fine. Until you have time to find remnants in the workshop or get to the hardware store to purchase some screening and tack it on, do add a few drops of liquid dish soap to the water to deter mosquitoes. The altered surface viscosity reduces mosquito activity.
STAGNANT WATER?
If your barrel is full and remains unused for a period, do check if the water is becoming stagnant. Should you go on vacation and the water sits unused for a period, a few blasts from a hose set on "jet" will add oxygen. If the water begins to smell bad, drop in 2 oz of barley straw pellets for nature to freshen the water (hydrogen peroxide generates bubbles naturally). Wrap the pellets in a cotton gauze tied with a 36" length of cotton string to suspend in barrel for easy retrieval after a month. To all our barrel buyers, we have one ready for you at the Cantigny Green Fair. Do stop at our booth to visit and take yours home. Another alternative for natural freshness is fully-dissolving Aquascape Brand Bubble Tabs. One tab popped in a full barrel oxygenates it and refreshes it for approx. 2 weeks.
