when we 1st got our barrel, our vino compare (read: goombah-ray) had us do
the following:

1) get a cheap kiddie pool or large size shallow vessel. stand barrel on end
in same
2) pour & soak top of barrel with hot (we boiled) water once a day until the
top held the water.
3) turn over barrel & repeat process
feel free to drain pool as necesssary
4) set barrel horizontal in pool; pour 2-3 gal boiling h2o into barrel &
seal w/ solid bung. roll around if practical. let steam swell staves.
drain.
5) when filling, boil 2-3 gals wine & pour into barrel to finalize the deal;
don't drain, then fill

this worked for us with 50 gal. barrel. maybe you need to use hotter
water... hope this helps...

wrote in message
oups.com...
I got my first barrel this year, a French Oak 50 litre. I pre-soaked
it to swell the staves and it leaked a lot. I had to run a garden hose
into it all day and over night. I soaked it saturday and sunday and by
monday morning, the leaking was nearly stopped but still leaks about a
half a liter per night. This seems excessive to me. Over a three
month aging, I don't have enough wine to keep it topped up.

Will wine seal the barrel better than water? Is this barrel defective?
Should I just be a little more patient?

Your help is appreciated.

Dan