Any ideas about how to fix a leaky redwood tank?

[DIYguy]

 One problem is the high leak rate when you are restarting an old dried out tank.

I had some luck with hanging a rainbird sprinkler inside to wet down the whole thing instead of just filling it from the bottom. I had some water in the creek after a big storm and got the tank full  that way,
but,
there are some leaks at the bottom that didn't get better with time.
(where the ones on the sides tended to seal themselves off.
It leaks out 10K gallons in a few days.

I get the impression that maybe at the lowest point in the tank, the rain has been washing through there and maybe washed the tannins out of the wood there?

I enjoyed your tubing-down-the-well sensor for water depth, and hoped you might have some ideas for the tank.

The tank bands are working, but the nuts are rusted in place, and I am not eager to try to get them moving.
I did put a couple of 2inch nylon straps around the tank and winch them down, as a way to reduce the initial leaks.
But when I got it full, the bands were all tight and apparently OK.
I'd really rather not take the bands off if there is any way to avoid it.

I seem to have one leak through the floor, and one at the joint between floor and staves at that low point.
I was hoping to put something in there that would be hygroscopic and swell up, but I couldn't find anywhere I could say was 'the leak'. Maybe I need to really dry it out, like tarp the thing and put a dehumidifier in there...

Thanks,
John

[Cary Austin]

Sorry I don't know much about wooden tanks.   But I don't think the floor is affected by the bands very much.  I think you would need a good fit on the floor boards to stop the leak.

[dovecreek]

I have an old redwood wine tank I used to make wine in. It's round like a barrel with a couple of bands that can be tightened when needed. After it's tightened I use a thick cotton twine or string in between the staves. You can pull it tight starting at the top and push it between the joints as a stop gap measure. After this is done, when the tank is filled with wine or water the cotton swells and makes a seal. I hope this helps.