8/24/07 Guy: The fact is that when the boat is wetted the planks will swell back to normal size, regardless of how dry they may seem to be.ÊConsequently, you will have a problem if you fill the holes with caulking. The force of the full-sized planking plus your added caulkingÊmay split the ribs as it gets wet. Believe me I have seen such split ribs many times because the boat looked "too dried out" to a novice boater who decided it needed "re-caulking".. If you do what you said, the ribs will split and then you will need to "sister" the ribs. Instead. You should always keep a wood boat wet. either in the water or by filling it with water when in dry storage. That's right, filling it up like a bath tub. So. Here is a plan. Fill it up with fresh water,from the hoseÊfor the first half hour it will leak sheets of water through those 1/8 inch holes. But, shortly it will begin to swell up. Keep refilling the boat until the hull starts to fully tighten up (about 8 hours). You will be amazed that what I am telling you is true, And, I understand that it seems impossible that the planks will swell that much but they actually will..Those 1/8 inch gaps will disappear completely. After 24 hours if any leaks remain you can poke a little oakum or linseed oil soaked cotton into those leaks, there might be 4 to 6 mill leaks which drip occasionally.. When it it fully swelled you are ready to paint the bottom with a bottom paint which appreciates being wet (talk to your paint dealer and you will find that many modern marine bottom paints must be launched while still wet), Now, you are ready to sailÊfor the season without recaulking your boat. Anyone, who says it needs recaulking is not a wood boat expert. It only needs recaulking when the caulking has fallen out completely. After that when she is in "dry" storage keep the bilges full of sea water,or fresh water, but be sure and add rock salt to keep it salty so it won't allow rot to form in the fresh water. Several times, I have done this with Port Orford Cedar boats, over 40 or 50 years old, which had never been recaulked, Indeed, unless you are replacing planking most boats never need to be recaulked. TheseÊboats I have done this withÊhad set out of the water for years in climates where winter temperatures were below freezing, and the wood was as dry as it could get. Always, I could see daylight between most seams, and several places on each hull the space between planks might beÊas large as 1/4 inch. At first as I fill the hull, it looks like I couldÊtake a shower anywhere under the boat, as water drains through the seams in sheets.ÊIt honestly looks like the hose stream will not be able to keep up with the water draining out.ÊBut it begins to slow down 30 to 45 minutes later, and within 8 hours the flow is down to slow drips. Finally after 24 hours with the boat still sitting up on the hard but full of water the hull is tight as a drum. So. please save yourself a lot of grief and do not tear out any caulking and just fill it with water. Believe me you will be amazed at how much it swells. The fact is most people, including shipyard experts do not understand wooden boats. And also don't let it dry out again. If you live in freezing country and she has to sit out over the winter with no water in her. Then you can repeat this process each spring before launch. Sometimes it is necessary to replace a single plank, And what we do in that case is cut the plank a good 1/4 inch smaller all around and then caulk the new plank with the new elastomeric compounds which will squeeze out of the way as the planks swell up. But in my experience, what you have described is normal drying, and you only need to get her wet so she can swell up. After 8 years of monthly columns I no longer write for Sea Magazine after that June article. However, you can find my weekly column online at www.madmariner.com under Blogs. Regards, Alan Hugenot

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