How to Use Pine Pitch for Caulking

Pine pitch, also known as pine tar, is a sticky substance derived from trees that is used to waterproof wood. When caulking a boat, the process fills the gaps in wooden boat planks and makes the fibers used to fill the seams watertight. Caulking a boat with pine tar is an old process requiring some traditional tools and methods.

Things You'll Need

  • Cotton caulk material
  • Caulking iron
  • Caulking mallet
  • Knife
  • Oakum
  • Pine or Stockholm tar
  • Hot plate
  • Old metal pot
  • Pitch ladle
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Instructions

    • 1

      Clear the seam you are caulking of debris. Leave the cotton caulking material on the roll until use -- it collects dirt and debris easily if dragged along the deck or a dirty surface.

    • 2

      Push the end of the cotton caulking rope in at the beginning of the seam. Use the caulking iron to wedge the cotton into the crevice, tapping it with the mallet. Continue to the end of the seam. Cut the cotton caulking and tap the end into the seam.

    • 3

      Repeat the process of filling the seam, this time with oakum, beginning at one end of the seam. Oakum is hemp or jute fiber soaked in pine pitch. Sticky and firm, it fills the void on top of the cotton fiber and seals it in place. Tap oakum on top of the cotton with the mallet and caulking iron the entire length of the seam. Cut the end and tuck the oakum into the seam with the iron.

    • 4

      Add the purchased pine pitch to the old pot on the heating plate. The pine pitch generally comes in chips or chunks. Heat it until it is liquefied and flows easily. Load the pitch into the ladle, which is a cone-shaped scoop that holds the pitch and has a narrow tip to distribute an even line of pitch onto the seam.

    • 5

      Pour pitch over the seam and allow it to soak into the oakum. Run a good line of pitch along the entire seam you caulked. The pitch will seal the oakum to the wood. The cotton and wood expand in the water and close the seam, while the oakum and pitch keep it watertight.