Oakum
Oakum is a preparation of tarred fibre used to seal gaps. Its main traditional applications were in shipbuilding, for caulking or packing the joints of timbers in wooden vessels and the deck planking of iron and steel ships; in plumbing, for sealing joints in cast iron pipe; and in log cabins for chinking. In ship caulking, it was forced between the seams using a hammer and a caulking iron, then sealed into place with hot pitch.
Welding defect
A root crack is the crack formed by the short bead at the root(of edge preparation) beginning of the welding, low current at the beginning and due to improper filler material used for welding.Major reason for happening of these types of cracks is hydrogen embrittlement. These types of defects can be eliminated using high current at the starting and proper filler material. Toe crack occurs due to moisture content present in the welded area,it as a part of the surface crack so can be easily detected. Preheating and proper joint formation is must for eliminating these types of defects.