Longhorn barrel question

[cranky]

My wife just gave me an early Christmas present a couple of brand new 3 liter white oak barrels made by Longhorn Barrels
http://longhornbarrels.com/longhorn-oak-barrels" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OK0 ... ge_o02_s00" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
I did a search and nothing comes up for these on the site so I thought I'd ask while she can still send them back.
Anybody have experience with these? I know the size is small and that's not really an issue to me, they are toasted American White oak with medium char but seem to have been coated with something like a lacquer, at least that's what it smells like. The smell of lacquer is much stronger when you take the bung out making me concerned that it will contaminate the spirits used in it. She bought these on Amazon and they have good reviews but I'm still concerned because of that smell.

Anyway just thought I'd get some input from you guys. Should I send them back and keep aging on sticks or follow the cleaning protocols that came with it to rinse the outside for several minutes then fill with water and rinse and fill every day until it is sealed?