My 70 drop in gas tank sat for years with old gas in it and the inside of the tank now has a brown rusty color to it. Is there a chemical that can be used to clean inside a gas tank?
from what I've heard there is a chemical cleaner you can use to clean it out. you pour it in the and put some chains or gravel or marbels (you get the idea) inside of it. then you shake it around and clean it out. when it dries you treat it with either por15 or redcoat. then you could patch holes if, if there are any. Idk what size your gas tank is, but radiator shops can boil them instead. I foget what it costs, but I know it's in another one my threads. I have a 71 and got a new one from rock auto instead of cleaning, but idk about 70. hope this helped.
I did the gravel shake, then the etching and sealer from Hirsch http://www.hirschauto.com/products.asp?dept=4
Muriatic acid is what i use, But beware if there is a thin place in the tank it will find it. I usually just pour in a gallon then finish filling with water, let it set and 24 hrs or less later you have a perfectly clean tank. But also beware that muriatic acid is what they use in the meth making, so they may call the law when you buy a gallon.
I just did a 70 tank. It sat with old gas for 25 years and was quite rusty. I first took it to a radiator shop and had them boil it out. They also pressure tested it and brazed closed the half dozen pin hole leaks they found. They also coated the outside of the tank with a heavy epoxy sealer. Cost $100 -- Then I bought the Eastwood kit to coat the inside of the tank. I bought it on sale at $35. Their kit uses a metal wash that removes all old varnish (which I saved for other projects as I already had it boiled out), an acid etch to prep the metal for sealing, and 2 bottles of the sealer. The only other thing you will need to buy is acetone. I followed their directions and it all came out quite nice. I finished off the tank with a can of Plasti-coat Bumper Chrome which left a very nice silver as the original tank had when new. Total cost was around $150 and I now have a tank that will last a long time. The only negative I had in this process is the fact that due to tank design, there is absolutely no way to pour out any of the excess chemicals and sealer from the tank. It is worse than trying to get water out of a tire ..........
I agree. The next time I mess with a gas tank I will install a drain plug in it. They should all have one. Would have taken the rad shop about 10 minutes to do that while they had it.
I took my tank to work and used a hot water and soap pressure washer a peice of chain. The chain is much easier top fish out in one piece than marble etc. after a lot of washing, I flushed it with clear water 2 or 3 tiomes then did the POR15 tank repair. ($85as i remember) A lot of work but it has held so far. I had Many pin holes in it
Like Bob, I used high pressure soap and water, followed with a chain. The small pinholes were brazed at a radiator shop, then leveled. I then treated the tank with POR-15 etch, followed by POR-15 gas tank liner. It did an AWESOME job. At the surface, all residual undercoating was stripped, everything was etched, a small amount of bondo was applied to smooth out small dents, all was sanded smooth, and was painted with POR-15 "Metal Mask". New gaskets, new sending unit, new vent valve assembly (c/o SSCEnterprises.net), sandblasted and repainted straps, sandblasted and POR-15'd filler neck, and the whole setup looks like new. Well worth the effort. Total $$ invested - about $150. ....and a BIG thanks to BluGene for his help!!!! Chris
Thanks for all of the suggestions. The reason that I want to clean the inside of the tank is that I want to put it up for sale and I want it to look it's very best. I worry too much about what things look like when I try to sell them.
When i did the por 15 to my tank it took a few hours over a couple of days. I think the amount of product cost and labor isn't worth it. I don't think you get your money back out of it. I was wondering how de rusting the tank would work using an electical method. where you would put the tank into a plastic bin of water. attach rods and a battery. reversing the rust. I don't really know, just an idea.
I totaly agree about the time verses money spent. The method would require such a large tank. May as well go in business lol!
I disagree - the process, while messy, is pretty straightforward and gives really good results. I recommend it, if you have the time and energy. It may seem expensive, but with plenty of old rusted tanks around, it's a great alternative.... .....Which is why, really, if you ARE going to do the POR-15 process, do it for yourself. It's not about making a return on it. Chris
I too. agree. Do it for yourself. I found after going through with all the hassel. I wouldn't do it agian. I would find another solution. Being that you can't buy the early year tanks makes sense to try to refurbish the tank. It was also hard to find the other parts( sending unit and top vent part.) I would sell the tank as is. and being somewhat hard to find you would probably get your money from it.
