fuel tanks

[dellerie]

my fuel tank is full of...... who knows what .... in the bottom. now and again, i have filter problems. what i've decided to do, is remove it and clean it out. i can re-paint it at the same time.

what would you people suggest i clean it out with?

[mike.perry]

Fill it with water first to expel any petrol vapour and don't go near it with anything that has the slightest chance of causing a spark

[dellerie]

Fill it with water first to expel any petrol vapour and don't go near it with anything that has the slightest chance of causing a spark

i know that much. what would you suggest i clean it out with though?

[bmcecosse]

The norm is water + pebbles ! Swill it all around and empty out - repeat as necessary. I believe someone reported strapping it to a cement mixer and letting that do the hard work........ Dry out quickly and well. Some then put POR15 inside and swill that around to seal the inner surface. Make sure the outlet doesn't get smashed - or blocked.

[David53]

As Roy says you will need some aggregate like small stones or pebbles in there to loosen any deposits, rust etc. and seal with a sealer like POR. If the tank is not too old or has been sitting semi empty for many years you'll probably be OK. On my car the lead pipe was unfortunately rusted through and letting air in so I replaced the whole tank with a new unit. It was surprisingly inespensive and I have the security of knowing there are no nasties lurking inside!

[alex_holden]

Bits of metal (nuts/washers) are preferable to stones because they don't turn into abrasive sand in the 'rumbling' process.

I wouldn't put any kind of paint/sealer in there because it will block the strainer on the fuel pipe.

[mike.perry]

Fill it with water first to expel any petrol vapour and don't go near it with anything that has the slightest chance of causing a spark

I may be preaching to the converted but the safety points must be covered. Garages have been known to burn down

[pyebibby]

surely metal nuts and bolts in a metal tank WILL cause sparks if rattled around attached to a cement mixer?!

[bmcecosse]

Well they would be in water....... But I wouldn't use nuts etc - too 'sharp' - may cause little dents in the tank. Pebbles are nice and smooth......

[RobMoore]

I did mine with parafin and a bag of nuts and screws