Home › Forum › Ask A Member › Best Way To Clean Years Of Sludge From Fuel Tank?
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Doug G.
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November 17, 2023 at 4:58 am #282592
Glad to see that you were able to get your tank clean. Be careful using acid on aluminum as it’s very corrosive. I do use it in a controlled manner for cleaning out the oxidation in cylinder head water jackets, and a few other applications.
The Por-15 is usually used on steel tanks with holes in them. Your two-piece cast aluminum tank might be the most rugged outboard tank ever made. If it develops a leak, the leak would likely be at the seam. The fix for a leaky seam is to disassemble the tank halves and reseal it.
Save the Por for a steel tank. Just an opinion. Good luck with the TD-20!
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November 17, 2023 at 1:29 pm #282609Glad to see that you were able to get your tank clean. Be careful using acid on aluminum as it’s very corrosive. I do use it in a controlled manner for cleaning out the oxidation in cylinder head water jackets, and a few other applications.
The Por-15 is usually used on steel tanks with holes in them. Your two-piece cast aluminum tank might be the most rugged outboard tank ever made. If it develops a leak, the leak would likely be at the seam. The fix for a leaky seam is to disassemble the tank halves and reseal it.
Save the Por for a steel tank. Just an opinion. Good luck with the TD-20!
Thanks for the advice. Makes sense. So u actually developed a tiny leak at the seam when I 1st shook the tank before I opened the vent. I tried separating the halves after removing all the screws, but it wouldn’t budge. Didn’t want to make things worse, so I put it back together. Eventually I will want to separate the 2 halves and reseal. But I can’t figure out how without further damaging the tank. Maybe a heat gun along the seam?
Best Regards
John Gragg
RIverside, CAJust starting in the hobby, please be patient.
48 Sea King 5hp GG9014A
49 Sea King 5hp GG9014A
48 Johnson TD20
49 Johnson TD20
54 Johnson QD15
55 Johnson CD12
57 Johnson RJE-19M
57 Johnson RDE-19November 17, 2023 at 5:10 pm #282623Heat along the seam and glancing blows from a rubber mallet should separate the halves.
Filling up the tank with piping hot water may help.
November 17, 2023 at 8:48 pm #282641Heat along the seam and glancing blows from a rubber mallet should separate the halves.
Filling up the tank with piping hot water may help.
The hot water is a great idea! Thx. I was also thinking about some sort of an air or water bladder put inside to gently lift the two apart. Need to research a bit, we’ll see…
Thx
Best Regards
John Gragg
RIverside, CAJust starting in the hobby, please be patient.
48 Sea King 5hp GG9014A
49 Sea King 5hp GG9014A
48 Johnson TD20
49 Johnson TD20
54 Johnson QD15
55 Johnson CD12
57 Johnson RJE-19M
57 Johnson RDE-19November 18, 2023 at 9:45 am #282644
Presently my procedure of choice for aluminum tanks
is to fill them as much as possible with 50/50 Zep
Purple Cleaner and Degreaser, and water.
It has some mild acid in it so it dissolves any corrosion
in an aluminum tank resulting from moisture over years
of them resting. I wait till its pretty much done foaming
and dump most of it out.
Keeping with the duck tape & bailing wire solutions my
Boat House is equipped for, I have “Engineered!!!!!”an
alternative to the shake shake shake.
Video link – https://youtu.be/-cQ5c3Z5GGg
Tubs.A "Boat House Repair" is one that done without having tools or the skills to do it properly.
November 18, 2023 at 11:38 am #282646Tubs, I like your “Flex brush”!
Prepare to be boarded!
November 18, 2023 at 12:53 pm #282650what ???? no colonoscopy pictures inside the tank ??
Joining AOMCI has priviledges 🙂
November 19, 2023 at 9:22 am #282657
My scope is old tech. Doesn’t save images for
transfer and the image doesn’t photograph well.
Best I can do.
TubsA "Boat House Repair" is one that done without having tools or the skills to do it properly.
November 19, 2023 at 9:24 am #282658looks good 🙂
Joining AOMCI has priviledges 🙂
November 20, 2023 at 11:55 am #282661Yhere is also a voltage use results.Positive to one ebd (tank frame) & negative to habging metal & all contaminates go to metal hanging in the tank water. Sorry I forget the details. Help.
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