Advice on tank sealant please.

T

The Three Dellortos

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Yeap .. You've guessed it !!

  I have a leaking tank... It pisses fuel from a number of rust holes that have eroded from the inside out... 

            Any suggestions gratefruitly peeled

                      CHEERS
 
Hi Tim,

best is to get the tank paint-stripped to find all holes, get someone to solder or weld it properly, have it then tin coated before you go any further. Might be easier to find a used tank in good shape though...

After that, KREM WEISS sealant can be good (with de-rusting first, washing, priming and then coating the inner of the tank).

Takes some time and money, but might be worth a try. there are companies in Germany that have specialized on these repairs, but they do take money that makes it almost senseless compared to a good used tank (something like 300 - 350? including the welding...). But Tank is almost new after that...

Make your choice  ;)
 
Hi Lothar .

  The tank is a round badge Jota tank and is FULLY STRIPPED not a spot of paint.. It has been ultrasocially cleaned... It is as clean as a very clean thing  :D :D

  The thing is , there are some tiny pin prick leaks around the the rear seams.... They are difficult to see with a magnifing glass ....  But stick 0.5 litre of thinner in , it pisses out !!

                            Thanks for Your thoughts
 
Tim have you seen the pet seal stuff i have never tried it so not sure about the results i recently had a fiberglass tank done by putting a resin in and coating the inside seems to have worked only trouble with a steel tank is if it keeps corroding it will ruin the paint on top.
                                                Kev
 
I used PetSeal a number of years ago Tim, on an A65 tank, but i was never over impressed with it, (having said that, it never leaked, but it was the second time it had been done, so i had no confidence from the start)
I am sure there was discussion on this over the last year or so on one of the sites, perhaps worth a search of archive material?.
Dave.
 
I used the Caswell tank sealant on my 3CL tank. It was easy and coats very well. Google Caswell Plating and be careful of the website as the plating kits and stuff will sorely tempt you. I think they even have a UK outlet.
 
POR15 from Frost Automotive.  Worked a treat for years in my 180.
 
henry said:
if it's got pinholes in it why not soft solder or braze them shut - sealing is just a bodge, even if it's a reasonably good one!
Click to expand...

Henry has a very good point. The tank is stripped and if you are going to do a procedure that would be detrimental to paint then now is the time, IMO. Once that is done you will still need to coat the inside of the tank to prevent further corrosion.

If you do or don't then you have a couple of reasonable options. wdietz186  has suggested the best tank sealer that I know but I think this is best for plastic or resin tanks. It is still great for steel but I think there is a good, user friendly option, Redkote.

Redkote is an acetone based sealer. You can thin it down and apply it in thinner coats. Being thinner you can improve the chances of it getting into tiny pinholes and sealing along the seams. It can also be disslolved in the future by MEKP (from memory). The problem with Kreem or POR 15 is that if you don't get it right first time it is hard to rectify and the degreasers and acids needed to etch the steel can scar any paintowrk if contacted. POR 15 can be dissolved and it needs some form of paint stripper with "methyl ethyl chloride?" from memory again. Google it to be sure. If you read the Caswell's information page it will tell you what you need to remove Kreem or POR 15.

If money isn't an object, get it mechanically sealed and chemically coated. Henry and wdietz186's suggestions in combination. From what I can tell, Brad's suggestion is an epoxy product that appears similar, if not the same, as Caswells. Apologies to him due to my lack of familiarity with the brand if that is the case.

You have number of options and you will receive a number of suggestions. You now have mine.

Cheers

Rod, who has a pinhole in his Alpino tank that needs to be fixed when I get my hands on it. Its painted so I'll probably redkote it to ensure it penetrates into the pinhole without too much risk to the existing paint. I do have some Caswells here so I may change my mind once I see the tank.

 
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