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Fuel Tank Sealer or Liner

garvinogarvinoMember
I spent a couple of hours last night reading through all the old post that I could find on fuel tank sealers and liners. I think I may have information overload on which product to use.

I just picked up my fuel tank yesterday from having it boiled out due to the old owner letting it sit with fuel in it for over 20 years. The tank looks really good inside now but has some minor rust in it. It mainly looks like flash rust but not 100% sure, so I have been contemplating using Muriatic Acid and then a tank sealer or liner.

I was wondering which brand that you have you had the best experience with. The most prominent ones seem to be Eastwood’s, Summit Racing’s, POR 15, and Red-Kote. Here is what the individual companies say about their products:

Eastwood’s states their “sealer kit” coats the tank with “elastomer” and “resists fuel additives and is compatible with both gas and diesel fuels”.

Summit states their “liner" is a “flexible membrane that won’t crack or flake” and that it is “resistant to gas, methanol, alcohol, and diesel fuel”. It also states that it is bright red “liner” which kind of makes me think it is similar to Red-Kote.

POR15 states that their “sealer” is “impervious to all fuels, including the new Stage II fuels which have a high alcohol content” and that it has “superior strength and fuel resistance”.

Red-Kote states that their “liner” is a “solvent-based polymer coating which is resistant to gasoline, diesel fuel, alcohol and other fuel additive” and that it “seals rust and prevents future rusting”.

Thanks for any input you may have.

Garvino

P.S. I did read a few Pantera posts that talked about sealer/liner coming loose and causing problems. Anyone else ever experience this?
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garth66garth66"When speed is the only thing that counts"
quote:
The tank looks really good inside now but has some minor rust in it. It mainly looks like flash rust but not 100% sure, so I have been contemplating using Muriatic Acid and then a tank sealer or liner.

My tank is in similar shape and I considered sealing it as well, but after doing the research and talking with a local shop that seals tanks I decided not to seal it. The shop (and one or two of the mfgr websites) stated that sealing is only a last resort to repair rusty tanks with scale and pinholes. It's not recommended for tanks in great shape. Despite what the manufactures say about their product being impervious to modern fuel and it's addititives, there are countless stories of the stuff flaking off and clogging fuel filters, lines and pickups. Mabey the result of the prep and application rather than the product. But if your tank has survived fine for the past 30 years, there's no reason to think it won't survive another 30 years if you continue the same practice of keeping it full of fresh gas.
garvinogarvinoMember
The flaking off, be it sealer or liner, is what that little voice in my head keeps warning me about.

Anyone know of any problems with using the Muriatic Acid to get rid of the rust? I know you are suppose to neutralize it after you use it.

Below I am posting some before and after boiling photos. The "before" boiled shots are after I used hot water and pressure washed and degreased the tank multiple times.

Thanks again everyone.

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Last edited by garvino
panterrorpanterrorMy 74 GTS
I wouldn't do anything to that tank except put a good fuel filter downstream. If you are concerned about the light surface rust and use dilute hydrochloric (muratic) acid make sure you do not seal the tank and do it outside (it offgases chlorine).

As you mentioned, you will need to neutralize with a basic solution afterward. If so you may want to give some thought to using further diluted (with water) acid filling the tank or the normal balm for muratic acid and just reposition the tank several times for coverage. Keep it away from alumininum and zinc parts (ie the vent cap to your tank) as it will dissolve them in short order. Fun to watch aluminum beer cans dissappear. Even funner to make th ebeer disappear before hand Big Grin. Undiluted, it will attack your concrete as well. It can be easily disposed of by superdiluting in water.

You will find that it's difficult to keep your tank from oxidizing if it sets long without fuel in it after you use muratic acid.

Kelly
garth66garth66"When speed is the only thing that counts"
One of the shops I talked to told me NOT to use muratic acid to clean my tank UNLESS I was going to seal it. Otherwise, it would rust much quicker.

You might actually consider sealing your tank. My tank looked brand new inside after only draining and spraying it out with the pressure washer.
bosswrenchbosswrenchMember
The one time I acid-etched an old gas tank, I used much more controllable phosphoric acid. "Neutralizing" can be done by copious rinsing followed by some sodium bicarbonate, as used on leaky battery tops. As for sealers and liners, if your local gasoline suppliers still include MTBE (yes, in spite of laws, massive ground-water contamination and cancers, they are permitted by the Gov't to use it in a few places!) and methanol/ethanol, these will lift most sealers over time and even penetrate polyethylene jugs, regardless of what the brochures say.
markcharltonmarkcharltonOld enough to know better and still young enough not to care. My '71 Pantera
quote:
Originally posted by Bosswrench:
The one time I acid-etched an old gas tank, I used much more controllable phosphoric acid. "Neutralizing" can be done by copious rinsing followed by some sodium bicarbonate, as used on leaky battery tops. As for sealers and liners, if your local gasoline suppliers still include MTBE (yes, in spite of laws, massive ground-water contamination and cancers, they are permitted by the Gov't to use it in a few places!) and methanol/ethanol, these will lift most sealers over time and even penetrate polyethylene jugs, regardless of what the brochures say.


So what do you recommend as the best sealer?

Mark (who will be facing this problem one day, for sure)
joulesjoules"Racing is Life, anything before or after is just waiting" - Steve McQueen
quote:
Originally posted by DeMopuar:
I wish someone would make stainless tanks for our cars -- would be so much easier. I have a couple of custom stainless tanks -- but from a cost standpoint, really not the most cost effective solution; no pun intended.

Mark


They do, Hall and Precision Pro-formance sell them ~$1100.


A couple of Pantera's sport custom fuel cells too. In fact for you with the extra size of the Ford GT motor that may be the way to go, two smaller fuel cells either side and better weight distribution.

Julian
moosomoosoMember
A couple of years after I got my car it developed a "bucking" condition during hard acceleration. After replacing the fuel pump, fuel lines, adding an in-line fuel filter, and replacing the carb, I finally discovered that fuel tank sealant had come loose in the tank and was actually interfering with the fuel pick-up.

Sort of like the way the giant octopus went after the sub in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea!

I'm sure your tank is clean enough that the sealant will adhere properly and not give you any problems, but after the hell I went through figuring it out...I will personally avoid tank sealants of any kind.

Just my 2 cents worth. Mooso.
bosswrenchbosswrenchMember
Mark, all this happened quite a while ago so I'm not positive, but aluminum tanks tend to crack in accidents so the Gov't made them illegal to use in passenger cars after a certain date.... for the early Panteras, the gov't made Ford wrap them in 2 plies of fiberglas to forestall the supposed cracking! Needless to say, few if any cracked.

As for gas tank sealants, it depends on what kind of problem you have as to the "best" fix. For pinholes, BONDO works better than anything else! For larger holes or an opening seam, I braze them up. I know- its dangerous, big explosions, etc.... I've brazed several gas tanks without being killed, or even woken up my picky neighbors. Just be very careful, fill the tank with water nearly to the area to be brazed, and go slow with lots of flux. Or, talk to a local radiator shop; those guys will often fix a gas tank if its brought to them.
markmmarkmBuy now, pay later!
[QUOTE]Originally posted by Bosswrench:
Mark, all this happened quite a while ago so I'm not positive, but aluminum tanks tend to crack in accidents so the Gov't made them illegal to use in passenger cars after a certain date.... for the early Panteras, the gov't made Ford wrap them in 2 plies of fiberglas to forestall the supposed cracking! Needless to say, few if any cracked.


Yep this tank I have has the fiberglass wrap. Thanks
garvinogarvinoMember
I am installing the fuel tank back in my car soon and have been putting the sending unit, etc., back in the tank.

The breather cap (picture below) had some sort of stuff in it that reminded me of scotch-brite. I am guessing that this is to reduce the chance of something getting in the tank through the breather hose and also to reduce the chance of fuel sloshing out.

When I removed the scotch-brite like substance to clean the breather cap the stuff disintegrated in my hands. Now that the breather cap has been sand blasted and is ready to be reinstalled I have no idea what to put back in the breather cap. Obviously it has to be fuel resistive. Any ideas or recommendations?

Thanks for any advice.

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