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JFLEISC(at)aol.com
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 Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2008 12:17 pm Post subject: Alcohol proof fuel tank sealer? |
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My RV-4 fuel tanks are 18 years old and starting to leak (I'm the second owner and one was seeping when I first got it 12 years ago). Its time to take them off and reseal them. Has anyone had any luck with any sealer that will stand up to the alcohol in auto gas? What does that RV-3 team that runs on methanol use? Thanks.
Jim
Delicious ideas to please the pickiest eaters. Watch the video on AOL Living.
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n801bh(at)netzero.com
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| Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2008 5:28 pm Post subject: Alcohol proof fuel tank sealer? |
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Jim. Here is my take on this rather touchy issue. On my Zenith 801 I researched this topic quite extensively and came to this conclusion. When properly applied the Randolph 912 sloshing compound will stand up to the demands of alcohol laced fuel. The earlier product will degrade when used with gas mixed with alcohol. Several reports have any sloshing compound suspect with downing of aircraft. This might be true, to a point. There was a DC-3 that crashed on takeoff and the conclusion was the sloshing compound came loose and plugged the fuel lines. The real story is the operator tried to seal up leaking tanks that were 50+ years old to save some money. Of course in those 50 years the fuel in the tanks, like any gas will do, coated the inner surface of the tanks with a varnish. Since they couldn't properly clean and prep the tanks they apparently just added sloshing sealer and let it dry. Common sense says the chain is only as strong as the weakest link and that turned out to be the layer of scum that the sealer attached itself to. It did delaminate and that apparently sent the sloshing compound/varnish into the tanks to float around and plug up the works. The proper way and the way I did my tanks is to take a virgin tank, before it is mounted in the wing, add MEK and shake it good. I then added a cup or so of gravel and shaked again for several minutes. This abraded the inner surface and scuffed it up to let the sloshing compound get a grip. I then emptied the tank, flushed it with hot water and detergent a few times and dumped a little more MEK in it, shook it more. poured that out and let it air dry. Then I added the 912 product and rotated the tank to throughly coat the inner surface with the compound, poured the remaining product out and let it dry for a week or so. The stuff is bonded to my satisfaction. After 5 years and thousands of gallons of fuel through the tanks there is absolutly no signs of failure of the sloshing compound or delamination from the tank surface. I suspect the bad rap the sloshing compound gets is from people who try to fix a tank and not prep the surface correctly. It is not like one can take a DC-3 and shake it good enough to remove 50 eyars of crud build up..
YMMV.
do not archive
Ben
www.haaspowerair.com
My RV-4 fuel tanks are 18 years old and starting to leak (I'm the second owner and one was seeping when I first got it 12 years ago). Its time to take them off and reseal them. Has anyone had any luck with any sealer that will stand up to the alcohol in auto gas? What does that RV-3 team that runs on methanol use? Thanks.
Jim
Delicious ideas to please the pickiest eaters. Watch the video on AOL Living.
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IRS Tax Help - Tax Pros help solve IRS problems. Click Here.
[quote][b]
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JFLEISC(at)aol.com
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| Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2008 6:36 pm Post subject: Alcohol proof fuel tank sealer? |
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Ben;
This has been my take on the subject as well from the research I have done. Just like painting, its the prep work that counts. Besides the clean out with MEK most of the "slosh" companies recommend an etching wash, that can take 12 hours or more, then a complete and thorough dry out before application. I'm just glad to hear from someone who has got it to work. Thanks.
Jim
do not archive
Delicious ideas to please the pickiest eaters. Watch the video on AOL Living.
[quote][b]
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rgf(at)dcn.davis.ca.us
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| Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2008 9:34 pm Post subject: Alcohol proof fuel tank sealer? |
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What about welding the tank? In the Ercoupe world there is a guy that specializes in welding the tanks to eliminate any problem with sealer.
RF
[quote] From: owner-rv-list-server(at)matronics.com [mailto:owner-rv-list-server(at)matronics.com] On Behalf Of JFLEISC(at)aol.com
Sent: Saturday, February 16, 2008 12:14 PM
To: RV-List(at)matronics.com
Subject: Alcohol proof fuel tank sealer?
My RV-4 fuel tanks are 18 years old and starting to leak (I'm the second owner and one was seeping when I first got it 12 years ago). Its time to take them off and reseal them. Has anyone had any luck with any sealer that will stand up to the alcohol in auto gas? What does that RV-3 team that runs on methanol use? Thanks.
[b]
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JFLEISC(at)AOL.COM
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| Posted: Sun Feb 17, 2008 5:30 am Post subject: Alcohol proof fuel tank sealer? |
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In a message dated 2/17/2008 12:36:34 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, rgf(at)dcn.davis.ca.us writes:
| Quote: | My RV-4 fuel tanks are 18 years old and starting to leak (I'm the second owner and one was seeping when I first got it 12 years ago). Its time to take them off and reseal them. Has anyone had any luck with any sealer that will stand up to the alcohol in auto gas? What does that RV-3 team that runs on methanol use? Thanks.
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I didn't even know that could be done particularly with all the internal ribs. How would that effect structural strength? It is, after all, part of the wing system.
Jim
Delicious ideas to please the pickiest eaters. Watch the video on AOL Living.
[quote][b]
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