I have a tank removed from the car, it has some rust dust in it, enough that it clogged a fuel filter, looking inside I can see the corrosion as well. Now that the residual gas has evaporated if I shake the tank I can hear the rust particles move. I plan to turn it upside down and tap on it a bit to get all the particles out.
Then I was planning on using "REDKOTE" to coat the inside of the tank. However it recommends cleaning / preppiong the tank with acetone or phosphoric acid...wouldn't those products eat away at the plastic housing in the center of the tank? Should I just shake out the loose rust and go ahead with the REDKOTE?
What REDKOTE is: http://damonq.com/TechSheets/Red-Kote.pdf STAYS FLEXIBLE - Will never crack or peel off. RESISTANT TO ALCOHOL AND MOST FUEL ADDITIVES. BRIGHT COLOR - Coverage is easily visible. COVERS RUST - Seals old rust in and prevents future rusting. SEALS LEAKS - Gets the multitude of pin-holes you can't find.
IP: Logged
02:55 PM
PFF
System Bot
Darth Fiero Member
Posts: 5922 From: Waterloo, Indiana Registered: Oct 2002
Call the Fiero Factory and get a rust-free replacement tank.
I've seen these spray-on coatings not last and cause more problems than they solve. I had to replace the tank on a 57 Chevy a few years ago because a place applied some spray-on coating inside of it and the coating dissolved in the E10 blended gasoline we have around here and plugged up the fuel system in that car (filter, electric pump, and injectors on the RamJet engine it had in it).
Besides, you'll never get everything inside the tank coated without cutting it apart and removing the plastic baffling. And if you remove the plastic baffling (and don't put it back in) or it gets destroyed by the chemical wash you need to use, you'll create all sorts of fuel pump starvation problems for yourself down the road.
You haven't been running E85 in this car before you had these rust and corrosion issues, have you?
-ryan
------------------ OVERKILL IS UNDERRATED Custom GM OBD1 & OBD2 Tuning | Engine Conversions & more | www.gmtuners.com
IP: Logged
03:12 PM
2.5 Member
Posts: 43235 From: Southern MN Registered: May 2007
Call the Fiero Factory and get a rust-free replacement tank.
I've seen these spray-on coatings not last and cause more problems than they solve. I had to replace the tank on a 57 Chevy a few years ago because a place applied some spray-on coating inside of it and the coating dissolved in the E10 blended gasoline we have around here and plugged up the fuel system in that car (filter, electric pump, and injectors on the RamJet engine it had in it).
Besides, you'll never get everything inside the tank coated without cutting it apart and removing the plastic baffling. And if you remove the plastic baffling (and don't put it back in) or it gets destroyed by the chemical wash you need to use, you'll create all sorts of fuel pump starvation problems for yourself down the road.
You haven't been running E85 in this car before you had these rust and corrosion issues, have you?
-ryan
No no E85, the car was purchased this way, must have sat outside for some years. gas gone bad plus condensation rust I think.
Have a good shop coat the inside for you. They should have the right stuff that would handle E10 etc. Otherwise washing the inside with muriatic acid will clean it fairly well and should not hurt the baffle.
Have a good shop coat the inside for you. They should have the right stuff that would handle E10 etc. Otherwise washing the inside with muriatic acid will clean it fairly well and should not hurt the baffle.
You can buy a quart of sealant/coating from Eastwood.com. You just clean it best you can, dry it out then pour it in and turn it all around to coat the entire inside. Ive done it to old classic cars for years. You can also usually find it at auto parts swap meets.
IP: Logged
04:24 PM
2.5 Member
Posts: 43235 From: Southern MN Registered: May 2007
You can buy a quart of sealant/coating from Eastwood.com. You just clean it best you can, dry it out then pour it in and turn it all around to coat the entire inside. Ive done it to old classic cars for years. You can also usually find it at auto parts swap meets.
I got some redkote already, could return it I suppose.
Buy a gallon of it, once your done take the leftover and put a few inches in a coke bottle. Drop in a small 12x 6 inch piece of aluminum foil wadded up just enough to get it in the bottle then screw the cap on tightly and throw it as far as possible. It will not do anything at first but do not hang onto it.
This is dangerous stuff, do everything you can to not breath it in.
[This message has been edited by jmbishop (edited 07-06-2011).]
I used fish tank gravel to clean motorcycle tanks before; just pour the pebles in and shake. It removes quite a bit of the rust. Then you could rinse and treat w/ what ever you like. An old timer tiped me onto this, he said to only use fish tank pebbles because they don't leave any harsh chemicals or residue/dust behine...
[This message has been edited by ALJR (edited 07-06-2011).]
IP: Logged
09:09 PM
17Car Member
Posts: 482 From: Morrisdale, PA Registered: Jun 2009
I would imagine that hosing out the insides and dumping the water/rust out a few times might work as well, but have never done it so I can't say for sure..
Or you can get muriatic at any building supply store like Menards etc. It's used to clean brick and concrete. I use it to also clean my coffee pot and the bathroon stools of lime from my very hard water... Do be careful of the fumes though.
IP: Logged
10:58 PM
PFF
System Bot
Jul 7th, 2011
2.5 Member
Posts: 43235 From: Southern MN Registered: May 2007
I used fish tank gravel to clean motorcycle tanks before; just pour the pebles in and shake. It removes quite a bit of the rust. Then you could rinse and treat w/ what ever you like. An old timer tiped me onto this, he said to only use fish tank pebbles because they don't leave any harsh chemicals or residue/dust behine...
Yeah theres that too, but how do you get all the gravel or rocks out of a FIero tank afterwards? Isn't the only way to get anything out by tipping the tank upside down and shaking it out the pump hole? I heard some people recommend using ice cubes because they then melt.
Yeah theres that too, but how do you get all the gravel or rocks out of a FIero tank afterwards? Isn't the only way to get anything out by tipping the tank upside down and shaking it out the pump hole? I heard some people recommend using ice cubes because they then melt.
Remove the pebbles the same way you would the rust debris; turn it over and start shaking I would not use ice cubes, seems it would turn the rust particles into mud/sludge and make it that much harder to remove... I would shake out as much of the pebbles as possible and while the tank was upside down, I would douch the inside with a garden hose to rinse out as much rust debris as possible.
I would not use ice cubes, seems it would turn the rust particles into mud/sludge and make it that much harder to remove... I would shake out as much of the pebbles as possible and while the tank was upside down, I would douch the inside with a garden hose to rinse out as much rust debris as possible.
