Repairing Tractor Gas Tank

Wolfgang

Member
To all you people that know a trick or two.
Have a gas tank on Allis CA with tiny pin hole leak. Am worried that applying heat of any kind may exacerbate to more problems. Fixed it four years ago with JB weld, but now is seeping through. What can I do to fix. Do not say new gas tank. If I could buy one I would.
Thanks, Wolfgang
 
Probably someone on here will have a magic elixir which will fix you up. My view is that your tank has a cancer coming from the inside, and it will just progress, like it already has. In similar situations, I have taken my pressure washer(not a true steam cleaner, but close) to tanks, and got them clean enough to do what you're afraid of- apply heat! I'm not much of a solderer. I use an acetylene torch and bronze rod.
 
I agree with Bob, it's rusting from the inside. I took some muratic acid to one of mine. Cleaned it out good, re JB weld the hole, then get an epoxy liner in it. Red Kote is a good one, but anything the parts store sells will work. Might be able to find a radiator shop that does gas tank work too.
AaronSEIA
 
Take the tank off, clean it out using every means you can think of, pressure washer, solvent, etc. Maybe even acid?? Then rattle a chain, bolts & nuts or the like around in it for a LONG time to knock the rust off and clean again. You may be surprised at how many more pin holes show up, but that’s good. Thoroughly dry then coat the inside with Red Kote or Kreme. I’ve used Red Kote successfully and it’s not really too bad of job, especially on smaller tank like your CA. I hired a radiator shop to do a JD MT, then did an AC G myself.

http://www.damonq.com/techsheets/red-kote.pdf

http://www.kreem.com/fueltankliner.html
 
Here's a positive and easy fix. There is a product similar to JB weld, only in a paste form, not liquid. It's called PC7. can be bought at most automotive parts stores or hardware stores. It is a two part compound you mix together, equal parts of each. It will adhere to any surface and is not affected by gas, oil, or pressure. Takes over night to dry. Make sure surface is clean before applying. Just drain the tank and apply it with tank still on the tractor. You'll love this stuff.
 
The gas tank on my C that I use to mow with has a tank that had so many holes it looked like a sieve. I sanded the bottom half to bare metal, cut strips of fiberglass matt, soaked them in resin and carefully covered the bottom without overlapping. After it set up I sanded it so there was no sharp points. I then coated it with a very thin coat of bondo and sanded smooth and painted it. That was six years ago and it has held good. If you try to layer the fiberglass it will lift the tank to where the hood will be high at the tank. I have in the past cut the bottom from a tank that the top had been caved in bad. I cut the top from one the bottom was very bad and put them together.
 
I have a mount on a cement mixer that holds the gas tank, so it can run however long as needed....overnight or more. I use nuts/bolts, rather than sand cuz it cleans out better, even with a magnet. Sand won"t.
 
I used a kit from POR 15 on my JD H ten years ago and it is still holding. Tank had several holes the size of a pencil eraser. I'm sure there are other products that probably do just
as well. Good luck.
 
JB weld , w/ nylon screen , make sure its very clean on that spot , wire wheel then wipe with naptha , brake cleaner , or somthing of that nature till its very clean , let cure for couple days , i did this to a my tank on a john deere B , was like swiss cheese & of course it was a deere so there gold plated , or at least the price is ,& hard to find because they all rotted , mine hasnt leaked a drop & its been over 10 years , just did the same repair to the water seperator on bottom of my 1855 oliver diesel tank , holding fuel now for over a year , thats about the only thing i found JB weld good for , it will work for this
 
Traktor-gurl, I don't agree with you that sealers like RedCote aren't intended to seal holes. They actually are. Some manufacturers even mention that in their instructions and product description. A pin hole can easily be repaired with a liner coating. Yes, you're right, the inside must be clean, but I've saved tanks that were so bad, only rust was what was keeping the gas in the tank. When I repaired it, I found 2 inches of scaly rust inside which was what was keeping the fuel from gushing out. There were holes big enough to put two fingers through. I brazed up all the biggest holes. There was no way to fix all the pin holes. I coated the inside of the tanks and made sure all the pin holes were sealed shut. These tanks were from a jaguar. They never leaked again.

So Wolfgang, If you know exactly where your hole is, you might consider brazing it or migging it shut and then, coat the inside after a good proper cleaning. If you have one pin hole, you probably have another. If you have time, it's best to fix it right. For an emergency repair, you can get that epoxy emergency gas tank repair and plug it with fuel in the tank. I've found that can last many years if not be permanent.
 

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