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Massey Harris & Massey Ferguson Tractors Discussion Forum
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44 Gas tank cleaning

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JC

11-04-2003 22:58:07




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I have a 44 that has about 1/2 inch of pure varnish all the way across the bottom. If you remember the old TV show "Green Acres" I have a good description of what the bottom of the fuel tank looks like.
It looks exactly like Mrs. Douglas' coffee.

Needless to say, it doesn't want to come out, and the tank doesn't want to come off.

Is there a solvent of some type that will re liquify the goo without eating my gas tank?

Any and all suggestions will be appreciated.

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Gavin McLaren

11-05-2003 17:29:37




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 Re: 44 Gas tank cleaning in reply to JC, 11-04-2003 22:58:07  
The varnish that builds up in gas tanks is a result of two factors. First, there is a small amount of heavy hydrocarbons that are left over after the more volatile light ends in the gasoline evaporate. Generally this is not a big concern. However gasoline can also have a fair percentage of olefin-type hydrocarbons, as they generally have a higher octane number than straight-chain unbranched paraffin hydrocarbons. However olefins are much more reactive and will, given enough time, react with themselves and the other components in the gasoline to form large solid (varnish) compounds. Older vehicles are especially suceptable to this as olefins were in much greater use in gasoline in the 50's through the 70's than they are today. The best solvent for these varnishes are light aromatic compounds, notably Toluene or Xylene. MEK is a fair solvent fo this but is actually better on coal tar and compounds of that nature. If you have some, you could give it a try. Another approach is to use a warm solution of Caustic Soda (Sodium Hydroxide), about 10-20 Wt.%. It is very effective on most hydrocarbon sludges.
Safety is very important when using any or all of the above. Toluene and Xylene are suspected carcinogens, and so is, I believe, MEK. Hot caustic is incredibly corrosive and injurious to the skin and eyes. Good practice is to do an MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) search for any chemical on the internet, then follow the advice on it closely. The chemical supplier is thoretically supposed to supply this kind of information, but retail outlets usually have no clue.

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Jim

11-05-2003 22:22:18




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 Re: Re: 44 Gas tank cleaning in reply to Gavin McLaren, 11-05-2003 17:29:37  
I couldn't have said it better, Mr McLaren.



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Saltherring

11-05-2003 14:32:40




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 Re: 44 Gas tank cleaning in reply to JC, 11-04-2003 22:58:07  
The Eastwood Company in Pennsylvania sells a kit for cleaning and coating old gas tanks. The kit comes with a chemical cleaner and coating and works real well for varnish and rust. With the amount of varnish you have, you may want to use some kerosene first to loosen the stuff. In order to properly clean and coat the tank, you'll have to remove it first.



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fasting

11-05-2003 16:08:12




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 Re: Re: 44 Gas tank cleaning in reply to Saltherring, 11-05-2003 14:32:40  
The Eastwood product may be great, but you need
to remove the tank, turn it in all directions, to
remove the debris. Probably lots of black flecks
in the top, too. A good NAPA guy might suggest a
helpful product. Once you think it is getting
clean, dump about five gallons of hot water in, and thoroughly shake it, then quickly dump the water in a white plastic pail, to assess what's
remaining. If no rust, it's possible to avoid the
coating procedure. Good luck.

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old

11-05-2003 07:10:20




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 Re: 44 Gas tank cleaning in reply to JC, 11-04-2003 22:58:07  
You could try turpentine it seems to work well for cleaning a lot of stuff and it also eats rust so you may get a double clean so to speak. hope this helps



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CityBoy

11-05-2003 05:09:14




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 Re: 44 Gas tank cleaning in reply to JC, 11-04-2003 22:58:07  
Have read that some have used lacquer thinner with success. Might want to try a little and see how it does.



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Don

11-05-2003 15:44:05




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 Re: Re: 44 Gas tank cleaning in reply to CityBoy, 11-05-2003 05:09:14  
I have the same problem with my 44 and was told to use methyl ethyl ketone. Pour it in the tank and swish it around with some old nuts and then pressure wash it out. You may have to repeat as necessary,



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