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plastic fuel tank update

C

Centerplate

Member
Location
Green County Wi
I called around to body shops in my area. No one knew of a plastic welder to make a repair. I called two places in Madison, one said they were too busy. They second shop said they did not know, they never did a fuel tank repair. Maybe if I would bring it in the maybe would look at it.

I went to a small nearby town that had done a couple of small auto repairs for me. The owner looked at it and told me he had a nitrogen welder for five years, he did not understand why it was a big deal. He had done a number of repairs like that. He told me it would be done in 3-4 days and it would not cost an arm and a leg.
 
I don't remember what I paid for a Harbor Freight plastic welder, but I bought one ten years or so ago to fix a leak in a poly sprayer tank. I don't use it much, but it's sure a handy thing to have around when I need it. You need a regulator for a paint sprayer though so you can turn the air pressure down.
 
It's probably liability why shops got cold feet repairing the tank. Plastic welding is so simple anyone can do it. It's just a narrow flat blade on a soldering iron that melts the plastic and you can melt more plastic onto the spot if it's too thin. The only issue I've had with plastic welding is it isn't as strong as before the brake. I usually put a patch over the repair using fiberglass cloth and epoxy for plastic. I fixed a bumper cover on a car onetime that held up better in the second collision than the unbroken part of the bumper.
 
I bought one also from Harbor Freight. It came with different plastic rods to weld with. I used it to repair a cracked battery case. The company I worked for had a plating shop. A lot of tanks, and machines were made of plastic. I did a lot of repairs with just shop air. Using Nitrogen as an air source is like using nitrogen to fill your tires, it works, but not really necessary. Stan
 
Plastic tanks for fuel should be fluoride treated or cracks at sharp corners will develop. Cross linked HDPE can not be welded or done well. Keep an eye on the repair it maynot be permanent.
 
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