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Petrol tank project

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andyf
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Petrol tank project

Postby andyf » 14 Jan 2009 09:21

My wife asked what the huge puddle underneath the car was on Monday. You can guess the rest. There is a hole in the bottom of the tank. Whether it is repairable (unlikely I know) or not remains to be seen.

What surprised me most is the damage that half a tank of unleaded slowly dripping onto tarmac does.

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Wayne S
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Postby Wayne S » 14 Jan 2009 09:45

Andy, my V8 has had a problem with silt in the fuel all year. It finally came to a head when it killed the pump back in September and I knew it was the tank rotting away. Around November time I noticed a some trails of fuel around the bottom straps so it was clearly ready to come out.

I did the job over a few days at Christmas and took the chance to wire brush all the rear end and treat with Hammerite Gloss and Waxoyl.

When I took the tank out I was surprised at the size of the hole hidden by the straps that had seemed to promote rot behind them. I coated the new foam pads in waxoyl and gave the tank a good coat of paint before re-fitting.

Not too bad a job to do. I made a platform out of ramps with blocks of wood on them to go under the rear floorpan area to support the car on and that gave me enough clearance to drop the axle and pull that tank out of the drivers side without the need to remove the exhaust.

I fitted all new straps and foam inc a new sender unit. The fuels clean and my tank now reads full when full and empty when empty!! [:D]

I've also made sure I have a new tight seal on the fuel cap (my Grinnall uses the aero style one) to ensure no water gets in there again. I didn't bother with tank seal or treatments as its a bit of a minefield out there. Some haven't been updated for use with the new type unleaded that came in last year containing 10% bio-ethanol. I have heard stories of sealed tanks giving many years service until last year when the ethanol dissolved the sealer into huge chunks!

<b>FOR SALE!!!!Purple 2.0 Litre DHC Grinnall</b>
Red 4.0 Litre V8 DHC Grinnall (with huuuuuge arches...!)
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Chris Turner
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Postby Chris Turner » 14 Jan 2009 16:30

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Just fitted mine last week, didnt use the foam insulators but used thicker rubber, I find it lasts longer. I also coated the tank in Gravitex and fitted a new sender unit and seal to avoid any problems.
Its much easier without the back axle fitted and with the car on a spit.

www.triumphtr.co.uk
TR8 FHC
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Hasbeen
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Postby Hasbeen » 14 Jan 2009 22:35

I have done a couple of extensive tank repair jobs on 7 tanks,
welding in quite large patches.

I have not seen a tank in Oz with external corrosion, but have
repaired 4 that were rotting out, from the inside. This I believe is
caused not by rain water, but by condensation. I found a cup of
water in a tank, repaired about 4 years before. This car had not
been out in the rain, & had been washed with great care, to avoid
water getting into the tank.

This water was unlikely to cause rust. I use Moreys upper cylinder
lubricant in my fuel. This appears to be preferentially dissolved in
water. The water in that tank was yellow, thick with oil, & left a
smear of oil behind on every thing it touched.

Having given each tank the POR15 internal tank treatment after
patching, with the last tank, I just brazed the couple of pin holes,
found after steam cleaning the inside, then used the POR15 internal
treatment on the thing.

That was over 2 years ago. So far, so good.

This car is a hard worker. It is the daily driver of a uni student,
& has done 105,000 Km, [80 Km each way expressway commute] in the 2
years since this repair.

Hasbeen

PS. Andy that petrol wil damage more than the road. I had a similar
amount drip from a split hose, on the tank side of the fuel pump,
onto the cement floor of the shed. The front of the car was sitting
in petrol for a day or 2. When I drove the car I found the front
tyres had extreme flat spots, that bounced it up, & down. The tyres
were permanently deformed, & dangerous.

pupinabox
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Postby pupinabox » 14 Jan 2009 23:00

Hey, this may help. I may have a silt problem in my tank and have been waiting for a little warmer weather to remove it and have it repaired.

Check out this link, I think I may have them do the job.
http://www.gas-tank.com/

And I found a couple of places that do the same process on your side of the pond.
http://www.gastankrenu.com/loc/uk.htm

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windy one
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Postby windy one » 14 Jan 2009 23:35

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Century Gothic, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by pupinabox</i>

Hey, this may help. I may have a silt problem in my tank and have been waiting for a little warmer weather to remove it and have it repaired.

Check out this link, I think I may have them do the job.
http://www.gas-tank.com/

And I found a couple of places that do the same process on your side of the pond.
http://www.gastankrenu.com/loc/uk.htm


<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Very useful, thanx! And they are in my state.

Johnny

andyf
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Postby andyf » 16 Jan 2009 08:41

Thanks for the replies. I have it up on axle stands now and will have a closer look at the damage over the weekend before deciding the best course of action. The hole appears to be very small and located at the bottom of the tank, and I have absolutely no petrol left in it at all.

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1980 persian aqua DHC

bmcecosse
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Postby bmcecosse » 16 Jan 2009 20:59

New tank - don't waste time on the old one. Best cost is from T D Fitchett - they make the tanks (or have them made for them) and sell to all others. I changed mine in a day single handed. I would probably have been quicker if I had dropped the axle right off - instead of struggling with it hanging down and getting in the way!

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moestr7v8
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Postby moestr7v8 » 17 Jan 2009 00:33

Hi
As bmc says, TD Fitchett is the place to get your fuel tank, I ordered one with all fittings and fuel gauge and it was delivered the next day and a lot cheaper than any other supplier.
Definitly not worth messing around trying to repair a fuel tank yourself IMHO for what it is worth.
Regards
Moe[;)]

FI Spyder
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Postby FI Spyder » 17 Jan 2009 01:43

If you do any welding on a gas tank make sure it has no fumes. A father of two just died here last week welding a tank that had held acetone at a kayak building place.


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Postby busheytrader » 17 Jan 2009 15:27

I bought my new tank from Robsport. Simon advised me to coat the outside liberally all over with waxoyl before fitting. Large gardening gloves prevented it from behaving like a slippery eel whilst fitting it.

Simon also told me NOT to use any preventative stuff inside it. I guess modern unleaded fuels aren't too kind to tank treatments. MGB owners can buy S/S replacement tanks but I've never seen this available for a 7.

Adam



TR7 V8 DHC Jaguar Solent Blue. 9.35cr Range Rover V8, Holley 390cfm, JWR Dual Port, 214 Cam, Lumention, Tubular Manifolds, Single Pipe Exh, 3.08 Rear, 200lb Spax & Solid Bushes, Anti- Dive, Granada Vented Discs & Calipers, Braided Hoses, Green Stuff, 4 Speed Rear Cylinders, Uprated Master Cylinder & Servo, AllyCat 5 Spokes. No Door Stickers. Mine since July 1986, V8 from 1991

Odd
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Postby Odd » 17 Jan 2009 15:37

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Century Gothic, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"> New tank - Best cost is from T D Fitchett - they make the tanks (or have them made for them) and sell to all others. <hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"> Anyone know what their price for a brand new tank is?
I tried to check, but there seem to be no TD Fitchett home page to be found...

Wayne S
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Postby Wayne S » 17 Jan 2009 16:35

£140 according to the listing on the advert in this months Club Torque magazine.



<b>FOR SALE!!!!Purple 2.0 Litre DHC Grinnall</b>
Red 4.0 Litre V8 DHC Grinnall (with huuuuuge arches...!)
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REPLIC8
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Postby REPLIC8 » 17 Jan 2009 17:47

Odd,
You wont find a home page for TD Fitchett. As far as I know they don't have a web site & don't sell over the internet. I think they they like the old fashioned personal touch. (sometimes that's a good thing). Sorry don't have the phone number.

Andy
1981 UK SPEC TR8
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Beans
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Postby Beans » 17 Jan 2009 17:54

TD Fitchett Ltd tel. +44 1952 619 585 / 620 434

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1981 TR7 DHC (not very well known yet, but back on the road)
Also a 1980 TR7 DHC, 1980 TR7 DHC FI, 1981 TR7 FHC</font id="blue">
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