fuel tanks...the whole truth...

[jawz12]

well guys,every season i get the dreaded,"i got a fuel odor on my boat call"...here's the first one this season...
it's a 25 grady sailfish,a 1988
aluminum fuel tanks have a finite life,that would be approx 10yrs,after that you're on borrowed time...these things will not last forever...original equipment fuel tanks are usually not epoxy coated...
listen guys,i've been down this road more times than i can count...you want to avoid the hassle and the potential problems...the only way to truly inspect the fuel system is to remove the tank...
the gradys are famous for fuel tank failures,i've lost count of the g/w's i've repalced the fuel systems in...
here's what the tanks looked like...this is the norm,it's not the exception...the decks leak,the deck plates leak and the bilge is wet,all add up and make the corrosive environment...these tanks had holes on the bottom and the top...the aux tank is 93g,it was empty when i picked up the boat,owner advised me it was full when he left it,a few days before i picked it up
don't let this happen to you !! i reccomend you guys with older rigs,in the offseason,pull your tanks and inspect...

[Animal 1]

Thanks for the heads up Jimmy.We're having fuel issues right now,but that's not the one.

[Questsportfishing]

I use sunshine marine tanks in Miami by the way if you are ever south florida way ... if you ever get a chance to inspect your tank and it is still good wire brush it and add two coats of interlux 2000 it seals it good. the coal tar epoxy is ok also for installing new. Just sucks to have to do it! but the piece of mind is great!

[jawz12]

I use sunshine marine tanks in Miami by the way if you are ever south florida way ... if you ever get a chance to inspect your tank and it is still good wire brush it and add two coats of interlux 2000 it seals it good. the coal tar epoxy is ok also for installing new. Just sucks to have to do it! but the piece of mind is great!

if you're referring to repairing older aluminum tanks...well...
there's a thing called "polous corrosion",i probably spelled that wrong,but anyway,i suggest you look this up...basically what it is...the small erosions in aluminum,they get bigger as a result of this...making an attempt to seal a corroded tank is not the best choice...if the aluminum is corroded,it's structually weakened,it lost it's mass...
and 2 coats of interlux will do absolutley nothing,the epoxy needs to be as thick as a matchbook cover to really protect the underlying surface...but before the epoxy goes on,the aluminum surface needs to be prepped properly,etch primed...

[Fritz]

suck. I have had to cut the transom out of two boats that had aluminum tank failure to remove & replace the tanks. Why boat builders don't still build tanks out of monel or fiberglass is beyond me. I know cost right?

[B-faithful]

Jawz, what are your opinions on replacing with poly tanks? What is their expected life span.

[Questsportfishing]

I am not a fan of the interlux or coal tar 'patching' the tank myself .. but I always do it now before they go in new...

[fishfighter]

On those pictures.Look at what the tank was sitting on.Rubber!Not good.What is rubber made out of?It has carbon in it.Mix water,rubber and have it sit next to alummuin,it eats it away.Plastic strips would be one hell of a improvement.

[PHILLYFISHING]

a buddy of mine is doing it on a 70-72 mako i forget.. i gave him your # incase he needs you to finsh what he starts... het jimmy you fishing the duke?

[tags11]

How hard is it to get water out of a gas tank? My buddy's boat (which is only a few years old) went down in its slip during the nor'easter a while back. He was installing a new bilge pump, didn't finish the job, went home for the week and didn't properly put on the inspection plate covering. The storm got him for sure! Now he's trying to figure out if he holds onto the boat he'll get the tank pumped and blow the water out. We're not sure it even has water cause it was raised fairly quickly, but better safe then sorry. Is it a costly in-depth process for someone to clean that tank?