Clem Clement
Well-known member
Looking for a company that does gas tank cleaning and derusting. Prefer in the Washington, DC area. Prefer not to have to repaint the tank.
clem
clem
gas tank derusting
- Thread starter Clem Clement
- Start date
BILL WILLIAMSON
Well-known member
Repainting the tank is the LEAST of your problems.
Bill W.
Bill W.
BRENT in 10-uh-C
Well-known member
Do it right or don't do it at all Clem.
CWPASADENA
Well-known member
I have had excellent results using Evaporust or Rust911 to de rust gas tanks. There is no need to re-paint the tank or even remove the tank from the car.
I would try this first and if it does not work for you, then you always can remove the tank and have it cleaned by a shop. Some radiator shops will do this but you will have to re-paint the tank.
My experience,
Chris W.
I would try this first and if it does not work for you, then you always can remove the tank and have it cleaned by a shop. Some radiator shops will do this but you will have to re-paint the tank.
My experience,
Chris W.
Clem Clement
Well-known member
See my thread on the matter. I gave the tank 2 complete servicing. It is making crud faster than I can contain it.
BRENT in 10-uh-C
Well-known member
Clem, I am not dissing any other shop nor am I promoting my shop's services, but I'm will make a bet that my shop has restored more gas tanks than any other shop out there, so I do feel I can suggest a few things that I know to be factual.
To begin with, not every tank is restorable. For example, I would guess in this last year we have received 5-6 tanks that were too far deteriorated inside to be restored in a cost effective manner. On quite a few of those tanks, I am suspecting that someone had used Muriatic Acid to kill the rust however they did not get it neutralized and it 'ate' the metal from the inside out.
I know some folks claim to have success using rust converters or rust prevent or products however this seems to help for a season and the rust re-appears. When we get those tanks in, where we find the rust is next to the areas that still have the original Terne coating. What I don't know is whether the Terne coating reacts with the Evaporust-type products, -or whether it is that the rust had originally crept under the edges of the Terne coating and was never truly eliminated. Either way, the rust just continued to grow and spread.
Folks often suggest taking a tank to a local radiator shop to be cleaned. Here is what I know about that process. Back in the Model-A era up thru the 60s-70s, radiator shops used a solution of water & sodium hydroxide to clean brass & copper radiators. Generally what they were doing is softening and dissolving any organic matter. Sodium Hydroxide (Caustic) does nothing towards rust or metallic scale. In those instances, the core was "rodded out" to remove the blockages. Hot Sodium Hydroxide, -if the item is left submerged long enough, will dissolve soft metals such as solder or Terne coatings. Now the tank is clean in the bare metals areas, and all solvents are removed where a tank sealer can be applied ....however the sealer is just being applied over the rust, AND you must hope that the shop is successful at coating the entire area of the tank including the backside of baffles. Generally most try to coat all areas of a 10+ gallon tank with 1 or 2 quarts, which when we open them up, the baffles are almost never completely coated. Bare metal holding oxygenated fuel is a perfect breeding ground for rust.
There are also shops that 'renew' your tank by cutting large holes in several places with the hope they can reach behind all of the baffles. They offer lifetime warranties which cover either redoing the process one more time, -or they will refund your money however this does not include the labor to R&R the tank, nor the money spent on paint & bodywork. In my biased opinion, the only way to do the job thoroughly is to cut the tank open in the original factory seam which allows the repair to be virtually undetectable when completed. Unfortunately, this process also involves the tank be soaked in hot caustic to remove anything that might explode when the tank is cut open. This process also removes all bodywork & paint. No way to get around that. Once the tank has been opened, the tank is completely media-blasted with aluminum oxide and then treated with Phosphoric Acid to eliminate any traces of rust. The tank is then reassembled in a fixture and TIG-welded together. Next it is pressure tested and then filled with 10 gallons of sealer to ensure it completely coated inside. Yes, I realize this is an expensive repair but there is a bunch of time that goes into the process to do it correctly. When it is done correctly, it makes the vehicle reliable to drive again without the stress, -or potential danger associated with breaking down while trying to drive the vehicle. Think about how many Model-As are parked, just sitting in garages because the car is too unreliable to go for a drive without breaking down.
To begin with, not every tank is restorable. For example, I would guess in this last year we have received 5-6 tanks that were too far deteriorated inside to be restored in a cost effective manner. On quite a few of those tanks, I am suspecting that someone had used Muriatic Acid to kill the rust however they did not get it neutralized and it 'ate' the metal from the inside out.
I know some folks claim to have success using rust converters or rust prevent or products however this seems to help for a season and the rust re-appears. When we get those tanks in, where we find the rust is next to the areas that still have the original Terne coating. What I don't know is whether the Terne coating reacts with the Evaporust-type products, -or whether it is that the rust had originally crept under the edges of the Terne coating and was never truly eliminated. Either way, the rust just continued to grow and spread.
Folks often suggest taking a tank to a local radiator shop to be cleaned. Here is what I know about that process. Back in the Model-A era up thru the 60s-70s, radiator shops used a solution of water & sodium hydroxide to clean brass & copper radiators. Generally what they were doing is softening and dissolving any organic matter. Sodium Hydroxide (Caustic) does nothing towards rust or metallic scale. In those instances, the core was "rodded out" to remove the blockages. Hot Sodium Hydroxide, -if the item is left submerged long enough, will dissolve soft metals such as solder or Terne coatings. Now the tank is clean in the bare metals areas, and all solvents are removed where a tank sealer can be applied ....however the sealer is just being applied over the rust, AND you must hope that the shop is successful at coating the entire area of the tank including the backside of baffles. Generally most try to coat all areas of a 10+ gallon tank with 1 or 2 quarts, which when we open them up, the baffles are almost never completely coated. Bare metal holding oxygenated fuel is a perfect breeding ground for rust.
There are also shops that 'renew' your tank by cutting large holes in several places with the hope they can reach behind all of the baffles. They offer lifetime warranties which cover either redoing the process one more time, -or they will refund your money however this does not include the labor to R&R the tank, nor the money spent on paint & bodywork. In my biased opinion, the only way to do the job thoroughly is to cut the tank open in the original factory seam which allows the repair to be virtually undetectable when completed. Unfortunately, this process also involves the tank be soaked in hot caustic to remove anything that might explode when the tank is cut open. This process also removes all bodywork & paint. No way to get around that. Once the tank has been opened, the tank is completely media-blasted with aluminum oxide and then treated with Phosphoric Acid to eliminate any traces of rust. The tank is then reassembled in a fixture and TIG-welded together. Next it is pressure tested and then filled with 10 gallons of sealer to ensure it completely coated inside. Yes, I realize this is an expensive repair but there is a bunch of time that goes into the process to do it correctly. When it is done correctly, it makes the vehicle reliable to drive again without the stress, -or potential danger associated with breaking down while trying to drive the vehicle. Think about how many Model-As are parked, just sitting in garages because the car is too unreliable to go for a drive without breaking down.
BRENT in 10-uh-C
Well-known member
Thanks for asking this, and yes there are always variables that affect pricing. In reality, folks should just contact me outside of Fordbarn if this is something they have questions about simply because I do not want to be guilty of using the forum as a business platform. I'll leave that to others on all the social media sites!