Welding a rusted gas tank

[richp]

Fixing up a 728 Broadmoor for my son. The tank has the usual holes in the bottom. I have no problem welding in a bottom piece, my concern is the solder coming loose on the seem that holds the tank halves together. Anyone have tips for doing this? Thanks.

[RayS]

Heres an option. http://www.ebay.com/itm/ALLISCHALMERS-SIMPLICITY-GAS-TANK-/150669808906?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item23149ed50a

[AC_B-1Novice]

Went to that site and saw as gast tank with a dash description. :D

[Al]

HI, Should be a post here about a tank that blew up and nearly killed me when I was about 12 yrs old. Blew me over 30 ft and was unconscious for about an hour. Had been dry for over a yr and I washed it out with water twice.. THINK TWICE!!!! Al Eden

[427435]

There is no safe way to weld a gas tank. The least dangerous way is to fill it full of water first.

[Zach]

flush it out with exhaust gas. just hold it up to the pipe on your car or tractor for like 5 minutes. then its safe to weld.

[GLPointon]

or fill it with argon from your Mig. either way gasoline or any fuel cant burn without oxygen. But safety first...

quote:

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Originally posted by Zach
flush it out with exhaust gas. just hold it up to the pipe on your car or tractor for like 5 minutes. then its safe to weld.

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[Willy]

I would smear the bottem with J.B. weld and not take a chance. Years ago a farmer used an old bulk wagon tank to haul water to his live stock,he had been using it for years,he wanted to check the water level so he used his lighter and stuck it down inside the tank and it blew up he was burned pretty bad. It don't pay to take chances.

[timflury]

I vote for Ray's option. However, I have purged fuel tanks before. Fill with water or submerge in a bucket of soapy water. Leave overnight. Drain and rinse at least twice and blow dry with compressed air. You will be ready to apply heat as needed.

[RayS]

Here`s another just listed. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Simplicity-Allis-Broadmoor-Gas-Tank-W-Straps-/260867197177?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3cbce588f9

[cityboy2977]

the trick to welding gas tanks is to put a small amount of water in it then put dry ice inside. all fumes are pushed out.

[Tarheel]

I have welded, braised and soldered tanks over the years. But nothing I've ever done has worked better than cleaning real well, sanding rough and applying JB Weld. Try cutting a piece of plastic from an anti-freeze jug to fit the bottom of your tank. clean and sand the tank, rough the plastic with 80 grit or such, paint the bottom of the tank with JB Weld and then set the plastic down on it. You could try copper flashing or another metal but I believe the plastic would hold for years. Back in the 90's, my cousin had a wood fired boiler. A very costly one and it developed a hole that allowed hot water into the fire box. He was very upset because the replacement part was over 1000 bucks. I cleaned and sanded the area, (while he fussed and said it would never work) mixed the JB Weld and put down a dollop about as big around as a quarter. I pressed a dime into it because I didn't have a penny. Pulled some of the JB from the sides up onto the dime and let it set. He traded for a new one last year. But only because he wanted a smaller unit. He didn't give me my dime back either..LOL

[Tarheel]

BTW, I meant to add. Years ago I went through all the cleaning etc of a gas tank before welding it. I was done welding when the fumes caught. It didn't blow, It whistled as it went out the fill hole. The skin on the back of my hand ran like hot wax. Took a long long time to heal. I got away with it a number of times before that and I guess you could say I got away with it that time too as I'm still breathing, But I won't be doing it again. I don't like pain, it hurts me.

[HerbP]

I had a tank on my truck that was weeping through some imperceptible pinhole leaks on the bottom. I used POR-15's fuel tank sealer which is the only POR-15 product I've had any luck with... It's basically an epoxy paint that you pour into your cleaned tank and you roll it around until the inside is fully coated... It's been about 12 years and the tank continues to be leak-free. You lose a teeny bit of capacity though. Looks like this is the non-fanfare equivalent: [url]http://www.caswellcanada.ca/shop/epoxy-gas-tank-sealer.html[/url]

[GLPointon]

I have used scotch-bright discs & apply JB-Weld...lasted as long as I owned it.

[dhardin]

I don't advice anyone to weld on a tank. I have seen some close calls and some disasters. A few others I know of have had good luck but I don't like depending on luck when it comes to my health. Soldering is not as difficult as it sounds and if done properly will not leak or come off. The proper iron (a big one), proper cleaned surfaces, the proper flux, and take your time. I built a tank from scratch some years ago and have repair 8 or 10 more. Most recently I re soldered the outlet and return lines on my powermax tank. Here is a old post, with pics. http://www.simpletractors.com/club2/topic.asp?ARCHIVE=true&TOPIC_ID=27469&SearchTerms=tank powermax repair, http://www.michaelstractors.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=4539

[richp]

Ended up winning the one on ebay for $15. Should be good to go.