fuel tank 231 wa

[a7ewizard]

First I apologize for just now chiming in on the party; I guess I’m more of a voyeur than I would like to admit.
I’ve been following 56 sport's dilemma as I recently bought my first boat (’96 231 I/O) which “needs a little TLC” , I’ve been reading everything I can to learn more on boating upkeep and wouldn’t be surprised if I’m facing the same problem at some point. This being my first boat, I’m not too savy on all things boat, but I’ve quite a bit experience with restoring cars and this problem doesn’t appear much different.  Has anyone considered draining/cleaning the tank of remaining fuel, installing an access hatch in the deck of sufficient size (~2x3) and cutting this section out of the tank which would allow one enough access to thoroughly prep the tank and then spay (or brush) in some POR15 fuel tank sealer (or one of their many fuel tank restoration kits), then welding the section back in.  There are other brands out there (eastwood, moyer, etc…) that would probably be fine for a relatively small leak…this tank doesn’t sound like a lost cause and you shouldn’t have to replace the entire unit.   Hope this helps (and isn’t too late).
BTW, hello everyone and happy B-day! (proline forum)

I won't bash your suggestion. I am not familiar with the products you reference but....MAYBE!

If the pinhole leak could be located by cutting a small section, allowing for closer inspection.....and the overall condition of the tank was decent without much other corrosion evident, then a spot welding repair or an aluminum patch welded over the area could make for a good fix. Steel/aluminum hulled ships are repaired in this manor.

I would attempt to rent a small borescope camera of some kind to try and get a visual inspection before cutting out the helm area.

I recall a similiar thread on a local forum. The aluminum tank was found to have  single leak caused by a rubbing piece of protruding figerglass tabbing. A spot repair would have saved alot of expense!!!

[231CALIFORNIA]

Their is often a chance of repair   BUT to ascertain the complete state of the tank removal is almost always required 1st.
most  marine aluminum tank leaks i have seen/heard  are  corrosion from the outside in , often just small areas or holes in the bottom or back of the tank
0r in welds. but mostly just in the thin plate .
others may experience different.
often they occur at some point where salt water remains in contact
via damp foam/wood support /fiberlass contact or just random corrosion.
the rest of the tank is sound but there are often multiple weakened spots.

at that point if you have the tank out the savings with experimenting with it vs new dont seem to ahve good cost benefit long term, its a job never want to repeat.
Many guys are coating the new tanks wtih truckbed liner (imperfect but substantial barrier0 or some other treatment to hopefully extend life
and the results seem to be good.
we used to think the "cross linked plastic" tanks were the future but people are seeing  some problems with them , especially at sending unit ports, hardware connections etc, but at least thery dont corrode out the bottom.
and small leaks in fittings can maybe be permatexed or otherwise repaired.

In a proline it looks like radical surgery is often required but im open to suggestions in case its me "moaning"  at some future time and looking for this thread.

[56 sport]

Yes a7ew. A patch would probably work ,But i still have to CUT the deck to remove the tank.I have alot of great welders that owe me a favor.But even with the ability of my friends .They are not able to weld/patch a area an 1 or 2 " from the surrounding bulkhead.A borescope wont work due to the fact that there is baffles in the tank.The baffles stop the 138 gallons of fuel from slamming back and forth.If i was to repair the tank I still have to cut it out. Please  see seabobs4 post from last night.

[brad1951]

Got into your cutting yet? keep us posted on how this project is going. From a builders point I really would like to know what caused your tank to leak so we can correct the problem on new boats we are building.

[56 sport]

Yes i already cut the deck.I have allot/most of the foam surrounding the tank out.I have a strap pre loaded with weight on it since 5 o'clock and just checked it at 9:30 it came up about 1/4 inch.I have been taking pictures as much as I can.Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to move the tank alot more.I have to get more beer.

[231CALIFORNIA]

I await your pictures, narrative and findings  , and then you repairs and remedies.
I would bring you the beer just to watch if you were westcoast  anywhere near-by.
I hope its smooth sailing from here
 there are a lot of boats  possibly in your predicament soon or at least someday.

[56 sport]

The tank is out,I have a pictures but don't know how to load. I have to have the wife help.Not as bad as i thought it would be.

[brad1951]

Would really like to know where your leak was. If your tank was foamed in did it contact some glass and get a wear hole or was there a weld problem ?>

[sandflea]

keep us posted.  Your boat will be like new when you are done.

Sandflea

[56 sport]

No weld problems that i can find.The tank itself is in good shape ,a couple of discolored areas. But then it started to rain up here in PA since last night,So i was not able to really find the problem.None the less I will be putting in a brand new tank in with the amount of work involved.

[sandflea]

I am sure you have considered this, but with it out, I would change all my fuel lines as well as overflow, and intake.  Please get us some pictures. 
Thanks,
Sandflea

[56 sport]

Being that i never posted pics before.How do you do it ? The rain stopped  up here, and I'm prepping for new tank.

[sandflea]

someone chime in.  I don't have a clue how to post pictures.  I just want to see them!

[OLDMAN-DRIVING]

Being that i never posted pics before.How do you do it ? The rain stopped  up here, and I'm prepping for new tank.

I belong to a car site Steves Nova Site you can check out their in depth tutorial on how we post pictures if anyone is interested.  Works the same way here.

http://www.stevesnovasite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=27716

Chuck

[probryans]

If you can't find the leak fill it with water. I pulled a tank (not a proline) which had an access and could not find any holes. Filled it with water and confirmed it had no leaks and so I was back to square one.

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