The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk How do you clean the inside of a gas tank?

I've just purchased a '50 5 window 3100. The gas tank does not appear to be rusty...just all gummed up inside.

Any suggestions to clean it without it costing the price of a new one?

you might try gasoline mixed with sand as grit and lots of shaking....

Find an old tempered window glass,break it and put the pieces in the tank and shake it,use a shop vac.to get it back out.CAUTION,wear gloves when you handle the glass.
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Floyd

Ive had buds that threw in a big handful of gravel and a few gallons of keroseen ..plugged the openings an took the tank for a ride in the back of there daily driver pickup ...down some good ol bumpy roads stoppin every now an agine to flip the tank.
Drained it all out an WHALLA.
Now that is Redneck Enginerin I KNOW !but sometimes it works

I don't know about using gasoline since it's so explosive but a solvent of some kind should work. The kerosene idea might work. You can try a radiator shop to boil it out IF you can find one that will do it. Radiator shops around here won't touch old gas tanks. As a last resort if nothing else works you can acid clean it then coat it inside. If you do that be sure to follow the instructions exactly. If you don't the coating can fail. I've been pretty successful using coatings but some here haven't. Good luck.

If you have a model that a new tank readily available like yours, I just buy a new one. I,ve had them cleaned &/or coated & still have problems. Being stranded out on the road is not worth it. If you do clean it put an inline filter between the tank & pump & check it often.

I've got a tank out of a 64 C10 that I'm going to have to clean before I coat the inside. I've been thinking about filling part way with sand and strapping a vibrator from an old recliner on it and letting it sit and vibrate for a day or so. Is the solvent needed? I would think if the tank is dry the sand would clean all the deposits. any thoughts

Larry

I used sand and strapped it to a cement mixer I rented at the local rental supply for cheap. You only need sand and remember that when you finish the tank will be susceptible to rust in there so be ready to fill it with fuel asap.

I use the pea gravel method, with a STRONG mix of water and liquid detergent, like half a bottle of Dawn to 3/4 tank of water. Strap the tank down tight in the back of a pickup, and drive around for about a week. Another good cleaning solution is Trisodium Phosphate, the stuff that's used to clean oil stains off of concrete. About 1 or 2 cups of TSP to half a tank of water, plus the pea gravel inside will give it a really good scrubbing. Turn the tank over occasionally to make sure it gets scrubbed top and bottom.
Jerry

malases buy it at a feed store, and let it it eats the rust, or put nuts and bolts in the tank and shake it

The absolute easiest, cleanest, quickest and foolproof way to clean a tank is to remove and take it to a radiator shop that can dunk it, clean it, check and repair leaks. It cost me $80 to have this done.

Just replace it!
Scott

I used the pee gravel, Dawn, and shaking method and it worked pretty well. For the next one I'm thinking about building a tumbler. I thought I would use a pair of plywood circles from Home Depot cut in two and zip tied to the flanges at the ends of the tank and build a cradle with four wheels to support it and power one of the wheels with a low speed motor. Then just throw some gravel and soapy water in it and go have lunch. The cradle could be built to also support a five gallon bucket for cleaning small parts.

If you want to tumble it find a friend that has a tractor and strap the tank to the outside of a wheel and go for a ride with the pea gravel and dawn or what ever you choose.

Someone mentioned the kits: I used the POR15 kit 7 years ago on my 37 pickup and it has held up very well and when I look down into it, it still looks great. I think I paid $50 back around 99 or 2000. Follow instructions and plan on taking an afternoon.

EDIT: unless the tank is in really good shape you can bet some pin holes may show up therefore requiring a sealer like mine. Depending on time, cost of a new replacement and how much money you got will probably determine which way you go.

Instead of using gravel or sand try Ball Bearings. Less chance of contaminating your gas tank any further.

A few handfuls of used carbide inserts with soap and tumbling left mine gleaming with some bite for coating.

We usually take it to the local high school and boil it out in the hot tank. Dad used to load my S10 with tanks off old tractors at least once a month. I think Carl kept that thing going more for me than anybody else in the class.

Here's a non abrasive technique that I've used on tanks in the past that has worked well for me. Get 2 or 3 gallons of liquid paint stripper, NOT the paste kind. Pour the stripper into the tank and slosh it around quite a bit. Pour it into a 5 gallon bucket and filter it through cheese cloth, then pour it back into the tank and repeat the process. Rinse with mineral spirits when you think it is clean. Some years ago, I put a goose neck camera into a 1952 VW tank that I cleaned that way and it was shiny on the inside, for the most part. Good luck.

Hey,
Thanks for all the advice. In WA no one can (legally) boil out a gas tank. Radiator shops or others. I've found a place in OR that will do it for $75 bucks, but I was hoping to do it myself and save the $75 for other things likes mounting pads, seals, filler hoses, etc. The molasses and the paint stripper both seem like good alternatives. The ball bearings and carbide inserts also seem like a good idea.

Again, thanks for all the advice.

If you are only dealing with old gas and varnish from it and rust is not a problem lacquer will clean it. I just did one and it came out great.
I got 5 gal of cheap lacquer thinner from NAPA (a 5gal can was about the same $$ as 2-3 one galon cans). I poured the thinner in the tank and let it set for a day. Turned to the other side and another day. Four sides four days, slosh it around a little once or twicw a day. You have to plug all the holes with something the thinner won't affect. When done flush and wash out with a water hose and dry.
When done the thinner went back in the can and will be reused for the same thing again.

I've used lacquer thinner and var-sal in the past with much success. I need to get to that on my new project soon. If the tank is fairly rusted inside I typically split them in half, clean them, coat them, then braze them back together! That way I know that the job has been done thoroughly!
Good Luck!
Laterz,
Gator
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I started using BB's you can buy a whole thing of them for a few bucks.,and are easy to get out because you can use a magnet too get them out.

I know you said it had no rust, just nasty old gas, but I used a method to convert the rust to an inert material. I filled the tank with a solution of water (15gallons) and a 5 cups of soda ash (ph + for swimming pools) Get a large zinc plated bolt, and your battery charger. Using a large gauge *stranded* wire, strip about 2" of insulation off and wrap the bolt with the exposed stranded wire. Suspend the bolt into the tank through the sending unit hole making sure it does not touch the sides. Attach the bolt's electrode to the positve terminal of the battery charger and connect ground to the tank. Set the charger on 10 Amps and let the system sit like that for a few days. You will see the reaction start to bubble and spooge will collect at the opening. Every day remove the bolt and clean it off, fill the tank with more solution and continue cleaning. It will take several days to convert all the rust to a black inert material.
Rinse tank well.

Chris

i put a bunch of gravel and diesel in my tank, it seemed to work, but it also showed me a bunch of little pin holes, so i just invested in a brand new tank. i didn't want to take the time to fix it, and a new clean totally sealed tank has to be safer.