Gas tank clean out

[The Tuul Crib 7,337]

 I have a gas tank which I am trying to get rid of the rust inside. Any suggestions on how to do this? 

[Jerry77 1,218]

When restoring old cars, I used 3 parts water to 1 part muriatic acid to clean the tanks..slosh it around and use common sense when handling - after it has done the job, the inside of the tank will be shiny metal...rinse out well, and coat with Eastwood tank sealant ( which you should have on hand before starting )..the tank needs to be dry before applying the sealant - use your compressed air to dry it out...there will be plenty who would not use this method, but it works well, is cheap and is permanent...I used a bath of water and acid to clean up all kiinds of rusty, greasy  parts...the acid will burn you , so be careful...that being said, it is weak compared to most acids..if you have children around, I wouldn't advise it tho..I had mine in a secure location and kids grown and gone....

 

 

 

 

[eddiebunyan 24]

While your at it ,throw some bb's or small steel balls in! That will loosen up the rust,and scale.

[formariz 11,988]

I have used this unusual method for years and its always been extremely effective. No chemicals no noise. Takes a little thinking and setting up but once you have the system set up , then every other time its cake. I have a thread about it here somewhere. Its just plain electrolysis. I first do the inside of tank then the outside.

[Ed Kennell 38,687]

For mechanical cleaning,  put in gravel, bungee to a jacked up wheel and tumble it till clean.

[GarySeever 82]

I do almost what Ed says put gravel in some dish soap and shake worked well on the last tank I did.

[wallfish 17,083]

Cider vinegar will remove the rust as well. Mild acid. Use gravel, BBs, screws, nuts and bolts ect. to loosen the big stuff up quickly if there is any.

 

 

Edited December 17, 2018 by wallfish

[The Tuul Crib 7,337]

Sweet! I do have some miradic acid have been wanting to get rid of. Will give that a try!

[The Tuul Crib 7,337]

2 hours ago, formariz said:

I have used this unusual method for years and its always been extremely effective. No chemicals no noise. Takes a little thinking and setting up but once you have the system set up , then every other time its cake. I have a thread about it here somewhere. Its just plain electrolysis. I first do the inside of tank then the outside.

What would be that method?

[JoeM 7,874]

electrolysis, this web site shows how to set it up for external items.

 

https://www.instructables.com/id/Electrolytic-Rust-Removal-aka-Magic/

 

 

[Lee1977 6,804]

I used Oxi Clean a cup of dry to a gallon on my Toyota pickup tank. I had it plugged up and kept rolling it over. That was back in July the sun helped as it was hot out there on that concrete. It did a good job. My trouble was trying to get all the rust flakes out of a 13 gallon tank. I reniced at least 8 times and gave up. I have changed the gas filter three times.

Edited December 17, 2018 by Lee1977

[wallfish 17,083]

10 hours ago, The Tool Crib said:

I do have some miradic acid have been wanting to get rid of.

Where and/or how do you get rid of it after using it in the tank?

One more benefit of the cider vinegar is it's biodegradable and easily disposed of. 

Either way you go use some baking soda mixed with water to neutralize the acid, rinse and blow it dry

Edited December 17, 2018 by wallfish

[Achto 27,811]

2 hours ago, wallfish said:

Where and/or how do you get rid of it after using it in the tank?

 

https://www.poolcleanerblog.com/how-to-dispose-of-muriatic-acid-safely/

[formariz 11,988]

15 hours ago, The Tool Crib said:

What would be that method? 

 

14 hours ago, OILUJ52 said:

electrolysis, this web site shows how to set it up for external items.

 

https://www.instructables.com/id/Electrolytic-Rust-Removal-aka-Magic/

 

 

Simple electrolysis! The difference here is that i place the anode right inside tank. It is simply a threaded rod or a bar that is bent to go inside tank as much as possible. The closer  and the larger the anode is to the part being cleaned the faster and more efficient the cleaning. Hardest part of this method is not to allow bar to touch tank. One could just insert entire tank in the solution as another normal part, but I found that the interior that way was never cleaned properly. Many ways to achieve cleaning a tank but I was not a fan of the noise or the use of chemicals to do it. This is 100% effective and safe. As far as rust removal there is nothing more effective.You set it and forget about it . Does not matter how long it is going for , the longer the better. Immediately after I take it out and rinse it in hot water I place it on top of a kerosene heater to dry it. Just have to leave it there for short periods so one does not overheat metal.

As I need it I fabricate all kinds of crazy contraptions and containers to clean odd  shape and size parts. I collect Emmert vises and for the beam alone I have a container made up of a 5" PVC pipe . After a couple of days those beams look like they just came out of the foundry.

Edited December 17, 2018 by formariz

[The Tuul Crib 7,337]

 I just had another brainstorm how about a liter of Coca-Cola !

[WHNJ701 4,165]

2 hours ago, The Tool Crib said:

 I just had another brainstorm how about a liter of Coca-Cola !

vinegar works the best, it will cost you 2 dollars and soak it for a week, don't waste your time with electro method it's more of a hassle.  be careful with muriatic acid that's stuff is nasty and if it's to strong it will eat your tank away

[Jerry77 1,218]

3 hours ago, jabelman said:

muriatic acid that's stuff is nasty and if it's to strong it will eat your tank away

Yeah, 3 parts water and 1 part acid - not that nasty and more effective than these other methods

[wallfish 17,083]

11 hours ago, Achto said:

 

https://www.poolcleanerblog.com/how-to-dispose-of-muriatic-acid-safely/

Thanks!

Just seems much easier to use cider vinegar and it's even easier than reading all those instructions too!

[DennisThornton 4,769]

Hard to beat vinegar!  Takes longer but cheap and safe.  Mostly ignored as a rust remover but it works good anyway. 

[Charles123 12]

Coca-Cola and baking soda

[The Tuul Crib 7,337]

This might look like chunks of coal but this is what I pulled out of my gas tank. Was a little chunky it was.  This tractor has obviously been sitting for a while. Now I'm going to flush it out and add the vinegar ! 

  Yeee. Haaa!

[Ed Kennell 38,687]

How did you get the coal loose?    Was the 1/2" hex nut in the tank?

[The Tuul Crib 7,337]

 Well that was one of many nuts that I put in the tank without realizing there was a thick layer of black yuck at the bottom. I just went in to the tank with a blunt pic and tried to break it all down and chip it out!

[wallfish 17,083]

Drop a hand full or two of drywall screws in there and shake away or strap it to a tire on a tractor and drive. The sharp edges will help scrape away any remaining. Unless you got it all.

Noth'n worse than that old gas stink. Had some spill on a pair of work boots and had to throw them away.

[Horseoholic 193]

I've used these products with good results, I put half a fuel tanks worth of carburetor parts cleaner in fuel tank if it's "gummed" up along with some nuts , fish tank gravel etc. Something that doesn't have sharp ends like screws, and shake and roll it around for a few days off and on till the gummed up mess loosens up, then drain tank and repeat if necessary. The jug of "Evapo-Rust" works really good on rusty tanks, just pour it in and let it sit and soak a few days and drain (this stuff is bio-degradable and can be used over and over again) . The final product is made by por-15...... It is a tank sealant, when used by the instructions, completely seals and coats tank and looks like brand new inside, any type of fuel will not harm this coating after it's applied and properly cured.