Cleaning Fuel Tank
Turbo Mini Forums

What is the best way to clean the fuel tank, and that strainer on the end of the pipe inside the tank? I have it out of the car.

What exactly your trying to clean out?

e.g rust or just general scanky petrol pump residue?

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1/4mile in 13.2sec @ 111 terminal on 15psi

There is alsorts of rust and general crap in the bottom and it blocked the gauze on the end of the pipe.

that strainers the first thing to go when i convert to turbo since the car wont go more than 500 yards with it in, then i also weld a return in so needed to clean the tank first.

i used degreaser, then flushed with clean water, then washing up liquid then repeated again to be sure. the tank still exploded when i welded it, so if i was you i'd try something else!!

When I have welded a fuel tank before I filled it with water to expel the fumes and then left it full of water while I worked on it.

how does everyone else clean it all out so you can mod it and it not blow up??

My build thread..

http://www.turbominis.co.uk/forums/index.php?p=vt&tid=542985

by a new tank or risk it by filling with water

in fairness it only went pop. my ears rang for about an hour and my parents came out to investigate. the tank burst and lifted about a foot of the ground.

filling with water and leaving full does work, BUT it may not. i've done a few and only one went pop but that was not full at the time.

i was thining of that tom, you posted seconds before i managed to send!

you could get the crap out of it with a jet wash coudnt you?

Edited by JT on 20th Nov, 2006.

My build thread..

http://www.turbominis.co.uk/forums/index.php?p=vt&tid=542985

A very long pole with a match on the end, an open field, and of course the ol' PPE should do the trick! Lol

A mate of mine used stones to clean his fuel tank out of rust, when he told me i was a little doubtful, but it did work!

Clean them first as best you can then swirl them about in tank, if its only surface rust then it shouldn't take too long!

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1/4mile in 13.2sec @ 111 terminal on 15psi

i know using bricks along with water is a good way of cleaning a cement mixer, the bricks nock all the cement off the sides, could be the same sort of thing using stones in the fuel tank?

My build thread..

http://www.turbominis.co.uk/forums/index.php?p=vt&tid=542985

I have previously used the rock method with a degreaser solution.

Make sure the tank is full and it'll be ok, to go bang it needs fuel, ignition source and air ..... if it's full there can be no air!

Keep an eye on it!!!!!

Flush with parfin with some blue hilamar (spelling??) when your finished and allow it to air dry and it will be sealled and ready to go.

Done quite a few and built a couple for kit cars from scratch and that works really well.

Oh by the way did I mention keep it FULL?????

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How fast and how expensive ...... the same question...

Hi,
A friend of mine used to throw lit matches into the empty tank. When the flames stopped shooting out, it was ready to weld!
Up until that point I never knew petrol tanks could dance!
Cheers,
Gavin :)

Edited by Bat on 20th Nov, 2006.

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