Fuel Tank Repair

[gamillerman]

Has any one had any experience with these people or heard any feedback about their work?......what they describe and the warrenty look pretty good

http://www.gas-tank.com/

Thanks

[BobW]

I used a different shop in the same chain, Gas Tank Renu USA. My tank had several rust through spots in the bottom. They welded in a new section in the bottom and sealed the tank. It has been in the Jeep for about a year and it works good. I did not like the look of the tank with their thick coating on the outside. It would be fine it the tank was under the back of the vehicle, but it is out in plain view. The hold down straps were a tight fit too since the coating is so thick. Here is a photo after I painted it.

[wesk]

If you review their web site you have the option to request they do not coat the outside of the tank. Since tthe majority of shops access the inside of these tanks from the bottom and most damage is usually restricted to the bottom I would request they didn't coat the outer top half for appearance purposes.

The site looks like it portrays a very respectable shop.

[gamillerman]

Thanks for the feedback. I am not looking to do a factory resto show vehicle; more in the line of a restored to original condition driver. My tank is not all that bad.....a couple of pin holes in the bottom and sitting with fuel in the tank for 8-10 years gummed up the inside pretty good. With the prices they quote and the warrenty it looks to be a good deal compared to a repo tank that may not fit perfectly vs restoring my original tank. If I decide to go with them I will post some photos of the finished product.

Thanks again

[TomM]

This is a chain of repairers. A while back I had called some of them in my area asking if they could coat only the inside and leave the outside bare for painting. None of them in the northeast would do it.
So if your tank is in reasonable shape and coating the inside only willl do what you need, be sure you really have a talk with the owner so they dont gunk the entire tank.
Tom

[TonyMorreale]

It sounds like this is a repair that you can do at home and save some money, especially in the labor costs. Regardless of the product you use, be sure to follow the instructions to the letter if you do it yourself - make special note of required working temperatures, cleaning times, prep times, curing times etc.

Anyway - POR15 makes a great gas tank repair/seal kit for about $50 that includes etchers and sealer http://www.por15.com/products.asp?dept=12 I got an original M38 tank off ebay a couple years ago. It had been cleaned a couple years previous to me getting it, but had rust and several pin holes. I took it to a radiator shop that works on gas tanks and had them clean it again and repair one of the larger pinholes. I then used the POR15 kit to clean, etch and seal the tank at the house. Not caring what it looked like from the outside I painted the exterior with POR15 as well to finish things up (you can topcoat POR with whatever color you want, but you must follow their instructions to the letter when doing this). I did all this about 2 years ago and the tank sat on the shelf until 6 months ago (I got sidetracked). It's been filled with fuel since, driven every weekend, refilled, driven off road with fuel sloshing around, etc. and does not leak at all.

I was amazed at how their cleaner and metal ready took out the gunk and rust. Best of all, the cleaner is environmentally friendly so I didn't feel like I was working with toxic materials the entire time (though I did take all precautions like I was). I had never cleaned/sealed a tank or used POR15 before and was thrilled with the product and have used it since. I bought some extra POR15 marine clean and metal ready to go with the fuel tank repair kit and I think my cash outlay for the repair stuff, including the radiator shop cleaning, was less than $150.

I actually had fun doing my tank! No, I don't work for POR. It's just such a rare experience for me to buy a product and have it exceed my expectations that I thought I would pontificate for a moment...