Fuel Tank Removal Question

[JohnV8r]

What do I do to safely remove the 25 - 50 gallons of gas I currently have in the stock B31 tank before I prep the tank to be removed?

[In Memory Walter K]

Not a small problem as both myself and Randall went through it in our town. No one would take it. You should probably ask your local gas station if they have a disposal system available to them. Your local landscaper may take it. DO NOT put it in your car.

[JohnV8r]

LOL - I actually did think for a minute about putting it in my car, but then wised up.

My question was actually more along the lines of how do I get it out of the tank safely so I can remove the tank. I have five 13 gallon containers I can put the gas in, but I'm worried about being launched like a Roman candle trying to get the gas from the tank up into the containers.

Any thoughts on how to remove it from the tank?

I suppose I could always run the good engine for a couple of days...

[Rit]

In my state(Connecticut) there is a schedule of hazardous waste disposal. The locations change weekend to weekend during the summer in order to cover the state and give everybody a chance to dispose of their old fuels.

I was able to drop the 60 gallons of old fuel that was left in my old tanks at one of my state's roving drop-off centers.

With California's environmental standards, I'd be surprised if CA doesn't provide the drop-off service.

Rit

[Bob H.]

Are you able to burn brush? Bonfire or two or three or four till its gone..combustion is combustion...in an engine or on a brush pile..BH

[Tony Meola]

John

I had the same issue with about 60 gallons when I repowered. Iwent to Harbor freight and bought a barrel pump with a hand crank. I removed the sending unit and put it to the bottom of the tank and pumped it out into containers. I did it before ethanol hit the tank so I just ran it through my truck. 5 gallons a fill up.

[JohnV8r]

Was it something like this:

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/ ... _200129224

[Tony Meola]

John

Yes but I paid less at Harobor Freight several years ago. I just looked and they have one but the one they have now says not for gas. But that would work. Or you can get an electric fuel pump. Just don't create a spark.

[John F.]

Maybe this wasn't such a great idea, but I pumped the gas out of my tank into 5 gallon containers using one of those basic manual plastic bilge pumps. Worked fine. Used the gas in my truck.

[JohnV8r]

Tony,

I saw the one for $49 that looked like it would work, but said "not for gas." I actually don't necessarily mind spending the money on this one for two reasons: First, I have five Hunsaker 13 gallon gas jugs that are designed like racing car pit stop refuelers. I put reinforced clear tubing on them that I can insert in the gas fill and then lift up. I have used them in the past when I have gotten down to the marina too late to fuel up at the fuel dock before a tuna run. I have a love hate relationship with them because lifting and draining 13 gallons of gas five times in a row sucks. However, if I could use that barrel pump to not have to hold up the Hunsakers so they drain, that would be great. 130 cranks per tank or 650 cranks to deliver 65 gallons of fuel on those late arrival evenings sounds much better than holding up 79 lbs to me.

Thanks,

John

[JohnV8r]

John,

I guess the good news is if it hadn't worked, you probably wouldn't have known what hit you. LOL!

John

[ianupton]

During a troubleshooting session on an old Merc 250 (in line six) that had been retrofitted with electronic fuel pump, I had looked at swapping it out to see it it was the issue.

As I recall, you could get one from NAPA pretty cheap. A couple of hoses and battery connection and you are good to go.

Back home in storage I still have the one from engine and used it to drain fuel from boat tanks a while back.

Ian.

[Rawleigh]

Are you on the hard? If so, use a garden hose and siphon it . The price is right! No sense getting an expensive pump unless you can use it for something else later.

[Raybo Marine NY]

a cheap "racing fuel pump" from summit or ebay makes for quick work of draining fuel.
Its a good "tool" to have and one everyone will want to borrow from you so keep it locked up!

Mount it in a 5 gallon plastic bucket with a fuel separator to protect the pump, put a primer bulb on it and a generous length of hose to reach outside the boat and you have a great set up for cheap money and the whole deal stores itself in the bucket when you are done.

[Peter]

If the boat is out of the water you can siphon the gas out to a container set below the level of the fuel tank. Use a length of inexpensive plastic hose and get the siphon started with one of those outboard fuel line primer bulbs. BUT be aware that once the siphon starts it doesn't stop easily until you either lift the output end up above the input level, or bleed a little air into the line. It sounds silly, I know, but all of a sudden it seems like getting that output end up high enough to stop the flow isn't so simple!

You could also use some sort of shut off or crimping setup to stop the flow. Just have whatever method you choose to use ready before you start.

You want to use clear plastic hose so you can watch the flow.

If you think you might want to use the gas anywhere else add one of those inexpensive little disposable in-line fule filters from NAPA. I pulled about 30 gallons out of my tank and I went through 4 of those things in the process.

I rigged up an inexpensive 12V automotive fuel pump to pump the gas out of my tank. Looking back it was overkill. I could have accomplished the same with the outboard bulb siphon thing and I wouldn't have had to mess around with the gas fumes around electricity issues either.


Peter

[Carl]

5/8 or 3/4" Hose from tank thru scupper to Jerry jug on ground.

I should have used a siphon bulb...but been siphoning gas so many years manually i just don't give it a thought anymore.


Electric fuel pump works good for cheap too...but slow.

[John F.]

now that I think about it, I siphoned most of the gas out using a clear plastic hose to gas tanks on the ground, and pumped out the remainder with the manual plastic pump.

[JohnV8r]

Gravity certainly is an inexpensive option. I'm going to pull the inspection plate to try to get a sense of how much gas is actually there. The boatyard that is attached to my marina will pull the engines and lift the gas tank out without requiring me to haul the boat out. That is why I need to have the gas tank empty before I head over to the boatyard. Since I don't have a seasonal need to be out of the water, I am going to do the prep work in my slip and don't want to be hauled out yet.

[Raybo Marine NY]

Electric fuel pump works good for cheap too...but slow.

why you want to use a higher volume "race" pump

[Bruce]

Theres a perfect reason for slow.
Doesnt take that much to distract the average person, high volume pumps leave no room for error when filling containers. The next thing you know is fuel is spilled and fumes are more dangerous than liquid.

Besides we aint talking days on 50 gallons and a 19 buck napa pump.

Any novice who isnt experienced should always take it slow.

you can always find someone whos willing to take gas off your hands. I had to only ask two people to dump 60 gallons a few weeks back.

[Bruce]

Why exactly are you removing the tank?

[Raybo Marine NY]

right- for 25-50 gallons no need
but if you were wanting to set yourself up with a nice set up for future use the higher volume pump is not that much more money, besides its not like it turns it into a pressure washer of fuel it just works faster then a regular pump.
I think I paid $50 for the "race" pump, and the last time I bought a Mr Gasket low volume pump for the old tug from advanced auto parts it was like $45.

[JohnV8r]

You know Bruce, that may be the best question I've been asked yet. I don't particularly want to remove the tank, but there has been ethanol in the tank. California had 5.7% ethanol until about 18 months ago and then it got bumped up to 10%. I have not had any ethanol related problems to date. However, I don't want to do anything stupid when I'm about to throw down $50K+ for new 6BTA's.

I'll know more about the condition of the fuel tank when pull the inspection plate. I'll take lots of pictures.

New fuel tank or not, I have to get the gas out of the tank at some point. That is why I asked the question that started this thread.

[Keith Poe]

I have used the 20 dollar faucet fuel pumps they are slow takes forever.

3/4" hose is much faster with one person inside with the hose in the opening for the sending unit and second person outside with the cans.

The clear hose is great for many reasons to inspect what is coming out of the tank and the flow.

There is a really easy way to prime the hose with out anything other than your hand or a valve.

Push several feet inside the tank to allow the hose to fill as much as possible then put your thumb over the end of the hose or close the valve to keep the fuel from returning back in to the tank as you lift the hose then let gravity siphon for you works great.

Reading this reminded me of doing heavy demolition a family business for many years.

When we were removing all the SERVICE stations that used to be on nearly every corner we would need to cut up some of the fuel tanks and used a cutting torch.

I forget what the math was but we would use dry ice inside them then put the torch to them.

Use to take the nicer fuel tanks and hired a welder to build in dump trailers high sides and low sides.

Hey i heard people with a lot of money something i wouldn't know about call a company to handle their fuel and polish it and the tanks for several different reasons including fuel conversions.

To my understanding it's illegal in Ca. to fuel from a dock in a marina because of the possibility of fire trapping other boaters in their vessels.

OK that's everything that came to mind reading this.


http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=fue ... 2960646845" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;






.

[Bruce]

Unless the tank is visibly delaminating or dissolving on the interior, don't remove it.

[IRGuy]

John...

Please email me.. I might have some info for you on Cummins 6BTs.

Frank B

IRGuy@aol.com

[Whaler1777]

No no no need to remove that tank... The guys on here and some ingenuity helped save me $5000 on a replacement and Go only knows how much labor... If there is no delanination then don't fix what isn't broken... I had about 120 gallons of bad old stinky fuel in mine when I got it... Had to pay a pump out company to come remove it with a vac truck...

[JohnV8r]

No no no need to remove that tank... The guys on here and some ingenuity helped save me $5000 on a replacement and Go only knows how much labor... If there is no delanination then don't fix what isn't broken...

I will pull the inspection plate and take lots of pictures the next time I am down on the boat. NOTHING would make me happier than saving the $5K I expected to spend on a new fuel tank!!!

[JohnV8r]

OK Guys, I have pulled the inspection plate on my gas fuel tank.

This is the outboard side of the fuel tank prior to me touching it. You can see some little pimple like blisters.



This is after I took a paper towel and wiped some of the brown material off. The brown material was not necessarily sticky. The sides of the tank felt solid, but pimpled. There was no give or softness to the side of the tank.



The baffles inside the tank are clean as a whistle. No pimples or blisters at all. In this picture, you can see the bottom and some dirty stuff there. I did not put my hand down in it to see if it was 35 years of residual dirt or whether it was some kind of goo. Also, you can see what appears to be some type of seal that is falling off. I'm not sure that that was as I could not see it with the naked eye...only with my iPhone in the tank.



Here is a video of the inside of the tank:

http://youtu.be/-FjIA9pwRkI

I'm guessing this is an ethanol blistered tank and it needs to be replaced. However, I wanted to get some feedback first.

[Brewster Minton]

Garden hose then as UV would say"BURN AT NIGHT"

[Whaler1777]

The "seal" is your bonding strap..

[CaptPatrick]

I'm guessing this is an ethanol blistered tank and it needs to be replaced. However, I wanted to get some feedback first.

For a 40+ year old tank, your's looks pretty good... The very minor blistering is no need for concern and the conversion to diesel is fine. I wouldn't replace the tank unless it were to continue use as an ethanol laced gas tank. Just keep an eye on your primary fuel filters.

[JohnV8r]

Patrick,

Thank you! That just made my day.

Once I remove the gas from the tank, is there something I can do to remove the dirt in the bottom of the tank?

Also, my sending unit is shot. Is there somewhere I can go to replace the sending unit?

Thanks in advance.

John

[JohnV8r]

Also, are there any instructions on the modifications for return lines for upgrading the fuel tank for diesel?

[Capt.Frank]

John I would use one of the no moving parts type senders. I have a centroid going to my old SW gauge and very accurate. I had for 12+ years no problem. Isspro also has one that works very well. All you have to do is measure tank depth and shorten the sender by 1-2" or what every you want for safety. mine is like 1 1/2-2" if my memory is correct.

http://www.centroidproducts.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.isspro.com/proddetail.php?prod=RA9523-ISS" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[CaptPatrick]

John,

Isspro Ultimate Sender is the way to go...

Converting the tank for diesel will require new 3/8" supply hoses and adding new 3/8" return lines. The return lines will go into the fuel fill manifold plate. You may need to drill and tap the manifold if plug aren't already there. A down tube isn't necessary, just a pair of street 90s.

[Raybo Marine NY]

take a picture of the lid, it appears to be in poor shape from your picture

first pic is after the tank was cup open, there had been no fuel in this tank for at least a month and it had already been washed out twice, notice the permeation through the laminate
other pic show the lids

May not have the same opinion as others on here, but to in the grand scheme of things involving a diesel conversion is the cost of the tank a deal breaker?