About 6 months ago I had my '59 Edsel's fuel tank lined at a local radiator shop. They said I had a choice of either a red or white liner, I chose red thank god. The guy said he's been doing these tanks for 25 years and that the lining has never liquefied or corroded off and won't. (under normal cir***stances I ***ume) Well I'm doing maintenance on the Edsel today and notice the fuel outlet line on the tank is loose, so I go to tighten it. Next thing I know I has red goop all over my hands. I call the guy up and he says that it's not possible it's the liner, he suggests it may be rust, but I know it's not. I go ahead and drain a little bit of the gas and find this: I'm taking the tank in tomorrow to have them look at it. What should I have them do?
new? we've had Ethanol in the gas here for the last 15-20 years. I would hardly call it new. I've had a few tanks done at a local place and no trouble with it yet. Knocking on wood though, I have one there right now.
Shame for running Ag diesel on a street car. I'd say new tank, I've never been a fan of the liners, gas is tough stuff to keep at bay.
tank lining can work if its allowed to cure properly, most of the time impatience is the cause of liner failure, also SLIGHT water contamination in E15 gasoline will cause phase separation (causing the 15% ethanol to separate from the gasoline) and will damage rubber lines, orings, gaskets, and more than likely epoxy tank liners.. also since the ethanol acts like isopropyl (dry gas) the water stays mixed with the ethanol..
I used red-kote in my tank, I waited a week for it to dry leaving it in the sun during the day. It started turning my gas red about a month later.
I work at a motorcycle shop and we have tanks done all the time with this method. It works very well and is a lot cheaper than replacing the tank. However it is important that you let the coating dry for at least a couple of days before you reinstall it, otherwise some of the coating dissolves and makes the gas pink. This hasn't ever affected the running condition of the bikes as I believe it just burns. I might try draining the tank and letting dry out for a couple days. Also I used this system on my roadster and it worked mint.
The thing is, I had picked it up a few days after they said it was ready, and didn't install it for about a week after that.
If its not clogging up the filter it should be fine, sometimes if they really load them up with coating some will dissolve, just so long as its not affecting the running of the car. That being said if your worried about it our place guarantees them, maybe the guys who did yours will redo it for free.
I recently had an old gas tank (1924 to be exact) done by a local guy who's been using Red-Kote for many moons. I let it dry for a least two months. I recently started my motor (an old 283) & noticed a reddish tinge in the gas in the fuel filter bowl. I checked out the Red-Kote web site & they said that they use red dye in the coating so that the person doing it can see where they covered or didn't cover. They also went on to say that when fuel additives are used (such as Methanol) there have been instances where it has turned the gas a pink color. They say that they have had no reports of any problems as result of that. So far, things seem to be O.K. with my motor (which has a new carb). I would think that if there was a problem with the stuff, it would have surfaced already. Still, it's a bit unsettling.
Well I haven't run it in a long while, so the tainted fuel hasn't reached the engine yet. I'm taking the tank in tomorrow morning since I couldn't make it out there today. I already have a lead on another tank, and if it's good I think I'll just start over. I don't think I trust that tank anymore, let alone linings.
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