fuel tank lining information needed

I am working on my 63 Mercury Meteor. I have replaced the floors and am working my way back cleaning and sealing the floor. I removed the fuel tank today and it is in good shape, but rusty inside (had a radiator shop check it). I have talked to 2 shops and no one seems to clean and line tanks any more. The rad guy who looked at the tank said the newer blended fuels are flaking the coating off and he won't guarantee the lining. I have done a little on line looking and there are kits (like POR-15) for restoring fuel tanks. There are replacement tanks available, just looking to keep this build budget. Any one with experience or advice about the tank lining kits?

 

I used Eastwood's kit about 5 yrs ago. Not fun, and there is the problem of disposing of however many gallons of muriatic acid, and acetone, and other stuff. But it's been holding up fine, and I've had zero problems with rust in the fuel since doing it.

Others on here just acid clean and use the phosphating solution rather than pouring in the liner. That's OK if your tank is "really" sound! You'll find any pinholes with the acid.

 

I paid 300. for a new tank for my car
and i am a cheep a$$

when the lining fails on you in the middle of nowhere
i have a friend with a rad shop sees them all the time
the tow and time lost would make up for the price of the new tank

or if it isnt that bad
look up
electrolysis rust removal


Paul Jug

 

Thanks for the responses - I saw a new tank would run me about $300. It would seem a shame to spend the $ on the kit then have problems down the line.

 

I had a customer bring in a nicely painted model"A" earlier this year that had sat unused for many years. One of the problems I had to correct was allot of rust in the tank. An Idea that I picked up on one of my motorcycle boards was to use a product called C.L.R. I got a batch of it at home depot, it was inexpensive, and it worked great. It took a couple of days of soaking, and I drained it, strained it and reused it over that time, but it came out clean. That worked so well that I did one of my bikes at the same time, but showed some pinhole leaks after the cleaning. I used a tank sealer kit from a company named CASWELL, and have been very happy. I know that POR15 is excellent as well, but I haven't used it myself. Caswell website is www.caswellplating.com

 

buy a tank! some things you just dont try and skimp on, and this is one of them.

 

I've used the POR-15 with good success. It dries hard like paint. Definitely avoid the soft products like Kreem.


If the tank is just rusty with no pinholes, you can eliminate the rust with Evapo-Rust. Clean any crud or loose rust out first, then pour a few gallons of evapo-rust in and rotate it around until all the surfaces are derusted.