hole in petrol tank

[chrisv]

A newbie of sorts here. Had a Chimaera for over a year now but visited this site regularly without posting - probably due to the fact that the car has been trouble free!!!!!

Until now that is - although it is probably of my own doing. As the title of the post suggests I have a (tiny) hole in the petrol tank.

Has anyone had this problem and managed to get the tank welded, or is it a case of a new tank? I've been quoted £750 for a new tank (excl labour) which seems a bit steep to me. Getting another quote (does it sound right?) Lastly does anyone know if the tank repair kits (I used Quicksteel Epoxy putty) are good enough to use as a permanent repair?

Thanks in advance for any advice

Just seen the "Petrol Bomb" post. Supraman - where did you get the petrol tank quote of £300 from?


>>> Edited by chrisv on Wednesday 23 April 12:40

[shpub]

Welding petrol tanks is very dangerous as they tend to explode. Can be done by flushing with an inert gas but dangerous.

Not totally convinced that Quick steel works well with alloy either.

Steve
www.tvrbooks.co.uk

[incorrigible]

Welding petrol tanks can be dangerous, but needn't be IMHO

Whenever I've done it you need to drain and remove the tank, flush it, and fill it with water (leave the water in while you weld it)

The other option is soap, if you'v got acces to the hole just rub some soap (the REALLY cheap stuff, big blocks of green evil smelling stuff that granny swears by) and rub it over the hole

some sort of chemistry happens, bloody clever, I didn't believe it till I tried it

[shpub]

incorrigible said: Welding petrol tanks can be dangerous, but needn't be IMHO

Whenever I've done it you need to drain and remove the tank, flush it, and fill it with water (leave the water in while you weld it)

The problem then is that the water dissipates the heat and it can be difficult to get sufficient heat into the metal to get a good repair. It has also been known to create steam which can be almost as dangerous as a big bang.

[chrisv]

Thanks guys
I don't think I will try the welding myself. (The tip I had got from my father in law was to give the tank a really good steam clean before the welding).The quicksteel stuff has held so far, but was just meant as a way of me getting home without petrol sloshing round in the boot. My wallet was just hoping that the temporary fix on the label was just a disclaimer

The soap idea sounds intriguing - can't see any harm in trying that!!!

Otherwise I will continue my hunt for a willing welder or a cheaper tank!
Cheers
Chris

[anonymous-user]

Mine was leaking, took it to Castle TVR and they sent it to a guy who welds alloy.

£250 for the whole job, I think about £85 was welding it, the rest labour.

It would have been £300 for a new tank + labour.

Lee.

[mongoose]

ive seen some stuff in the classic car mags that you poor into a dry tank and it coats it all inside,also fills and seals small holes.dont know if it works with ali but it might be worth looking into.