professional gas tank cleaning

[oddysea1]

Im considering having my gas tank professionally drained and cleaned. It is a built in tank in a boat that is 20 years old and has been idle for six years.Im guessing their is 10-15 gallons of gas in the tank based on the gauge. The cost is approx. 375 dollars.Any opinion on whether it is worth the cleaning fee.The company claims all sorts of build up on the walls of the tank are probably evident, because of the ethenol issue.Any experience witnessing the possible residue build up being removed or a opinion in this matter would ease my decision on spending the money on something I cant see.Thankyou Andy

ps Thankyou for rubrail and boot stripe advice it made the job easier!

 

[lakegeorge]

Re: professional gas tank cleaning

Was there gas in the tank for 6 years?

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: professional gas tank cleaning

You don't say what engine you have but given the many problems caused by bad gas and dirty tanks, it could be well worth it--plus you save several hours of your time with a dirty, kinda dangerous job and disposal issues. Six year old gas has to go.

Around here, being a harbor, there are a couple oil/gas disposal and clean-up companies, although I suspect many fuel companies can help. One attractive option here is to save a couple bucks by bringing the boat on a trailer to their place.

The price sounds reasonable given that it includes cleaning, not just pumping. Take care of your lines and filters, too.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: professional gas tank cleaning

Can you inspect the tank? There is usually a fuel gauge sender which will unbolt, giving a large round hole you can look into with a flashlight. How big is the tank? What is it's replacement cost, provided a standard tank model can replace it?

 

[frantically relaxing]

Re: professional gas tank cleaning

I love wives tales. Buildup on the walls of the tank from what? And even if there is, that's what gas filters are for. Chances are 99% that there's zero need to spend nearly 400 bucks to clean your gas tank.

Do this instead:

Siphon as much of the old gas as you can out of the tank. Put in 5 gallons of fresh gas and add a cup of Seafoam. Shake the boat a bit to slosh it all around. Get a new gas filter/water separator. Spend $50 on a generic marine-rated electric fuel pump, any decent auto parts store will have one. Get whatever wiring and connectors you like so you can connect it to some 12 volt power. Get a few feet of fuel line--- connect the IN side of the pump to your fuel tank's gas line, and run the OUT side to a 5 gallon gas can. Power up the pump, and start filling the gas can. Stop when it's pumped 3 or 4 gallons of gas...

If it pumped that 3 or 4 gallons of gas easily, then you can assume you have no crud blocking fuel flow. Carefully pour some gas into some sort of disposable glass jar, and check it out. If it's nice & clear and smells like gasoline instead of old paint, you're good to go. Put the gas back in the tank, reconnect the fuel lines correctly, and store that electric fuel pump someplace safe in the boat because it might be what gets you home someday!