Golden Monk Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 (edited) Got home today and I could smell fuel, opened up where the fuel sits and found that fuel had overflown into the boat. Also that recess in the pic on the tank was full up to the brim of fuel, bloody ell! I have now taken the tank out and it still seems to be leaking from the joint on the fuel out line due to expansion and the tank is only half full, should I leave the vent holes open on the fuel lid? (I thought that was only necessary when fuel is sucking in from the motor), store the tanks somewhere else aside from leaving it in the boat, the boat is under shade and all. Also just as a side note, If I store a spare tank under the front deck, will it be safe considering thats where my Gel Cell battery sits..worried about battery sparks.(or am i being paranoid) EDIT - BTW - Just bought this tank on Saturday and fitted the Merc fuel joint. Edited February 14, 2005 by Golden Monk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jocool Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 You can get a tube of sealant called STAGG. Its perfect for joints on fuel lines as it isnt affected by fuel. Run a bead of that on the threads of the joints after you have taken them of and cleaned them and dried them properly. As to the breather...I used to leave it open whn stored. A tank will get a build up of heat, and the fuel will expand. It will find the weakest point in the tank to depressurise. In your case it was the joint. My boat has an underfloor fuel tank with breathers on either side of the hull. They don't ever get turned of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golden Monk Posted February 14, 2005 Author Share Posted February 14, 2005 Ahh great, thanks guys, I will leave the breathers open then..so its ok to leave the breathers open under the deck? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djmac Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 yep you need to let it breath as much as you can i have the underfloor tank but also similar to your one in a pic down the back. ill have to hit some of that sealant up too it resides under the baittank and ive been getting a bit of water in my filter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golden Monk Posted February 14, 2005 Author Share Posted February 14, 2005 (edited) Ok, so I can leave the vent open under front casting platforms with the battery and with the platforms closed and no need to worry about blowing myself or any other person up? don't the fumes vapors act like gas, so if there is a spark or something. Sorry to be a pain, just want to make sure, new boat and all Edited February 14, 2005 by Golden Monk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bluecod Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 Golden, Do yourself a major favour and do a Google search on these keywords "gasoline" + "spark" + "explosion", then make up your own mind. From high school chemistry I think petrol vapour needs to be around a concentration of 33:1 [air/petrol] at which point it will explode with the slightest spark [even static electricity]. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
basic_fisho Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 Hi Golden. The one thing you MUST do is stop the bloody leak,take out the outlet connection you put in, clean it up,then use the stagg that Joe reccamends,and when you think it is sealed o.k. fill it near on full in the sun with the valve open,it must not leak,some silly barstewerd could flick a cig. butt out at any time and you have a real problem.Dont take a chance on fuel.Thats my two cents worth,hope all goes well.Ben. P. S. Have the tank out of the boat when working on it,and clear of everything if poss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
REKLESS Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 I also have a fuel tank under the front hatch.33:1 is a bad mix and creates what is technically a fuel air explosion if ignited.see daisy cutter under big bombs. I leave my hatches open ...all of them ,the fguel vapours are lighter then air and will dispate naturally.As far as electrics go,I store my battery on the deck .No matter what,I do not trust electrics in a salt water environment ,let alone sitting next to 30l of unleaded!.Stagg the shitter out of the fitting. Something to think about though,I think that the internel pressure forced the fuel out through the sealing ball bearings on the fuel line fittings,just try an experiment and sit on it to see wexactly where the the fuel comes out. I leave my breathers open 24/7. simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mystic shad Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 Ive got two of the same tanks. As the saying goes "pay peanuts u get monkeys" One tank leaks awefully bad and the other is not so bad. I decant the fuel from the tanks when I get home into a decent jerry can, mainly to avoid the risk of fire and also to prevent the fuel evaporating which then gives me an oilier mix over time. Unless you have a decent breather then you are inviting moisture to get into the tank. Oilier mixes and wet fuel make for unreliable two strokes and bummer days on the water. As you live in Mulgoa, seriously consider the fire potential. Relative humidity is very low in your district which greatly increase the risk of chargrilled stessl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golden Monk Posted February 14, 2005 Author Share Posted February 14, 2005 Great, now I am really paranoid, am at work its going to be a stinking hot day and I didnt open the front casting deck where the spare fuel is stored, I did open the back deck though, this is where the leaky tank sits and I also have the vent open on this tank. I think I will store the tanks in the garage once I get home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golden Monk Posted February 14, 2005 Author Share Posted February 14, 2005 I was also able to tighten the connections quite a bit more, so hopefully this will fix the leak until I can get some sealant as well, with the vent open it shouldnt leake anyhow. And the front tank is pretty well sealed, havent had a problem with that yet, so should be ok! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexit Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 Hey mate I have the same tank and went through the same problem. The boat is kept outside and if I shut the breather then as the tank expands and contracts it would push fuel up and out the outlet valve. I put it down to a cheap tank as I have a few plastic jerries and the cheap one does the same leaks while the better quality (with really 'solid' plastic) is fine. I think the better tanks can cope with the expantion pressures better. I don't have the tank under a hatch so I just leave the breather open. alex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grantm Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 Ill confuse ya some more monk. I personally wouldnt store a vented or even non vented tank under a deck with a battery, this is a recipe for a kabooom. Fuel vapour from a vent is highly atomised and even a dodgy mobile phone which is ringing can cause it to ignite.(which is why mobiles are banned in my workshop) Even your battery MUST be vented somewhat. Do not seal that off completely either. I know they look nice and are out of the way but its not good, just a tiny vent is good. If you want to carry more fuel perhaps a jerry is safer and stored in another compartment. Putting fuel near a battery in any instance is a problem that needs to be fixed. Fuel tanks of all descriptions need to be vented in or our of use when they have fuel in them as the connections just wont handle the pressure, plus it badly distorts plastic tanks. Only proper fuel containers should be sealed. Personally I store any fuel in jerrys when not in use then transfer fuel if needed. If your tanks are leaking through pressure build up dont cover this up by sealing with sealant. Only seal when they leak under vented conditions. Stag has been mentioned but IMHO is not the best thing for this (sorry Joe). Locktite has some good products for sealing and are non flammable as well. I find Stag unsuitable for fuel repairs due to its thick consistancy making a full seal difficult when using on plastic. Not bad on steel repairs though. Hope this helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golden Monk Posted February 14, 2005 Author Share Posted February 14, 2005 DaveL, you sure you still want to be my deckie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buz Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 G'Day Guys, I have Hulk tanks and they are useless, one split at the thread, I would'nt buy them again. Buz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken A Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 I had not thought of the repercussions of a battery hiting a metal tank! One flash & your ash Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken A Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 no current applied to the outside of a sealed metal container can cause a spark on the inside of that container. Probably wouldn't matter if it was possible anyhow, there wouldn't be enough oxygen inside to fire it up. Like you said outside is where the danger is. You CANNOT be too careful with fuel . I have one of those tanks like yours Golden Monk which I use to transport fuel from the servo to my home to top off my underfloor tank. To be honest thats all its good for to contain fuel for 20 minutes. I'm not a fan at all of plastic fuel tanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jocool Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 Stag has been mentioned but IMHO is not the best thing for this (sorry Joe). Locktite has some good products for sealing and are non flammable as well. I find Stag unsuitable for fuel repairs due to its thick consistancy making a full seal difficult when using on plastic. Not bad on steel repairs though.Hope this helps 31869[/snapback] Understand completely Grant. I don't to offer bad advice. Having said that, my tanks are Alloy so I don't have the plastic problem! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golden Monk Posted February 15, 2005 Author Share Posted February 15, 2005 (edited) Ok, another final paranoia question, If I store them in the garage on a hot day vented with the car in there, If I then go to start the car or turn the lights on even, could this ignite the fumes? or does this sound veery far fetched... There is a vent about brick size up the top of the garage, and I guess under the person door, and that would be the only air flow. Edited February 15, 2005 by Golden Monk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bluecod Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 GM, Petrol vapour is heavier than air and will settle to the lowest point, provided there is reasonable air flow through your garage and the floor slopes to the main entry door then there shouldn't be too much to be concerned about. Use your sense of smell and if you notice strong petrol odours investigate it. Keep in mind that petrol will explode at about 33:1 which is a pretty strong concentration that you could probably taste, let alone smell in the air. Petrol is not the only substance around the house that can ignite but can be a bit of a concern when stored/handled incorrectly - also check your household insurance as most policies will become invalid if you store more than "X" amount of petrochemicals in the one location. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mike.L Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 Stag also shrinks as it cures , grants right loctite to your hearts content, all the bearing shops in sydney stcock it... CBC BSC SKF etc etc A Hydraulic sealany like loctite 542 would be perfect due to the smaller thread sizes your working with, and will allow easy disassembly if ever needed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveW Posted February 15, 2005 Share Posted February 15, 2005 I've got two of the Yamaha branded tanks and they are perfect, never leaked, no hassles with venting etc. If you go to one of the major Yammy dealers you can generally get them pretty cheap, as Yamaha supplies them with all their motors (up to 70hp I think). Some of these motors end up connected to underfloor tanks, therefore the portable one is excess. From memory I paid $30 for one (with the fuel lead), as my motor already came with one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golden Monk Posted February 15, 2005 Author Share Posted February 15, 2005 Thanks all, I have gained a great deal of knowledge from this appreciate all the responses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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