Removing rust from inside a gas tank

[Petorius]

I have never attempted to restore a tank with rust on the inside. Is this a big undertaking? I'm curious as I am in the market for a tank for the SV. The cheap ones that appear to be in decent shape are usually rusty.

[Kurlon]

Evaporust / Metal Rescue works well to eat the rust out from the inside. Put tank in a plastic tub, fill tank and tub so it's submerged with no air bubbles in a mixture of Evaporust and water and let it cook for a few days. I'd plan on applying Casewell or a similar lining after, and if the tank is REALLY bad you may find pinholes where the rust was the only thing keeping the gas in.

[Pigman]

POR15 has a good kit too......there stuff is KILLER

[gamorg02]

always loved this write up. pretty detailed:

How to: Tank Rust Removal (Pic Heavy!) - ADVrider

[breakdirt916]

Also cream

[ilikenapalm]

Ballers believe in cream.

[isaac_]

Kyle had really great results using apple cider vinegar. Like 100% rust removed from what he told me. Said he filled up the tank and left it in overnight. Don't underestimate how much you'll use.

[motoarch]

Coke. I tried all this specialty shit and plain coka cola worked best. Makes you not want drink soda ever again.

[carsick]

The POR-15 Motorcycle tank repair kit has 3 steps, a caustic wash to remove any fuel bleck, an acid wash to strip all the rust, and a tough as nails paint to coat the tank, preventing it from rusting again. It takes time to do it right, but it works great. I've done 3 tanks. You can get it from parts stores or all over the net.

[sedanman]

I have not used the POR fuel tank products but am a big fan of their line as a whole. For the products I have used they live up to all of their claims.

[Kurlon]

Avoid Kreem like the plague. Horrible stuff, flakes off in chunks and clogs errrrythang after a year or two.

[Garandman]

Ballers believe in cream.

Kyle had really great results using apple cider vinegar. Like 100% rust removed from what he told me. Said he filled up the tank and left it in overnight. Don't underestimate how much you'll use.

Coke. I tried all this specialty shit and plain coka cola worked best. Makes you not want drink soda ever again.

Cream is very slightly acidic And Kreem doesn't remove rust. Coke has a pH of around 3 due to the phosphoric acid. Apple vinegar has a pH around 4 and distilled white vinegar at 5% is around 2.5. I've left rusty tools like pliers in vinegar for a day or two with good results. Many commercial rust-removal products like Extend or Naval Jelly use phosphoric acid and converts the rust to Iron phosphate, the black stuff. Evaporust uses citric acid.

[hdscarbro]

Rust911 is a much less expensive alternative to Evaporust. I've purchased it several times. It works very well, especially if you use an aquarium heater to keep the temperature of the solution warm. This would probably help with any acid.

Here are some photos an a brief description of a gas tank from an SRX600 that I restored using Rust911 and Caswell Tank Liner.