Welcome to NESR! Most features of this site require registration, including replying to threads, sending private messages, starting new threads, and uploading files. Click here to register.

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 25 of 27

Rusty gas tank interior

  1. #1
    Just Registered BMFR6's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Worcester, MA
    Age
    46
    Posts
    3,430

    Rusty gas tank interior

    So it turns out the chopper (read: moped) has some rust in the tank. Anyone know of a good home based remedy to clean it out? I am well aware of Por15 and the like and I swear by the results as I've used them on other builds, but I'm looking to keep this whole build at $200 or less so spending a quarter of the budget on the tank isn't an option.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    LRRS EX #165 (formerly)

  2. #2
    Banned Rambunctous's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Location
    Waterville Valley, NH
    Posts
    7,282

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    Fill tank with 10 % saline water soulution. Using battery charger put negative to outside the tank. Using a coathanger the Positive will go into the
    tank but it cant touch metal. Use a cork or any Yankee know how. The forces of science will remove the rust. The coat hanger will also be gone. The process has a name but it eludes this uncluttered mind.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!

  3. #3
    Just Registered BMFR6's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Worcester, MA
    Age
    46
    Posts
    3,430

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    Quote Originally Posted by Rambunctous View Post
    Fill tank with 10 % saline water soulution. Using battery charger put negative to outside the tank. Using a coathanger the Positive will go into the
    tank but it cant touch metal. Use a cork or any Yankee know how. The forces of science will remove the rust. The coat hanger will also be gone. The process has a name but it eludes this uncluttered mind.
    1) What happens if the coat hanger touches the tank
    2) How long does it need to sit for

    I should add, this tank is on a moped. I have it stripped down, but the tank is still part of the frame and not a very user friendly shape.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    LRRS EX #165 (formerly)

  4. #4
    .... duey's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    Wilmington MA
    Age
    45
    Posts
    789

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    When I used to work at riverside I sold alot of THIS stuff. And I always heard good reviews on the stuff but have never personally used it.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    2021 Ducati Panigale V2
    2020 Honda Grom

  5. #5
    '12 Tuono & '02 R6 Eric Baker's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Derry NH
    Age
    42
    Posts
    1,164

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    So the tank won't come off the frame?

    Take the petcock/fuel level sensor and any filters out of the tank, and seal up the holes left from removing said items. Fill it with a vinegar/water mix and let sit for a day or so, repeat if needed until rust is removed, then pour in a cup of baking soda and shake around to coat the inside of the tank, leave for 45 minutes or so, to neutralize the vinegar. Then rinse with distilled water and let dry thoroughly, finally rinsing with some gasoline to remove any remaining water.

    If you can remove the tank, you can use a sand and water mix and rigorously shake for about 15 minutes before doing the vinegar procedure to remove most of the scaly rust.

    After this, you can coat the tank with one of various products to stop future rust, or just keep the tank full when sitting for a while.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    Last edited by Eric Baker; 05-21-11 at 06:56 PM.

  6. #6
    Just Registered BMFR6's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Worcester, MA
    Age
    46
    Posts
    3,430

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    Quote Originally Posted by Eric Baker View Post
    So the tank won't come off the frame?

    Take the petcock/fuel level sensor and any filters out of the tank, and seal up the holes left from removing said items. Fill it with a vinegar/water mix and let sit for a day or so, repeat if needed until rust is removed, then pour in a cup of baking soda and shake around to coat the inside of the tank, leave for 45 minutes or so, to neutralize the vinegar. Then rinse with distilled water and let dry thoroughly, finally rinsing with some gasoline to remove any remaining water.

    If you can remove the tank, you can use a sand and water mix and rigorously shake for about 15 minutes before doing the vinegar procedure to remove most of the scaly rust.

    After this, you can coat the tank with one of various products to stop future rust, or just keep the tank full when sitting for a while.
    It's a moped, the tank is part of the frame. Think I am going to try some kerosene and BB's and shake it as long as I can (again, it's a whole frame I need to shake). After that I'll probably try I vinegar/water solution, etc. We'll see what happens.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    LRRS EX #165 (formerly)

  7. #7
    Lifer Expat's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Worcester
    Age
    60
    Posts
    1,198

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    You can use dry coarse sand, that will work better than BB's, rinse thoroughly with water and dry completly then coat with POR15 or similar.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!

  8. #8
    Junior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Peyton Place
    Posts
    36

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    Quote Originally Posted by Rambunctous View Post
    Fill tank with 10 % saline water soulution. Using battery charger put negative to outside the tank. Using a coathanger the Positive will go into the
    tank but it cant touch metal. Use a cork or any Yankee know how. The forces of science will remove the rust. The coat hanger will also be gone. The process has a name but it eludes this uncluttered mind.
    Google: Electrolytic Rust Removal. Better living through science.

    You'll need Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda, aka sodium carbonate. You can also find the same stuff in pool or spa pH UP. Probably need something thicker than a coat hanger, as the process will pull iron oxide off of the inside surface of the tank and deposit it on the anode. Then you can pull the anode out along with all the rust.

    You can do the same thing for rusty parts. I built this:

    using a 5 gallon bucket, three lengths of rebar that were just taller than the bucket, all wired together. Fill the bucket up with the water/sodium carbonate solution, then suspend the rusty part in the solution on a wire. Hook positive to the rebars, negative to the suspension wire, and you can see bubbles starting to form. That's hydrogen gas, by the way. Might want to keep flames away from it.

    The rebars will end up coated with iron oxide, and the part will have a black oxide coating replacing the rust.

    As far as the gas tank, when cleaning the rusty tank on my GS1000G, I used bolts, nuts and screws. They have a more aggressive surface than bb's, and can remove more rust. Just count them before putting them in, and make sure that same number comes out. I'd caution against sand... unless you can guarantee that every last particle is out of the tank. Probably be a good idea to run a fuel filter anyway.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!

  9. #9
    I Love giggle drops..!! BluGixxer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
    Location
    Albany, ny
    Posts
    693

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    It just wouldn't bee the same if I didn't put in my 2 cents.
    Last tank I cleaned had bad rust. I had a car window,(tempered glas, beaks in little managable pieces) .fill tank as much as you can , try for half, that gave me good results. I attached a piece of 5/16 copper tubing , 8 " long,to the end of my airgun, bend to satisfaction. Straight doesn't get corners or the top/roof inside tank. Put rag over open holes, don't breath dust, squeeze trigger , and clean , took me about 30 min for a 1 1/2 gal tank wth bad flakey rust. Rinse good with petro product, diesel or kero and airhose. Don't need a degree in chemestry for this one.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    Beat It Like A Rented Mule !!
    Legend in my own mind

  10. #10
    Member VTRumble's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2007
    Location
    Kingston, MA
    Age
    51
    Posts
    149

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    This is a topic over on a 2 stroke forum I'm on, and a few people swear by the works toilet bowl cleaner. I guess it has muriatic acid in it and eats the rust. Plus they sell it at the dollar store. I'm going to try it on my tank this week, I'll let you know how it goes.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!

  11. #11
    ....................... PinHead's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2001
    Location
    Walpole
    Age
    54
    Posts
    5,465

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior


    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    2018 Harley Road Glide
    2000 Ducati 900ss
    2003 Harley Softail Deuce

  12. #12
    Lifer DuncanMoto's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Location
    Boston
    Posts
    4,890

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    Quote Originally Posted by duey View Post
    When I used to work at riverside I sold alot of THIS stuff. And I always heard good reviews on the stuff but have never personally used it.
    Kreem kit is a great solution.
    Done it twice and it works great.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!

  13. #13
    I Love giggle drops..!! BluGixxer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
    Location
    Albany, ny
    Posts
    693

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    When I worked on boas in S.Fla, we had a rubbermaid trascan filled with muratic acid and water, 50/50, it stinks, it does eat rust, it will not touch anything with oil or grease ,paint, rubber, on it, aluminun will disapear or become soft. Don't spill it on cocrete, or anything with lime. , after awhile it leaves a blck film which can be tough to clean ,do not drink , it won't give you a buzz, but will burn your eyes.
    I've tried a lot of things to remove rust, and I think muratic acid is one of the messiest and most difficult to clean up , being that the tank doesn't come off the bike
    You should look into the electrolisis way with bat charger and electrodes

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    Beat It Like A Rented Mule !!
    Legend in my own mind

  14. #14
    Lifer joeswamp's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2006
    Location
    Swampscott, MA
    Posts
    1,330

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    I'd really like to hear the experiences of those that tried the electrolysis method. I've used it on old tools and it works really well. Usually you have to scuff some black stuff off with scotchbrite at the end though, not sure of the best way to do that on the inside of a gas tank.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    Joe
    04 Thruxton (Street)
    01 SV650 (Track)
    75 CB400F (Future Vintage Racer)
    68 BSA Royal Star (Garage Floor Lubricator)

  15. #15
    Just Registered BMFR6's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Worcester, MA
    Age
    46
    Posts
    3,430

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    Quote Originally Posted by VTRumble View Post
    This is a topic over on a 2 stroke forum I'm on, and a few people swear by the works toilet bowl cleaner. I guess it has muriatic acid in it and eats the rust. Plus they sell it at the dollar store. I'm going to try it on my tank this week, I'll let you know how it goes.
    Going to give "The Works" a shot as well, picked it up at Home Depot for $1.58 . The electrolysis seems like it would be one of the most effective and least detrimental to the tank, but the way this tank is built it would be just about impossible to do it and not ground out the metal rod. As far as various methods, I found this link that explains a few of them. http://www.mopedarmy.com/wiki/Removi...rom_a_gas_tank


    For those of you that need to do this and don't mind spending $40-50, Por15 is by far the best stuff out there. I'll see if I can track down the pictures I have from doing the tank on the CB.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    LRRS EX #165 (formerly)

  16. #16
    Just Registered BMFR6's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Worcester, MA
    Age
    46
    Posts
    3,430

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    Thinking out loud about drying the inside of the tank after rinsing it. Picked up a couple bottle of 91% isopropyl rubbing alcohol. As per the link above, they say 70%. My understanding is 70% isopropyl = 30% water so going with a higher concentration = better due to less water. Any other suggestions?

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    LRRS EX #165 (formerly)

  17. #17
    '12 Tuono & '02 R6 Eric Baker's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Derry NH
    Age
    42
    Posts
    1,164

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    They probably only suggest 70% because it's easy to get at any drug store, whereas 91% etc is harder to get except at specialty stores.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!

  18. #18
    Junior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Peyton Place
    Posts
    36

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior


    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!

  19. #19
    Just Registered BMFR6's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Worcester, MA
    Age
    46
    Posts
    3,430

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    Quote Originally Posted by Eric Baker View Post
    They probably only suggest 70% because it's easy to get at any drug store, whereas 91% etc is harder to get except at specialty stores.
    Wal mart actually, think it was $1.00 for the big bottle

    Quote Originally Posted by zimquidl View Post
    Thought of that as well.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    LRRS EX #165 (formerly)

  20. #20
    Just Registered BMFR6's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Worcester, MA
    Age
    46
    Posts
    3,430

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    So I went with "the works" solution........ and it worked. Last weekend I sprayed about half a can of PB Blaster in the tank, dumbed in a bunch of 1.5" drywall screws and I just kept shaking the tank every time I walked by it hoping to knock off a bunch of the big/loose stuff. Dumped it today and then rinsed a handful of times with hot water and dish soap. Next I dumped in a half gallon of water and two 28oz bottles of "the works" then topped it off to the brim with more water. Let it sit for about 1.5 hours or so. I was skeptical because what I read online it said it would be bubbling, mine wasn't. Figured I diluted the solution too much. Dumped the solution and went to rinsing it with a water and baking soda mix, used a whole box of baking soda at roughly 1/4 cup per gallon of water so I'd say i rinsed it 6-7 times. Dumped in 2 bottles of 91% rubbing alcohol. Once I dumped that I fogged it with wd40. The results are impressive to say the least. It's probably as good as it will get for under $10. One word of caution, now that the rust is gone I can see how pitted the interior is. If you try this yourself, start with a diluted solution and increase from there. I think if I went full on "works" from the start, my next thread would be about how to patch and seal a gas tank.

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    Last edited by BMFR6; 05-28-11 at 10:17 PM.
    LRRS EX #165 (formerly)

  21. #21
    Lifer Garandman's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    Dorchester, MA / Mt Sunapee, NH
    Posts
    13,097

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior


    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!

  22. #22
    Unsafe At Any Speeds Jim's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2007
    Location
    :lurk:
    Posts
    12,504

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    EvaoRust. just used it 2 months ago

    1 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    EX 105
    Sponsors: Motul, Michelin, K&N, Woodcraft

  23. #23
    Angry Gumball RandyO's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2001
    Location
    Farmington, NH
    Age
    71
    Posts
    18,028

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    Oxalic Acid

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    RandyO
    IBA#9560
    A man with a gun is a citizen
    A man without a gun is a subject LETS GO BRANDON

  24. #24
    Being A Dick PurplePackage's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2020
    Location
    Chelmsford, MA
    Posts
    2,163

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    Just found this stuff:

    https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/19...es/AR51002.pdf
    https://www.amazon.com/Archoil-AR510.../dp/B00607D3XI

    Claims to be better than evaporust. I'll let ya know.

    1 Not allowed! Not allowed!
    Last edited by PurplePackage; 07-11-21 at 10:43 PM.

  25. #25
    Being A Dick PurplePackage's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2020
    Location
    Chelmsford, MA
    Posts
    2,163

    Re: Rusty gas tank interior

    Quote Originally Posted by PurplePackage View Post
    Just found this stuff:

    https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/19...es/AR51002.pdf
    https://www.amazon.com/Archoil-AR510.../dp/B00607D3XI

    Claims to be better than evaporust. I'll let ya know.

    Results are in; https://ibb.co/album/C5k1qb

    Its better than evaporust because its cheaper and does the same thing. You can make a 15 gallon dunk tank for $150! look around for a coupon code, I got 10% off and free shipping

    https://www.archoil.com/products/ar5...nt=40925863502

    0 Not allowed! Not allowed!

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Similar Threads

  1. Rusty Cycle Cafe
    By clutch in forum General Bike Related
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 06-23-13, 01:22 AM
  2. Rusty Chain
    By Pittenger5 in forum Bike Maintenance
    Replies: 43
    Last Post: 03-19-11, 10:24 PM
  3. Rusty Razor Blades
    By scottieducati in forum Wanted
    Replies: 34
    Last Post: 01-06-10, 05:40 PM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •