Gas Tank Rust

I have an XJ750R that has been sitting for 10 years
Need to clean internal tank rust. I was going to use BB's & diesel, then BB's & marvel mystery oil, then wash out with gas.

Any better methods?
Greg

 

I took mine to a local raditor shop that boiled it out, electrostripped it, and lined it. Cost $45. Took a few weeks, but well worth it, I think.

 

there was a method i saw online you make a sacrificial electrode out of a coat hanger and your 12v battery charger to do electrolysis it looked like it worked wonders. he said it took about 3 days of sitting. i'll try to find a link

 

here's that link http://www.altelco.net/~jacil/clay/moto ... Setup.html

 

somewhere I have heard on the Honda 750F forum that someone used gravel purchased for a fish tank, put in the gas tank and shake the heck out of it till all the rust is gone.
Not sure but sounds like a good idea.

 

just remember whatever you put into the tank has to come back out, do urself a favor and use something that can be picked up with a magnet.

 

KILLER LINK!! I bought a kreem tank kit but i think i will try this instead and see what happens

 

KREEM supposedly not compatible w alky. I'm doing mine w KBS kit. Said to be better than POR15.Guzzijohn :wink:

 

let us know how that turns out i'd like to do it but my tanks isn't rusty lol

 

Thanks for the replies everybody.
I'm ok with anodes. We use them in the chemical business (tank corrosion etc) and never thought they would work on rust...but the principle is the same.

Radiator shop method sounds good as well. I will check into options and advise.

 

In April I bought an XJ750 that had been sitting since 1983 with the same gas in the tank that was in it when it was parked. The tank was badly rusted. I happened to mention it to an engineer I work with and he recommended a strong solution of muriatic acid with some large nuts and bolts to swish around to knock the rust off.

The muriatic acid can be obtained from your local hardware store for about $5.00 a gallon. Be careful!!! Wear old clothes and rubber gloves. Take off the petcock and the fuel float and fashion covers out of some steel plate to take their place. I also used "Seal All" to seal the steel covers. Fill the tank with one quart of muriatic acid to 3 gallons of water. Let it sit for about 1/2 an hour then swish the nuts and bolts around. Repeat the procedure every 1/2 hour for fours.

Carefully open your tank with your face well to the side so you don't breathe in the escaping fumes - they smell pretty bad. Look inside to check the progress. It will probably look like new already but if not repeat the same procedure for a couple more rounds.

When it is clean, drain the acid solution and fill the tank with soapy water and rinse well. Take one of those magnets that has a telescoping handle and retrieve your nuts and bolts (best to use 5/16" or larger so that they are easier to remove and still small enough to get in some of the tighter places in the tank). Fill the tank with a half gallon or so of sacrifical gasoline and swish it around to recoat the surface with a petroleum substance to keep it from rusting because that surface will be so clean and rust-free that it will be prone to flash rust if you eliminate this last step. Drain this sacrificial gas, reassemble the petcock and fuel float and refill with gasoline and don't ever let this happen again.

This method is the best I have tried. The inside of my tank looks like new.

 

I used good old pink Naval Jelly; nothing more than phosphoric acid in a plastic jar. Home Depot or Lowes $4.50.

Dilute 2/3 jar with full tank water, shake well, let tank sit for 8 hrs overnight. Moderate rust will be all gone. Rinse well, with air hose blow all the water out, then use hair dryer. Not recommended for heavy scaling rust e.g. flakes.

Cheap to keep. Use Kreem or similar tank treatment after.

 

I was looking at one of the two step epoxy systems and their instructions said to use a pound of drywall screws to knock off the loose rust. They are pointy, sharp, a d ferrous for that easy magnetic clean up.

Something to consider.

 

I just tried the Naval Jelly and drywall screws. They worked great and I'm so glad I spent the extra $1 for 2' of small chain to drill the screws through. It was so easy to get them all out after the shaking!

 

Bad idea. I tried it (used crushed coral,) it did the job, BUT---was a BEEATCH to remove afterwards. I used the crushed coral in conjunction with a phosphoric acid (concrete cleaner from Lowes') bath followed by flush with combo of gas, motor oil and seafoam; then hot soapy water; then more seafoam/gas mixture and then vacuuming out all the damn coral bits. Looks great now but I would do it a bit differently next time.

 

I have used both the "sharp stones" and the "nuts, bolts and screws" methods on a number of tanks and IMHO the stones method gives the best result. The roughness of the stones acts like sandpaper to finish the inside of the tank. I use them with some kerosene. Having said that they are the worst to get out and you'll need mechanical fingers to retreive them. By far the easiest is the ferrous nuts, bolts screws method and a magnet to remove.

I'm a fan of POR15, this stuff is amazing. Don't use Kreem, it flakes like soggy cardboard after a time and is worse than the rust itself when you have to remove it.

Caution on the use of a vacuum cleaner to remove or dry anything. Only ever use on the blow side (if your vac has that feature) for drying or ensure that there are no flamable fumes present before using the suck side. Err on the side of caution as fumes passing thru the vacs electric motor could result in an explosion.

 

I just did mine with Eastwood's kit.
It starts with muriatic acid wash, followed by their two of their three parts and then an acetone wash just before you pour in their plastic liner that looks just like heavy cream.
It's similar to the Kream material and leaves a plastic liner inside your tank when cured.
I love the results. I had used it previously on a ZX900R Ninja that actually had pin hole leaks in the tank, in the lowest spot. Not only did the Eastwood kit seal the holes, but i rode the bike for 3 years before i sold it and never had a problem with the tank again.

But you HAVE to follow the steps exactly, when they say and how they say, if you expect to have the results i did. If you're lazy or rushed, or aren't one to follow directions, this isn't for you.

Eastwood's Gas Tank Sealer Kit For Bikes