Old Fuel Tank ... Restore it?

[blueriver]

Neighbor asked me this spring to take ove his 35 acre hay meadow ... I did.

I noticed He had a 100 gallon fuel tank under a tree ... rectangle tank ... I asked him about it said he had not use it in years. I bought it from him.

The plugs have been in it so no rain has gotten in and I would guess no other debris ... I plan to put a pump on it and use it for farm diesel ... the question is, should I try to clean it out? Or just put fuel in it.

 

[johnrex62]

I would definitely verify it was clean inside before filling it. You wouldn't want to risk your equipment to any unknown contamination if a simple rinsing of the tank could have prevented it.

 

[blueriver]

And what would you rinse it with?

 

[ryanbr]

And what would you rinse it with?

I used gasoline to clean it. If its got ethanol in it, it should do a good job of loosening up any rust or crap in the take. Make sure all gas is drained out before you put diesel in it. Hope that helps!

 

[MaJYk]

Use diesel, put bout 10 gal in it and pack it around in your truck for a few days.
Inspect how it comes out
Get a filtered pump

 

[MikeD74T]

Blueriver, Sometimes cleaning a tank does more harm than good . I'd do a good visual inspection inside & out. If there's evidence of residue inside I'd rinse with a couple gallons of diesel & pressure test to 3-5 psi. Put in a threaded schraeder valve , inflate, check pressure with ATV tire pressure gauge. Hold pressure for 24 hours. Putting a filter on your pump somehow is a good idea as well.

Here's how new tanks are pressure tested:
Factory Test Pressures on Steel Heating Oil Tanks


Residential above ground steel heating oil tanks are typically factory tested to 5 psi to 7 psi by the manufacturer, as our two photographs of oil tank labels show (above).

 

[blueriver]

Thanks ... all good advise. I assume the pressure test will let me know if there are any leaks ...my 12v pump does have a filter.

 

[forgeblast]

is there an item(product) that you can pour into old tanks to seal them and make them like new....I cant remember the product....unless im still dreaming the coffee hasnt kicked in yet.

 

[blueriver]

is there an item(product) that you can pour into old tanks to seal them and make them like new....I cant remember the product....unless im still dreaming the coffee hasnt kicked in yet.

Well wake up and tell us !!!

 

[Argosy]

Why would rinsing a tank do any harm? If it has sat for years my bet is it's pretty rusted inside. If you can get part of it out that's less to plug the filter.

I would get a big filter because it will probably plug a small one fast. And keep a spare element on hand.

They do make tank sealers. They're not cheap but changing filter elements can get expensive too.