It has been a week
since I reassembled the fuel tank. The
Pro-Seal is cured and I will now proceed to retest the tank for leaks. The leak potential is of course the at the
new attachment clips and at the reinstalled sending unit attachment plate. I reattached the filler tube at the top of
the tank with the rubber coupling and compression bands. I also used a Scotch Brite pad on the inside
of the filler neck flange. I had
previously ground down a small blob of weld on the inside of the tube flange
and I wanted to make sure the inside of the flange where the cap sits was
smooth. It is.
I installed the air
valve and rubber hose to the fuel return fitting on the bottom of the
tank. I also attached a red balloon to
the fuel supply fitting. This time I
made certain that the hose clamp fittings were really tight. My first tank tests failed because the
fitting on the air valve was loose. I
made sure that didn't happen again.
For the retest I was not able to just install the fuel
cap and be finished. Since I have
drilled vent holes in the fuel cap it is no longer air-tight. I came up with what I consider to be an
ingenious method of sealing the vent cap.
I cut the cuff portion of a nitrile glove I used when I sealed the tank
with Pro-Seal. I put the section of
glove over the fuel cap and inserted it into the filler neck flange. I closed the latch on the cap and proceeded
to pressurize the tank. I marked the
time on the balloon – 2:45 pm.
At 5:40 pm I went into the shop to check the balloon. Sometime during the time I was gone the
balloon burst. I attached a new blue
balloon and repressurized the tank. This
time after the balloon was inflated I reduced the tank pressure. I reduced it enough to decrease the size of
the balloon but to leave it fully inflated.
I marked the time on the balloon – 5:45 pm. I had a meeting at the Stake Center that
lasted until after 9:00 pm. When I
returned home I checked on the balloon and it was still inflated.
I checked the balloon again this morning before
leaving for work. After more than 12
hours it is still inflated. I am calling
that a successful leak test. I feel
confident the tank will hold fuel without leaking.
