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Drilling Fuel Tank
Pdlewis - 28/4/10 at 02:18 PM

Hi,

I have bought a fuel sender at last only a year after becoming road legal Im just worried about installing it as I cant really get the tank out if I drill it im going to get shards of ali in the tank any suggestions?

I will drain the tank and let it air outside to get rid of the petrol gases how long should this be left out as i dont want to go up in a fire ball

matt_claydon - 28/4/10 at 02:25 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Pdlewis
Hi,

I have bought a fuel sender at last only a year after becoming road legal Im just worried about installing it as I cant really get the tank out if I drill it im going to get shards of ali in the tank any suggestions?

I will drain the tank and let it air outside to get rid of the petrol gases how long should this be left out as i dont want to go up in a fire ball


No amount of time (well, within reason) will be safe if you leave it empty. Fill it to the brim with water and then drill so that there's definitely no vapour inside. Just wash it out loads of times to get rid of the ali swarf, any left will get caught by the filter so I wouldn't worry too much.

[Edited on 28/4/10 by matt_claydon]

irvined - 28/4/10 at 07:24 PM

In addition, depending on were your drilling, if you can reach, some duct tape around the area on the inside is a great way to stop a lot of the swarf going anywere. I taped up the inside prior to drilling the mounting holes for my sender and didn't anything big inside the tank. I hoovered mine out afterwards, washed it, and left the fuel pump running through a couple of filters for 20 minutes or so just in case.

if you give it a good wash out with water, and make sure you have a filter before the fuel pump, you'll be fine.

Pdlewis - 29/4/10 at 08:59 AM

Cheers Guys hadnt thought of filling with water, how do you make sure its all out so you dont get water with the fuel?