Fuel Tank capacity in Ericson 27

[ndutton]

Length x width x height

Pi x radius squared x height

Www.mathopenref.com/cylindervolpartial.html

. . . all dimensions in inches, divide the product by 231 in³/gal for gallons.

[sastanley]

Well..Burney is either dead or found the capacity of his fuel tank and moved on.. (PO, one post March 2017).

Fly-by-nighters like him really scare me...one post..did he ever become more knowledgeable about his boat or sell it or blow it up, or still blindly out there ? ?

[Oldlaxer1]

Fly-by-nighters like him really scare me...one post..:

And then there are those of us who check the site religiously....I think it is an affliction...

[joe_db]

And then there are those of us who check the site religiously....I think it is an affliction...

It is one of the nicest places on the internet. Some days I am in the mood for the flaming and trolling on other forums and some days not.

[Boat]

here here, check in her nearly every day. seems to be a must read for us old boat owners. that's another thing, dead threads. the guy gets on here with a real problem of a fuel tank. i mean, look at that thing. then nada. zippo. was he really going to continue to use that?

[marthur]

Heck, I even check in. And I am now running a diesel. For those of you who are wondering, the answer to the question is that I was attracted to both the smell and the noise. And the fact that the new boat already had one installed.

[TomG]

This is a fascinating thread and one of the reasons I love this forum.

The OP "took on a project" and immediately ran out of gas.

After one post, he ran out of gas again.

He ran out of gas and his name was BURNey.

The thread was resurrected after a year of being out of gas.

The OP was active here until August of last year and then, apparently, ran out of gas.

I do love this place!

[CajunSpike]

Onboard tank is leaking. Will have to replace it.

[Ram41662]

With hesitation, I have to ask, is it not a common practice to use a phenol novolac epoxy as a tank liner to repair boat fuel tanks?

I've used a commercial version of these epoxies on a variety of fuel tanks, from a motorcycle to a 10,000 gallon backup diesel generator fuel tank, with good results.

There are a couple of companies who make retail kit versions that can coat a tank of about 20 gallon size for around $80.

FYI, these are NOT fuel resitant elastomeric liner coatings, like "Kreem". Being a cross linked polymer, phenol novolac epoxies actually add strength, are more surface tolerant when it come to adhesion, and once cured are self-supporting.

[ndutton]

Re: coatings, I offer USCG Safety Circular #79 dated April 1997. Pertinent to this discussion, look at the paragraph at the bottom of the right column on page three, Coatings

https://www.uscgboating.org/library/boating-safety-circulars/BSC79.pdf

[Ram41662]

Alright, I can see why most coatings are shied away from, but from that circular, it would seem phenol novolac epoxies are acceptable if you follow the manufacturer's instructions. These products are by nature are very adherent to all metals, more surface tolerant to residual oxidation, and are self supporting after curing. Its uses the tank as a type of form until it cures then leaves a complete polymer plastic tank inside the metal tank. I've seen demos where a thin walled tank was cut and peeled away leaving a fully usable plastic tank. They may not be the perfect solution in every case, but appear to solve some problems. The main concern is making sure you apply the material fully to all surfaces and again, follow the manufacurer's instructions religiously. FYI, I've seen horrible failures with elastomeric liners even used by factory trained technicians, so I recommend to everyone to stay away from them.

My reason for asking was I put a bore camera down in my aluminum tank today and found an area of nominal erosion I was a bit concerned about. It's not anywhere near corroding through, but I wanted to make sure no further loss was going to occur in that area so I was planning on lining my tank.

Thanks Neil

[ndutton]

For those who may be interested, here are the application instructions for phenol novolac epoxy fuel tank sealer by Caswell http://www.caswellplating.com/epoxy-...kaAoIwEALw_wcB

Application Instructions
All traces of oil and gasoline should first be removed by pouring about 1 pint of acetone or lacquer thinner into the tank, and rotating the tank several times to thoroughly sluice the sides with solvent. Dispose of the contaminated solution.

When recoating your gas tank from failed Kreem or POR-15 tank sealers, remove the old, failed coating using a paint stripper containing Methylene Chloride.

Place a hand full of drywall screws into the tank and shake them around vigorously for several minutes. These will dislodge any loose particles of rust. In the case of Fiberglass and plastic tanks, this will rough up the tank interior, improving adhesion.

Rinse out the tank with about 1-pint of acetone or lacquer thinner, then set aside and allow to dry. Use an airline to blow air into the tank to aid drying.

Apply duct tape or masking tape to any weeping seams, holes or porous areas. This will stop any Gas Tank Sealer from oozing out, and will allow it to bridge over the hole. Plug the outlet ports with putty or Play-Doh. Mix up the required amount of Gas Tank Sealer (one unit should treat two small motorcycle tanks or one large one) If you are only treating ONE small tank, then divide parts A & B in half. You could use a dipstick to gauge this.

In a separate plastic container (margarine tub etc.) mix the two parts together thoroughly for at least 2 minutes. Scrape around the sides to ensure all resin is blended together. BAD MIXING AND BAD MEASURING IS THE #1 CAUSE OF FAILURE!!

Pour into the tank, then immediately seal up the filler hole with Gladwrap and an elastic band. Swill the tank around in every direction for several minutes to obtain a good layer of Gas Tank Sealer over all surfaces. Remove the filler cap,Gladwrap seal, and pour out any excess. Allow to drain upside down for a few minutes.
If you have a built in fuel filter, blow air into the fuel line port for about 10 minutes. This will clear the filter of any Gas Tank Sealer.

Scrape off any excess with a sharp knife at this point (usually about 40-60 Min after mixing) Place the tank in a warm 70-90 f place and allow to cure overnight. In the case of alcohol fuels, allow 3-5 days at room temperature, or 24 hours at 120 deg f.

The only comment I'll make is after repairing a fuel tank by any means it should be pressure tested to a minimum of 3 psi including bubble detection following the USCG protocol found on pages 100-103 of this pdf.

[joe_db]

I am curious what would be eroding an aluminum tank from the inside out and also if this coating is resistant to ethanol. We would not want to repeat the Bertram disaster where ethanol was dissolving the fuel tanks and making goo that would go right through a Racor and ruin the engine.

[Ram41662]

The only comment I'll make is after repairing a fuel tank by any means it should be pressure tested to a minimum of 3 psi including bubble detection following the USCG protocol found on pages 100-103 of this pdf.[/QUOTE]

I wholeheartedly agree with the pressure testing. The commercial versions all have a series of post-cure test they require before a tank is placed in service.

The brands I'm most familiar with are Carboline and Azko-Noble. I'm not familiar with Caswell's products, but the chemistry is VERY familiar. I will say the commercial guys' surface prep requirements are a bit more "professional" than Caswell's, but then that's to be expected. I would have expected expected at least an etching step. Normally acid for steel, TSP solution for aluminum. Their coating could be self-etching, i have seen some coatings that were.

As for pricing, Caswell's per gallon kit isn't much more than Carboline's, so it seems pretty fair.

Thanks for the info Neil!

[Ram41662]

I am curious what would be eroding an aluminum tank from the inside out and also if this coating is resistant to ethanol. We would not want to repeat the Bertram disaster where ethanol was dissolving the fuel tanks and making goo that would go right through a Racor and ruin the engine.

My etching appears to be caused by slightly acidic water settling out of the tank into the lowest corner. I've seen this happen in other aluminum tanks that were stored with liquids in them for too long.

As for the Bertram incident, what you're describing sounds like one of the types of failure I've seen happen too often with elastomeric liners. They fail WAY to often. I've even seen failures triggered due to something as small as a change from winter to summer fuel blends. Ethanol also like to dissolve into solution elements of the resins used in GRP, which a proper chemical should prevent from happening.

Phenol novolac epoxies come from the petrochemical industry and have been used to line fuel storage tanks, even fuels with ethanol additives, for years. For example, Carboline's "Phenoline" products have a chemical resistance rate listed as: "Ethyl Alcohol, 1 year immersion @ 100°F (38°C) - Unaffected"

That being said, I just sent an email to Caswell for some more info on their product. Once I get it, i'll share what they say. As long as their product is true PNE, then it will work to solve a lot of fuel tank problems.