[bowhunterjac]

I recently bought a used 3 gallon outboard tank from an online app. It looked ok, had 2 decent Merc fittings and some decent gas line so for $15 I took a chance. I cleaned it up and then noticed that on the top where it steps down both corners had some damage, like maybe somebody dropped something heavy on the tank and it just crushed it a little. I put some gas in it and noticed that both corners were leaking just a bit from a few cracks. I cleaned the area good with denatured alcohol and then tried Gorilla epoxy on it. Let it dry a few days, but last night when I moved the tank around gas leaked out again. The epoxy didn't bond with the plastic. Has anybody successfully repaired a tank like this? If so, how..... I have seen some glues that say they are resilient to gas, but I'm thinking in the heat etc... there is a lot of expansion in these tanks and not sure glue would hold for long.

Open to ideas....

 

[1stlight]

JB weld

JB weld products have worked good for me but I never used on a plastic gas tank. Good luck.


https://www.acplasticsinc.com/informationcenter/r/the-best-adhesives-for-plastics

 

[bowhunterjac]

Thanks, That's one that I did see has one kind that is supposed to be gas resistant. I was even thinking of trying the super glue and baking soda trick...….

 

[Woods walker]

Your best bet is to keep the fittings and toss the tank. I would not have a gas tank in a boat, it is a recipe for disaster. Rube Goldberg repairs and gasoline do not mix.

 

[Loggy]

Assume it's a remote tank that must be kept on boat(outside any closed compartments) powering a small OB motor. If fittings are good....I would get another tank. Too much pressure build-up to risk a patch IMO. Also, when you squeeze primer bulb it should get hard which will tell you if fittings are still good. I just replaced my primer bulb on my remote(onboard) 6 gal tank fueling my 25 Johnson. It wouldnt hold prime & was causing motor to stall at low rpms.

 

[Bigbrownie]

I’m not sure if you’re talking about a plastic or steel tank. If plastic, I’d pitch it. If metal, it’s fixable. I have repaired auto gas tanks with JB Weld successfully. I also fixed an oil pan that had pin holes rusted through with JB. Just make sure you prep my getting down to clean metal.

 

[bowhunterjac]

It is a plastic, portable tank. If it was an enclosed tank I'd deff replace it. But being that it's exposed on the back of the boat I thought it would be worth a shot at fixing. It's just a backup tank for my 6 gallon one I use all of the time.... If I can't fix it, the fitting were decent, so I got my money back on saving them....

 

[bowhunterjac]

Well, I found a tube of JB Weld on my work bench, which lists gas tank repairs in the description and is gas resistant.... I'll give it a try just for the heck of it... Otherwise, it's going to the land fill