Draining gas tank

[jagarra]

Not sure if this is correct section, but it is inside the cab.

My truck has been sitting for at least 6 years, possibly longer with gas in the tank. I have looked in my maintenance manual and it doesn't say a word how to drain the tank. Is there a drain on the tank so I can drain the old fuel out, or do I have to pull the tank out. Will the seat slide forward enough to let me pull it or do I have to pull the seat first.

[FetchMeAPepsi]

It's not hard to pull the tank. That's what I'd do, but if you dont feel comfy doing that I know for a fact that if you take the under cab filter off it'll squirt gas all over your arm until the tank is empty down to the filter. Have a safe collection pot to put it in and keep away from sparks!

If you pull the tank and dump it, you can just dump it IN A GOVERNMENT APPROVED CONTAINER (i use the government supplied grass in my back yard ) and wash it out with acetone. If it got gummy though, you might need to let the acetone sit in it for a long, long time. And you'll probably need to replace the lines too.

[jagarra]

Pepsi, pulling the filter to drain the tank sounds like a good method, love those varnish fumes, makes me even more light headed. Now it's snowing outside, so I guess I will wait to get to it. I'll remember about using a GOVT approved container, I heard California has them, not sure about Nevada.

thanks,

[FetchMeAPepsi]

Originally Posted by jagarra

Pepsi, pulling the filter to drain the tank sounds like a good method, love those varnish fumes, makes me even more light headed. Now it's snowing outside, so I guess I will wait to get to it. I'll remember about using a GOVT approved container, I heard California has them, not sure about Nevada.

thanks,

Nevada containers are mostly made of sand, I think. Mine is green and sprouts from the ground. Yours might be granular and held in place by gravity

Just don't light a match around it for a couple of hours afterward. It makes the fire ants mad

[tdeming]

You can't drain the tank from the filter. The fuel pickup is on the top of the tank. You can blow most of it out with low pressure air with a rag around the filler neck and a can under the filter.

[FetchMeAPepsi]

IDK, tdeming. Gravity should pull the tank dry to the nozzle opening in the tank. Siphoning principle and all that. You can put an air hose on the filler neck too to really get it squirting, but again thats just going to work to the pickup end where the screen is. It won't drain every last drop.

You could put 2 gallons in after it quits draining though and maybe flush the rest out. Gas is pretty ....um...cant think of the word, but it cleans itself out pretty good when its fresh. Soluable?



edit: .....Ok I just looked it up. The word is solvent. It means it dissolves alot of different stuff. now I feel stupid.

[jagarra]

Well I gave up trying to empty the tank without pulling it. I tried every 12V pump I had and I just couldn't get any gas to come out of the tank. finally pulled the tank, not that bad, just had to unbolt the seat and slide it forward out of the way.
Emptied all the nice brown vanish/gas out of it, pulled the float feed assy and what a mess. Really crusty with all sorts of build up on it, pick up tube was blocked big time.

Took the gas tank to my local radiator shop, they figure about 2 bills to clean her up. New tank is around $220 delivered, so I guess my question is, how well do they fit, how well made and what has been the experience any of you who had replaced their tank.
I am torn keeping an original heavy duty construction vs a new off shore light weight copy.

[FetchMeAPepsi]

Plumb plugged up sounds like. Remember anything a shop can do you can do about 50% or more cheaper. Clean it up yourself and reinstall, start 'er up and drive! Probably the lines and carb are the same way though. May need to spend another 15.00 on a rebuild kit and some carb cleaner to clean the lines out.

[Clyde]

You can purchase a chemical to clean the tank, then coat it and you will never have a problem again. If your float is bad you can also purchase just a float, I did all the above to my 1961 4WD GMC Suburban.

[jagarra]

I got my carburetor kit today, bought it from Classic. Tore my carb apart, cleaned in the Berrymans, and was starting to put it together, went to install the accelerator pump and it was the WRONG style. I need one with a hook on the attaching end and this one was straight. So now I am stuck until I figure out what to do. Guess another kit. My old accelerator pump piece was not that hard, have it soaking in Kroil right now, maybe it will get soft again.

I have the float assy in my ultrasonic cleaner right now, been in there all afternoon, crud coming off nicely, but slow, nice clean metal under there as it comes off. The float is now floating again. Figure a couple days to clean it up.