Welding Tips and Tricks

I have a really big Problem. I have looked in all the junkyards around my area. It's gonna cost me about $300 to order offline but I have a gas tank from a old car. The neck of the gas tank has been Broke halfway off. I know I'm not supposed to Weld on a gas tank. But is there any Safeway to go about repairing this? If i Empty all the gas fill it up with water would it be safe to Weld on?

Vent the tank, fill with soapy water, and for safest results, purge with Argon. That will displace all the combustible vapors and residue. You can’t clean that too much. But you can clean it enough.

coolseanj wrote:I have a really big Problem. I have looked in all the junkyards around my area. It's gonna cost me about $300 to order offline but I have a gas tank from a old car. The neck of the gas tank has been Broke halfway off. I know I'm not supposed to Weld on a gas tank. But is there any Safeway to go about repairing this? If i Empty all the gas fill it up with water would it be safe to Weld on?

PLEASE give up all ideas of welding on an automotive gas tank.

The process involved to do that job anywhere near safely is way beyond home hobby shop.

I'd suggest you revisit how to do the job with Epoxy. Forney sells a wonderful epoxy putty designed for tank repair that is gas resistant and has a decent working time. It looks like a tootsie roll.
JB Weld is also gasoline resistant and damn durable in tank repair situations.
You can even install reenforcment tabs with short sheet metal screws and epoxy.

I'll take it one step more, be damn careful cleaning the area you'll be working on. Simple Green and Oven cleaners are your friends. Sanders, grinders and media blasters can get you a trip to the burn ward.

PLEASE be ultimately careful.

Go to a parts store and get some gas hose the size of the neck and a couple hose clamps and splice it back together.

Franz© wrote: PLEASE give up all ideas of welding on an automotive gas tank.
The process involved to do that job anywhere near safely is way beyond home hobby shop.

One need not be a professional to exercise caution and care, nor possess common sense. I have welded on dozens of gas tanks without even so much as a sunburn, let alone an explosion. And no, thats not my "profession". Flush it well. Rinse it several times. Let it fully evaporate and if you can, rig up a purge line and fill it with argon. If you smell fuel, repeat the flush and rinse until fully clear. Use your head and you will be fine. If you aren't smart enough to prepare it properly, then no amount of care will protect you. (I suspect this is NOT the case since you sought advice.) Hence my recommendation to proceed with your plan if you are able.

The JB Weld is a great alternative if you don't feel comfortable or have the means to safely handle it. As is the Flexible Sleeve splice (depending upon location of crack of course).

CJ, kindly post your name, address, list of assets so the estate's attorney can add you to the Defendant list.

If you ain't man enough to do that, kindly stop encouraging people to weld on gas tanks.

Metal Manipulator wrote:Go to a parts store and get some gas hose the size of the neck and a couple hose clamps and splice it back together.

All ideas are good, in my moding days I got few of this problems, when it was the filler neck I never send the tank to the soldering guy who did all the soldering for the exhaust manifold for TURBO conversions.....I used proper gasoline filler neck hose from Gat3s, when it was the bottom of the tank my soldering guy fixed those, used a brass brush to avoid any spark clean the broken crack 2 inches longer and 2 inches wider, brass drillbit and hand drill no electric drill at all, with the drill he finds the end of each crack and drill a hole so the crack cannot keep moving then used bar soap that was inside a bucket with water, he used the soap pass it up and down the crack with force, the soap when it contacts the gasoline turns into a paste and it stops the leak, when this happens he uses gastank epoxy, empties the gas tank and fills it up with water and soap completely, turns the gas tank upside down, he makes a patch out of thin metal sheet cuts the sheet with the size of 2 inches wider and longer and the soldering begins......so far as he said never got a free flight to the moon, hope this 2 cents helps...........AZ

Franz© wrote:CJ, kindly post your name, address, list of assets so the estate's attorney can add you to the Defendant list.

If you ain't man enough to do that, kindly stop encouraging people to weld on gas tanks.

Franz, just go away...
Are you trying to get banned in 2 forums in a month?

Franz© wrote:CJ, kindly post your name, address, list of assets so the estate's attorney can add you to the Defendant list.

If you ain't man enough to do that, kindly stop encouraging people to weld on gas tanks.

Fear not, Garp, every person for whom I've welded anything has it. I'd post it all here, the list is too long.