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Oddball Gas Problem

Scotty

Silver Level Sponsor
The tanks and pipes on my SIV are in the process of being removed, cleaned, coated, the whole nine. I'm taking the advice of sage owners here and appreciate the advice I'm getting.

A thought occurred to me that I have now had happen on two occasions and am just going to ask. Note that my tanks have held fluid without leaking and the pipes have been removed and checked and are the same.

Saying all of that, my question is this:

Has anyone had a weird issue where you put your tank in, put 2-3 gallons of gas and have zero issues but fill it and suddenly you got a leak? Asking in advance since it occurred to me the last time I had it fixed that I had ZERO leaks if the tanks weren't filled all the way (maybe somewhere between 3-4 gallons). The last two times I filled the tanks all the way, I got a slow, but constant leak.

Is there something I'm missing?

As always, tanks, err, thanks gang!
 

alpine_64

Donation Time
Did you have the fuel vent tube between the 2 tanks at the top attached? If that was missing/ not sealed you could get a leak from it.. Also a smell of fuel in the car when tanks are freshly filled
 

Bill Blue

Platinum Level Sponsor
Or perhaps the filler tube connection? I've never heard of the tanks or crossover tubes leaking only when full. Always a problem with installation.

Bill
 

Barry

Diamond Level Sponsor
The tanks and pipes on my SIV are in the process of being removed, cleaned, coated, the whole nine. I'm taking the advice of sage owners here and appreciate the advice I'm getting.

A thought occurred to me that I have now had happen on two occasions and am just going to ask. Note that my tanks have held fluid without leaking and the pipes have been removed and checked and are the same.

Saying all of that, my question is this:

Has anyone had a weird issue where you put your tank in, put 2-3 gallons of gas and have zero issues but fill it and suddenly you got a leak? Asking in advance since it occurred to me the last time I had it fixed that I had ZERO leaks if the tanks weren't filled all the way (maybe somewhere between 3-4 gallons). The last two times I filled the tanks all the way, I got a slow, but constant leak.

Is there something I'm missing?

As always, tanks, err, thanks gang!



Where do you observe the leak?
 

Mike O'D

Gold Level Sponsor
Here is another theory - If tanks are left partially full for a long period of time, the condensation will collect in the the empty upper portion of the tanks. Eventually it can cause pin holes that will only leak when the fuel level is up into that area.
 

Scotty

Silver Level Sponsor
Where do you observe the leak?

The leak is on the passenger side of the IV, coming out of the hole that is made to unscrew the tanks to drain. It is a slow leak that I originally felt under the crossover pipe/tank connection. I tightened it all the way and it didn't stop it. There were no other leaks that I could find at that time. It's been a while now since that originally happened...

To date, I've pulled the tank out twice. Both times the tank was fine for a few months before the leak returned. I had the tank checked and even though it's old and has been patched, the guy at the radiator shop said the tank wasn't leaking, so I'm naturally a bit boggled.

Originally I had a Series V that I went through and rebuilt components to and ended up getting the IV for a really good deal and the IV was in far better condition than my V, so I had the parts transplanted. The gas tanks I had redone were boiled, coated on the inside with what seems to be the same or similar stuff as the POR 15 Tank Stuff that everyone else is using. The car sat for a number of years due to me getting a promotion at work and having negative 1 time to do anything with the car.

My main concern is that I go through and redo the tanks and pipes and have the same problem again, so I'm trying to be as detailed as possible in these posts. If I'm overexplaining or sounding like an idiot, I apologize and I do appreciate all the help I can get.
 

Scotty

Silver Level Sponsor
Did you have the fuel vent tube between the 2 tanks at the top attached? If that was missing/ not sealed you could get a leak from it.. Also a smell of fuel in the car when tanks are freshly filled

Yes, I do. One of the clamps (passenger side) are rusted to s-it, so I'll make it a point to get new clamps for both sides. Some parts I already had that were ok at the time but looked to be now on hard times :(
 

Scotty

Silver Level Sponsor
Here is another theory - If tanks are left partially full for a long period of time, the condensation will collect in the the empty upper portion of the tanks. Eventually it can cause pin holes that will only leak when the fuel level is up into that area.

This makes the most sense to me, thing is I can't and the shop couldn't find a pin hole. Is there something we're missing that could explain it or a trick to find it beyond the obvious 'it's leaking' trick?
 

hartmandm

Moderator
Diamond Level Sponsor
When you add more gas and it then leaks, is it a temporary leak, or a continuous leak?

Are you finding gas at the rubber hose joint between the tank and crossover pipe (meaning you put a paper towel on the edge of the rubber piece and find gas), or just underneath that area, which could have come from somewhere else?

As Bill pointed out, the drain plug is a good candidate if it wasn't left in place when the tank interior was sealed.

A gas leak detector/sensor will help you narrow the leak location.

Mike
 
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