Topic: How to dry a fuel tank out after cleaning/ rust removing

[Alan F.]

Mgbgt89 suggested this in another thread and I've just gotta share it here in the T&T section, due credit given.

We've all read different methods of getting that last bit of water or whatever out of a fuel tank after cleaning, flushing or removing rust right?

His simple but genius suggestion?  DRY GAS.

Regular run of the mill fuel line antifreeze/ water remover.

Pure genius!  Water gets absorbed, the tank doesn't rust, and the stuff is ok to leave in there and just let it mix with fuel.

Best one I'd read in quite a while.

[Gordon]

That will absorb the small amount of water left at the bottom of the tank, but it won't do anything about flash rusting.  To stop that you need some kind of oil that will stick to the surfaces. 

[Alan F.]

That will absorb the small amount of water left at the bottom of the tank, but it won't do anything about flash rusting.  To stop that you need some kind of oil that will stick to the surfaces. 

Have you ever had that stuff on your hands?  It's oily and sticks pretty darn well.
-A

[MickeyX]

It's also good for cooking in a camp stove made of 2 pop cans and a coat hanger. 

[mgbgt89]

Haha.. alright! Got a tip of mine featured in this section. I wouldn't go as far as calling it genious, that camp stove is pretty genious though.

If you're planning on storing the tank for an extended period of time, some sort of oil would be a good idea since HEET evaporates very quickly. I didn't have any issues with leaving a tank out for a few days though before i filled it with gas.

My issue was there was no way of getting the very last bit of water out of the tank i was cleaning. The shape of the tank made it impossible to get the last half cup or so of vinegar out of the tank, so i rinsed it with water, then followed with some heet. It all evaporated and left no rust.