Topic: Evap-O-Rust, Ethanol, Sta-Bil 360 and Caswell's - Oh my..

[Smudgemo]

I just soaked my 550's tank in Evap-0-Rust for most of Saturday and Sunday to try and get rid of some rust.  Not a lot, but it needed doing.  I followed that with a bunch of garden hose pressure blasting, and besides the rust flakes, I got quite a bit of stuff that was floating like organic matter or something.  No idea what it was, but it's out.  Anyhow, it's good and clean now and coated with WD-40 until this weekend.  I'm fixin' to rinse that out w/ some gas or acetone or something before using it again.

My problem is all the gas anywhere within hours of SF has ethanol unless I can convince my neighbor to fill up a can at the airport next time he goes flying, but I don't think he'd be into that.  I bought some Sta-Bil 360 because while I could easily use the bike year round and won't really ever store it for winter, it will surely be sitting for some weeks at a time.  The Sta-Bil 360 claims to create some sort of rust inhibiting vapor.  Anyone able to confirm this? 

I'm also wondering if lining the tank with Caswell's as a preemptive rust preventative measure is a bad idea.  The tank is free of leaks and in about as good of shape as one could hope for, but it's not like fuel will get better, right?

[jgger]

Not sure if it is this way here in commiefornia......but I think you can get real gas at the marina/boat docks. It's worth a look see. But you are in the belly of the beast!

[Deltarider]

Just don't let the bike sit for months and months and you'll be fine with fuel that has ethanol. And if water and rust is your concern, there's even less chance of water buildup at the bottom of the tank with ethanol fuel than with the old fuel.

[calj737]

You probably already have flash rusting on the underside of the tank having blasted it full of water to purge the EvapoRust. WD-40 will only do so much for you and unless you used the liquid product, you've not gotten to the underside.

Fuel separation (ethanol or not) will happen if you leave it sit for months. All gasoline has some amount of water in it. The better practice is to leave it standing full so the evaporation is obstructed by no air space above the fuel level in the tank, or, nearly empty so there is little to nothing to evaporate.

You certainly can line the tank and Caswell is my recommendation, but you'd still want a fuel treatment to prevent the fuel from going bad while sitting. These are 2 separate remedies; storage and rusting.

[iFart]

If it's light rust you might be able to run electrolysis on it.

I've had good success with electrolysis on my GSX and per moped army's electrolysis site I read its a good idea to rinse with gas and 2 cycle engine oil.

I rinse with water, then gas/2 cycle engine oil, then gasoline and keep sealed and topped up after that. I also keep an in-line fuel filter on the line so you can see if crud is coming out of the tank and stop it before it gets to the carbs.

I did a cycle repair POR-15 on my CB750 tank as I had 3 tiny pinhole leaks near the badge plate and wanted some assurance for the future.

I'd imagine for storing, it might be best to shut the valve off and keep full. If you don't want to run that in your tank, drain it when riding season comes around and use that gas in your lawn mower or similar.

[Stev-o]

+1 Caswell.....

[Smudgemo]

Maybe ethanol won't be such the issue I figured it would be.  I'll stop at the Ace to pick up a mirror and check the underside, but I was pretty thorough with liquid WD-40 from a pump spray bottle and turning the tank over, and that was after a paper towel mop-up with a grabber tool.  I'm always surprised by the rust I don't get on steel in these parts, even when they've been hit with water.   

Guess I'll hold off on sealing the tank for now to see what happens.

[Bodi]

I got a USB borescope camera that's pretty amazing for ~$25.00. Not HD or anything close but super good enough for looking way inside tanks, I've used it for more things than I imagined when i bought it.

[drumstyx]

I've de-rusted with muriatic acid, and now metal rescue ($$$$$$$!!!!!!) because after a couple months it was as rusty as it was in the first place. Caswell red epoxy sealer is coming today, I'm sick of the rust, and I'll just do this right. Buying yet more metal rescue today (nearly $200 in this stuff......) so I can fill it all the way to the top as it's supposed to be. I never want to deal with this again, I'm lining it.

[BomberMann650]

The works toilet cleaner removes rust faster and cheaper than metal rescue does.
Still have to rinse and seal the tank tho

[drumstyx]

The works toilet cleaner removes rust faster and cheaper than metal rescue does.
Still have to rinse and seal the tank tho

Not available in Canada unfortunately. It's *remarkably* difficult to find anything with phosphoric acid here. Rust remover gel has it, but it's ~7 for 250ml. Need about 80 of them to fill the tank.

I just said "#$%* it" and spent the money. The rest of the bike's cost me many thousands, so what's another couple hundred.

[bochnak]

I vote for Caswell lining it. Impossible to get all the rust out. I only use E10 gas because it is easy to get. Just keep it fresh.

[b52bombardier1]

+1 to POR15. I love the stuff.

Rick

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[Duanob]

My philosophy is, if it doesn't leak, don't line it. People that use liner over rust are just lazy and you end up being one of those PO stories. Once you get the rust out (lots of posts on this) keep the tank full of fuel and use the bike often, like a good long ride once a month aught to be good enough as long as your using fuel and not letting it sit for months on end. Like you need an excuse to get out and ride in the Bay Area.  Also to help prevent flash rust, use fogging oil after washing the tank out.

[iFart]

If I didn't have the pinhole leaks on mine I wouldn't of lined it.

I chose POR-15 cause the silver looks pretty. Google images of the cured tanks and you'll probably agree.

=D

[drumstyx]

I oiled the crap out of my tank after cleaning with muriatic acid. It sat with a few liters of oil for a couple months, and it had rusted right back up. Maybe it was the muriatic acid, but I'm thinking if I've done a good job of getting everything out this time with metal rescue, and I'm betting it'll rust again.

I'd bet they used galvanized steel when building the tanks. Now 35-45 years later, the zinc has corroded away, leaving the steel, which has rusted, and after we remove the rust, all that's left is steel, vulnerable to more rust.

That said, fine. I'll try it. I have the caswell kit here, and it cost me $100 (Canada), but I'll try without. I'm draining the metal rescue tonight, using dry coat to prevent rust while the tank is painted, and I'll double check there's no rust before using it when I get it back. I'll save the metal rescue, and I guess use it again next year if I have to (after which I'll line it)

[Smudgemo]

Like you need an excuse to get out and ride in the Bay Area. 

Having been a hardcore bicyclist for the last 20 years, I know most of the less-traveled good roads around here, and one of my good riding buddies has just gotten his long dormant VFR running.  No excuse needed, for sure.

I think I'll most likely leave the tank as is and then consider lining if I can't control rust.  "If it ain't broke..", as my dad always told me. 

Nobody has an opinion on Sta-Bil 360?  Back in WI we used Sta-Bil on the boat, lawn mower and whatever went away for winter.  I seem to recall it being useful, but whether it does anything here probably amounts to it can't hurt.

[lrutt]

Are you sure the marinas around there don't have ethanol free fuel. They all do here in Florida for the most part. Yea you pay a little more but....

[markreimer]

Another +1 on Caswell. Easy to install, just make sure you mask off or clean the Caswell off the lip of your fuel tank opening or the gas cap can't seal. I used a blow dryer to heat up the tank and Caswell when applying (it was winter, shop was cold) and it went on great.