Punched a hole in gas tank
 

Sea craft my dream boat, I watch the site often love to see a classic returned to better than new. I am coming to you guys because your the best.
I have a 2005 North Coast CC . had a guy ad speakers & amp over the winter. He punched a hole in my gas tank, He either didn't know or didn't tell me. I filled up the tank before launch and discovered gas in the bilge.
The tank is cross link polyethylene I am told this cant be patched, if it can't I was thinking about a "mechanical plug" Any suggestions or recommendations. I will open the deck Monday to see what we are looking at, but I am pretty sure he put the drill through the top! Any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks in advance,
Dick O'Donovan

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

That sucks! I think if it were me I'd force an over sized aluminum screw in it, then cover it in a strong hard epoxy like Super 7 or something. Make sure you clean and sand the tank surface first so the epoxy bonds well.
That should work fine. Just keep an eye on it.
Good luck.

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

Epoxy might not stick to the plastic tank, but there is some stuff called Seal All (Any ACE hardware store should have it) that is amazing. It will cure in liquid gasoline! :eek: I have temporarily sealed leaks in the BOTTOM of leaking auto gas tanks with it! Just put some of it on the threads of the screw you put into the hole. Tap the hole and use a fine thread SS machine screw with a fender washer on it to provide lots of bonding surface. I'm sure this isn't a USCG approved fix but might make a good temporary repair, and probably isn't much different than the way they mount sending units in top of these plastic tanks. Good luck!

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

polyethylene is code for nothing will stick to me. the only thing that can be done is plastic welding. which means the tank has to be emptied and clean and filled with I believe Argon. To keep it from igniting. Who installed the stereo? If he is a proffessional its time for an insurance claim. you have to remember this is why there is such thing as insurance. This is a very serious situation.
I would not try to "rig something" to fix the tank you are only asking for very serious problems like blowing up when the bilge pump kicks on.

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

sounds like the Finster and Bush have a solution that sounds OK to me

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

Got to agree with Billy The Kid- That temp. fix is an accident waiting to happen.

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

Boy you guys sure know how to make a mountian out of a mole hill. The tank already has holes drilled in it for sending units and such. If you feel that epoxy won't stick then take an old piece of innertube, cut a small gasket, and screw in an over sized self tapping screw. Problem solved.
Whats the difference between this hole and the hole's they drill for your sending unit? Let me think....Nothing.

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

He doesn't have insurance but I do. I am not sure they would honor my claim. I have been told by some one in the know that it is unlikely because I only use this carrier for my boat, everything else is w/ another co. Here I made another mistake I never thought that would be an issue, I chose this carrier because I saw there ad in a local fishing mag. It was not a price issue I don't even remember getting another quote.
As you say there are holes in the tank already I would think it could be plugged mechanically.
I thank you all for your advise and I appreciate it. I know that you classic Sea craft guys deal with gas tanks & transoms all the time thats why I came to you.
Dick O'D

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

How about a relatively simple fix? Drill at the puncture for a 1/2" Plug, tap for 1/2-13 NPT threads, apply pipe dope to the plug, and install. The tank wall thickness is at least a 1/4" which will give you at least 3 threads for the plug to get a purchase on. You might end up with some poly shavings in the fuel, which will show up in your fuel/water separator, but this will work. You can use a PVC plug or brass.

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

It would be nice to go through the sending unit hole and through bolt a sealed bolt/washer/lock nut....if the sending unit hole is large enough and close enough. I wouldn't scrap the tank for one mishap. It can be sealed correctly/permanently.

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

Man! You guys could complicate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. :D

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

Poly Processing Company
Team Innovation
Repair of Rotomolded Polyethylene Parts

Polyethylene has a number of desirable properties that include, but are not limited to,
excellent chemical resistance and inertness. This chemical resistance is due to the lack
of free electrons within the polymer network and the low or negligible polar component of
the carbon-carbon and carbon-hydrogen bonds that comprise the polyethylene structure.
This environment of low electron reactivity causes the polyethylene material to have low
surface energy. This low surface energy will not facilitate proper wetting and spreading of
the adhesive onto the polyethylene surface, thus making polyethylene difficult to patch or
repair. Also, polyethylene is not porous and therefore does not lend itself to mechanical
surface attachment, that is, joining an adhesive to a surface because the adhesive flows
into the cavities on the surface and therefore creates a mechanical attachment. While
properties such as chemical resistance and inertness are highly desirable in applications
like chemical storage and electrical insulation, they present a challenge in applications
where joining, assembly, printing, and repair are required because all of these require a
high surface energy.
web page

Simple enough, now I'm going to make a sandwich ...... :D

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

Recreational Vehicle Polyethylene Patch
88-1254 Recreational Vehicle Polyethylene Patch. Polyethylene patch repairs fresh water and waste water tanks.

web page

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

Finney, the holes for the sending unit screws are molded in, not drilled, and the bottoming barrel nuts are molded in as well. Not the same as a drilled hole. To accomplish the same effect, you'd have to weld the plastic, which means pulling and evacuating the tank, then filling with an inert gas.

Hermco's link is good stuff. I that stuff used it to patch a hole in the gray-water tank on my camper after a piece of road debris punched a 3/4" hole in it. That was over a year ago. No sign of it letting go or loosening.

For smaller holes, there is a patching material made for polyethelene Kayaks that is amazing stuff. You clean the surface with alcohol or xylene, and then brush this stuff on, then heat it with a hair dryer. It is chemical resistant, and I bought this to have so that I could repair my wife's Kayak if I needed to, then used it to repair a crack in a 5 gal. diesel fuel can just a week ago. Polyethelene Patching material

After all that, I'd be looking for a replacement tank and consider all repairs temporary.

Re: Punched a hole in gas tank
 

I have some good news, I think. I talked to my insurance agent, an adjuster is coming tomorrow. They say they will pay for the work and go after the guy who screwed up the tank. I got the gas out of the tank and bought a Gal. tank that will fit in my console,( will lose a little storage)but will get back on the water and after the spring striped bass run. I want to thank all that took time to help.
Dick O'D