Welding fuel tanks

[Crazy Dazz]

Originally Posted by eb2fairmont

Remember for something to burn you have to give it heat, fuel and air. Remove one and it doesn’t work.

Great advice, except you're talking about welding (heat) a fuel tank, presumably in air.

[pottery beige]

Originally Posted by Crazy Dazz

Great advice, except you're talking about welding (heat) a fuel tank, presumably in air.

nice selective quote

can you burn water??

[snap0964]

Approaching this stuff isn't a lot different to any other dangerous maintenance.
You do have to make the correct assumption to start off with.

With Electricity assume the circuit is live, hydraulics, EFI, LPG assume it's pressurised, empty fuel tanks assume there is vapour within, and so on.

It's up to you to test, prove beyond reasonable doubt that what you're about to work on is safe to do so. If you can't, get someone qualified who can.

Many neglect to do so, or get complacent, and pay the price. Usually only takes one mistake.

[slowsnake]

Originally Posted by snap0964

Approaching this stuff isn't a lot different to any other dangerous maintenance.
You do have to make the correct assumption to start off with.

With Electricity assume the circuit is live, hydraulics, EFI, LPG assume it's pressurised, empty fuel tanks assume there is vapour within, and so on.

It's up to you to test, prove beyond reasonable doubt that what you're about to work on is safe to do so. If you can't, get someone qualified who can.

Many neglect to do so, or get complacent, and pay the price. Usually only takes one mistake.

Hello,
The one thing I am absolutely grateful for in this long life is the fact I was very lucky to be born with the " common sense gene "
How lucky we were to be born with the ability to learn,to take information and be able to turn it into some form of logic, some folk are just as thick as two short planks!..why!..I don't know,but I am grateful I had a good brain and mind and can see danger,some just can't,its not their fault,they were born like that,and threads like this are to help others who cannot distinguish the dangers involved in backyard workshops.

I have seen some shocking accidents,mainly on remote construction sites,before OHS meant OHS it was really dangerous with a capital "D".
Dodgy dogman and crane chaser tickets come to mind?
It was very common in the 70's to get a new dogman who did not speak English??..the guy he replaced backed a BHB crane over his foot,first hour on the first day on the job,it was just nasty,but that's over now,thanks to the unions!..and the rank and file members like me!

Cheers Billy

[LTDHO]

I just hat a hole in my XB tank welded.

No issues.

[slowsnake]

Originally Posted by LTDHO

I just hat a hole in my XB tank welded.

No issues.

Hello,
The XA,XB tank is one of the craziest designs I have ever seen on a car,are we talking about the tank that incorporates the spare wheel?...there are more seams in them than an underground coalmine!.. lol...
Well done to the person who welded/repaired it for you!

Cheers Billy.

[aussie muscle]

Originally Posted by happy1

Hi,
I have been using vacuum cleaner

the welding courses i've done said they have to boil the tanks for several hours before they are safe to weld.

[Crazy Dazz]

Originally Posted by pottery beige

can you burn water??

Yes.
But not sure what that has to do with the topic at Hand?

[pottery beige]

Originally Posted by Crazy Dazz

Yes.
But not sure what that has to do with the topic at Hand?

try again

Originally Posted by eb2fairmont

Not exactly something you want to do without understanding the consequences.

I have done it - filled the tank full of water and patched a hole in the tank.

Remember for something to burn you have to give it heat, fuel and air. Remove one and it doesn’t work.

Trick is that any air gaps can contain an explosive mixture.

You really have to be careful and be aware of the risks in doing this, quite a lot of people don’t and that gets them into trouble

[slowsnake]

Originally Posted by aussie muscle

the welding courses i've done said they have to boil the tanks for several hours before they are safe to weld.

Hello,
Not being a smart**** but how do you boil a 20,000 litre fuel tank?...and for several hours?

I am assuming its steam clean?..several times!

Cheers Billy.

[wodahs]

Originally Posted by slowsnake

Hello,
Not being a smart**** but how do you boil a 20,000 litre fuel tank?...and for several hours?

I am assuming its steam clean?..several times!

Cheers Billy.

when I use to work at a tank degassing place in my youth many many years ago (prier to my apprenticeship as a diesel fitter)
we worked on road and rail tankers and part of my job was cleaning them to ready for hot works (as well as assisting in the hot works , and im still here now)
we use to fully fill them with water unboiled (how do you boil water in a road or rail tanker ? ) and leave for 24hrs then drain and get inside and with (the correct) cleaning agents scrub clean the inside with a high pressure steam cleaner , and then refill with water to remove any residue cleaning agent

ps avgas needs to keep the moisture out and has something inside to assist this ~ I learnt this the hard way after starting the fill process and had to get in waist deep to remove this and unfortunately dropped it dur in the removal

[slowsnake]

Originally Posted by wodahs

when I use to work at a tank degassing place in my youth many many years ago (prier to my apprenticeship as a diesel fitter)
we worked on road and rail tankers and part of my job was cleaning them to ready for hot works (as well as assisting in the hot works , and im still here now)
we use to fully fill them with water unboiled (how do you boil water in a road or rail tanker ? ) and leave for 24hrs then drain and get inside and with (the correct) cleaning agents scrub clean the inside with a high pressure steam cleaner , and then refill with water to remove any residue cleaning agent

ps avgas needs to keep the moisture out and has something inside to assist this ~ I learnt this the hard way after starting the fill process and had to get in waist deep to remove this and unfortunately dropped it dur in the removal

Hello,
So what were you welding?
Were you cleaning tanks or welding tanks?
Were you pre cleaning tanks for the welders to repair?..or cleaning them because they were contaminated and another product was going in?

I worked on the fuel supply for F 111 fighters in 1978 at Amberly Air Base.
So I worked on the supply pipes from the Tank Farm to the hangers.
I watched RAAF personnel clean the fuel tanks on these planes,at a distance,they used steam cleaners,chemicals etc and the poor defenceless buggers went into the wings etc.

The security guards took my 110 film cartridges from me when full,24 images,they gave them back all developed with anything sensitive missing,ie..negatives cut out,I probably got 10 pics per 24,eh free development.

The only time I have filled a fuel tank with water,(20,000L) was another avgas tank farm,very small,2 tanks,half in and half out the ground and a besserblock containment wall in case of leaks.
It was Maroochydore airport in 1979,it was filled so it would not float out of the concrete after the pour.
We welded the supply pipes not tanks,but they float out of the concrete!.

Cheers Guillaume.

[wodahs]

Originally Posted by slowsnake

Hello,
So what were you welding?
Were you cleaning tanks or welding tanks?
Were you pre cleaning tanks for the welders to repair?..or cleaning them because they were contaminated and another product was going in?

I didn't do the welding back then I was merely the sh!t kicker TA
but yes all came in for repair be them steal or alloy one road tanker had been in a roll over and we cut the damaged side out of it and replaced it
once we did a full farm tank and cut a hole in the side and added a new flange for a new access pipe to enter , but 99.99999999999~% of the time all were coming in for repair we wernt the ones that just did cleans due to contamination

[ronwest]

Many years ago I had a leak in a seam on a 100 gallon truck fuel tank (diesel).

Our mechanic told me to go fuel up and fill the tank to the brim.

Did so, returned to him and he stick-welded the seam.

I told him I was nervous about it but he reckoned he'd done dozens over the years.

[slowsnake]

Originally Posted by ronwest

Many years ago I had a leak in a seam on a 100 gallon truck fuel tank (diesel).

Our mechanic told me to go fuel up and fill the tank to the brim.

Did so, returned to him and he stick-welded the seam.

I told him I was nervous about it but he reckoned he'd done dozens over the years.

Hello,
Yes that's right,no air,no bang,but depends where leak is,if the oil comes in contact with the weld it just contaminates the weld,its really hard to weld a liquid that's oozing out of a crack,but it can't burn inside,only outside,until the tank is empty,then "maybe boom”!
I bet you London to a brick he wouldn't do it with petrol or paint thinner?

But not the best example of OHS,they make a mess of your face and chest if they blow,and if they live the first thing they say is " I was an idiot eh "
Then the boss gives him a bill for blowing out 200 fluoro tubes in the w/shop,then a laundry bill for everyone's undies and trousers to be cleaned.

Cheers Vilmos.

[wodahs]

Originally Posted by ronwest

Many years ago I had a leak in a seam on a 100 gallon truck fuel tank (diesel).

Our mechanic told me to go fuel up and fill the tank to the brim.

Did so, returned to him and he stick-welded the seam.

I told him I was nervous about it but he reckoned he'd done dozens over the years.

these days they'd just bung in a self tapping screw to stop the leak

[ronwest]

Originally Posted by wodahs

these days they'd just bung in a self tapping screw to stop the leak

More likely replace the truck...

[slowsnake]

Originally Posted by ronwest

More likely replace the truck...

Hello,
More likely replace the fitter/mechanic/welder!

Cheers Bilek