Water in Petrol / Petrol tank restoration

[Iconic944ss]

Its been a good day, today.

Sealed up some of the potential water leaks in my garage and managed to create an extra work surface into the bargain.

Bagged up my Duke into her Vacc-bag for the winter after a quick clean...

and drained my tank of fuel and WATER !!!!!

Good grief.......about 50 cm3 of the stuff, and I only did the same thing last year. I'm about to change the fuel filter but I suspect that some internal corrosion might be creeping in as well so it might be time to try some Petseal or something.

So much for petrol stations being better than in the past!!!

It certainly cant be me riding in the rain :lol::lol::lol:

Frank

[Edited on 28-10-2005 by Iconic944ss]

[madmav]

£1.000.000. pounds per day profit !

BP

now wonder if it's watered DOWN !!!!:lol::lol::lol:

[Iconic944ss]

Petrol profits ...don't go there :devil:

There again, I watched an excellent prog the other day (National Geo channel) on what happened during the Piper Alpha platform disaster and even though I now work in the Petrochemical industry I wouldnt work out at sea.

[Derek]

Frank,

if you are thinking of a sealant for the petrol tank, I recommend POR15 tank sealant from Frost at http://www.frost.co.uk/productList.asp?catID=55
Scroll down to the bttom of the page for the Motorcycle kit. The kit includes a cleaner, a rust converter and a sealer and if you follow the instructions it works great. I did mine last winter - the bottom of the tank was alarmingly rusty.

[Iconic944ss]

Nice one (as always) Derek..

http://www.frost.co.uk/item_Detail.asp?productID=8222

I did wonder about how to keep the drain tubes clear at the base - how did you manage ???

Cheers - Frank

[guest1]

If you have a new petrol station opening (or more likely, a new petrol station as part of a new superstore) I would definitely recommend avoiding the temptation of the opening offers until at least a couple of weeks down the line. The pumps and tanks, whilst kept relatively clean, are not guaranteed to be free from contaminants.

[Derek]

Originally posted by Iconic944ss
Nice one (as always) Derek..

http://www.frost.co.uk/item_Detail.asp?productID=8222

I did wonder about how to keep the drain tubes clear at the base - how did you manage ???

Cheers - Frank

I got length of neoprene petrol pipe that fitted the tubes, heated the end up with a gas flame until it melted then squeezed the end with a pair pliers so that it fused together. I then chopped the end off at about 1" giving me a "cap" that I could seal the tube with. I made another 3 or 4 and that was it.

[edwyun]

I can also attest to por15. I've used it on a repaired SS tank and it's still good after 2 years. Just make sure you follow the directions, including the temp range for etching and sealing.

Also remember to make sure the vent hose and internal lines don't get sealed during the sealling process. I used some small conical plastic pieces and jammed them into the holes to prevent this.

Good luck.

[Iconic944ss]

Its all happening - isnt it? Ducati ownership is such fun at times :barfy:

Cheers - Frank

[Iconic944ss]

I thought it was worthwhile restoring this thread as its probably topical for this time or year / winter rebuilds etc...

Just ordered the Tank kit mentioned - painless and secure (hopefully) !!!

Frank

[edwyun]

Good reminder!

Another tip that most riders use is to fill your tank fully with gas (petrol?) immediately before garaging/parking/storing the bike so that moisture can't condense inside the tank over time.

Either that or get a carbon/kevlar tank asthey don't rust - you do know they exist for the carb 900ss (as well as the 900ssie), right?

:eureka:

[Iconic944ss]

Cheers Edward - not sure I agree about filling a tank with gas?

If the water is either in the tank already or in the petrol you buy - it will remain in the tank - I can see the logic though.

And I'm sure I remember a thread about petrol starting to degrade after a possible 6 weeks or so as well of storage.

Thanks anyway...

ps - Can u please teach me how to get MYyy knee down on my SS (or are you just 7 feet tall :) ).

Frank

[edwyun]

Frank:

Gas = petrol over here =)

What I meant was to keep your tank full whenever the bike is going to be garaged/parked/stored. That's assuming your tank has no water/rust.

You guys have water added to your petrol???

True, if stored for over a month, petrol tends to break down - good enough reason to ride year round (or use fuel stabilizer or one of those tablet things I've seen recently for the petrol).

Funny thing about getting the knee down. I rarely used to get the knee down because I was always afraid of hitting the OEM headers, levering the rear wheel off the ground, and then highsiding. Ouch! But once I put the custom spaghetti's on and knew I had enough clearance, I was draggin my knees everywhere. The mind has a funny way of getting in the way. Oh, and I'm 8' tall :frog:

But there's a friend who rides a 93 900/966SS and he never gets his knee down (except lowsiding!). But he rides like a rocket. No need to get a knee down if you can still ride (and from the looks if it, it looks like you can).

[Iconic944ss]

Good point Edward - might be time to look up the fuel stabliser products again as many people will be laying bikes up and not wanting to drain the fuel system down.

I am certain that we do get water in our fuel over here from time to time as I've seen it in sealed fuel containers immediately after filling them up for a trackday :(

Thanks for the kind words about my riding but a good photo makes even me look great on a race track :biaggi:
I think the only way I'll get my knee down is on a mini-moto !!!

Have a JD on me ;) - Frank

[Derek]

Originally posted by Iconic944ss
Good point Edward - might be time to look up the fuel stabliser products again as many people will be laying bikes up and not wanting to drain the fuel system down.
I'm quite happy to drain the fuel system and get round the condensation problem by emptying the tank completely and storing it in the attic.

I am certain that we do get water in our fuel over here from time to time as I've seen it in sealed fuel containers immediately after filling them up for a trackday :(
I once filled the tank of the bevel 900ss I used to have and it ran like a pig all the way home. I drained the tank and carbs and collected a jam jar of water. But I think the biggest cause of water in the petrol tank is condensation. Especially if you have a damp garage.

[edwyun]

I'm quite happy to drain the fuel system and get round the condensation problem by emptying the tank completely and storing it in the attic.

You can still get some rust by doing so. As you prolly know, use some fogging oil or WD40 to coat the inside of the tank prior to storage. Only problem is getting that film off when you put the tank back on the bike.

[Derek]

Originally posted by edwyun
I'm quite happy to drain the fuel system and get round the condensation problem by emptying the tank completely and storing it in the attic.

You can still get some rust by doing so. As you prolly know, use some fogging oil or WD40 to coat the inside of the tank prior to storage. Only problem is getting that film off when you put the tank back on the bike.

I wrap it in a plastic bag with a handful of "Do not eat" packets - silica gel.

[Iconic944ss]

POR15 seem to have a nice website as well:

http://www.por15.com/

[edwyun]

I wonder if those food vacuum sealers work??? :roll:

[philfingers]

Also water can get in via the fuel filler, if the drains are kinked (easily done on an ss with it's hinged tank) then the water collects in the recess immediately below the filler cap. When you open the filler cap the rubber seal breaks it's seal and lets the water into the tank!