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Recently purchased an 85 Outrage that had been sitting for three years.
The engines are all cleaned and tuned and ready to go but I have only run them off external tanks.
The internal tank is reading 'empty' but I am sure there is probably at least a few gallons of old fuel (mixed with oil) in there as well as varnish and 'crud' from year of use and sitting.
My question is how do I clean out the internal tank?
Here is what I have come up with so far:
1 - remove the tank, cut it open, clean it, weld it back together and re-install it. This would work. It would also be incredibly expensive and a complete waste of money and time.
2 - put 10 gallons of fuel in the tank. Let it sit for a few days so the ethanol can 'clean' the tank and then pump it out by hand and use it in a car.
3 - just put gas in the tank and carry 3 extra fuel filters in the boat for when they plug up.
I cant be the first to have had to deal with this. Any help or experience would be greatly appreciated.
- pump out whatever's in there - get as much as you can.
- add about 10 gallons of gas, and go for a ride in chop, wait a few days, and go for another ride in chop (all this still using your external tanks).
- pump out whatever's in there. DON'T use it in your car unless you're looking for an expensive trip to the shop for new fuel injectors - an old 2-stroke lawnmower would be best.
- fill the internal tank and switch over to it. Stock up on a few filters and bring them along. Plan to stay close to shore until you're sure things are working OK.
First thing I would do is have the tank pressure tested to make sure it doesn't leak. Did the previous owner use the internal tank or did they not use it either? If they didn't use it, you may want to have a professional clean the tank out, and assuming it pressure tests out, replace the fuel, vent and outflow lines which if they haven't been replaced, are not rated for ethanol and you should be good. If the tank doesn't pressure test, then replacing is the only option. It's not all that hard to do, there are plenty of threads on the process.
Depending on the size of the tank, and whether or not the tank has baffles, Option 1 may be worth it. Like Kamie said, I'd have it pressure checked first and see what your dealing with. If it's good, and you can remove it from the boat without much effort, I'd do that. Then flush it good with parts cleaner then water. You certainly want to make sure there are no fuel vapors present, then cut it open using a grinding wheel and clean it properly. If you"re still concerned about fuel vapors, leave it full of water as you cut it. A 10 by 10 square hole would allow decent access to get your hand and a brush maybe on a handle to clean it out. Then take it to a welds shop and have them weld a new piece of aluminum over the hole and repressure test it. IMO, done like this would probably keep the cost under $100 and you'll know exactly what you've got.
You could also probably flush and clean it out using parts cleaner like Varsol also if cutting a hole isn't the way you wanna go. Then to get all the old liquid out use an old electric fuel pump and add the hose you'll need to get it all out.
