Diesel Fuel tank cleaning options (1 Viewer)

[FJBen]

So I need to clean my fuel tank. There was fuel that was left in it for 4 years and it sludge'd a little in the bottom (and messed up IP and injectors)

I called the local radiator repair shop and he said he doesn't do fuel tanks anymore. There isn't anyone close so it looks like I'm doing this one.

I've seen the following methods mentioned.

Muriatic Acid
Lye
Vinegar
Brake cleaner - this was a pain cleaning the sludge off of one of the lines, probably won't work on tank.
Carb cleaner
Drano
Hot pressure/steam wash - (not sure How I can access the whole tank that way)
New diesel
Super clean
Acetone
Pinesol

Any thoughts on the above methods?

 

[doug720]

Did you tell the radiator shop it is a diesel tank?

Acetone, lacquer thinner, etc., will melt the residue. They are expensive and evaporate quickly. So you need to seal all openings well, and agitating/moving the tank is difficult.

You will need to rinse the tank many time to remove debris, and carry extra fuel filters for a while. I would replace all the rubber line and blow the same materials through the steel fuel lines to clear them also. Plus, if the rubber parts of the fuel system are old, modern ULSD fuel can melt them. Causing more issues.

It's a PIA, but do right once, not partially many times, and risk IP issues.

 

[FJBen]

Did you tell the radiator shop it is a diesel tank?

Acetone, lacquer thinner, etc., will melt the residue. They are expensive and evaporate quickly. So you need to seal all openings well, and agitating/moving the tank is difficult.

You will need to rinse the tank many time to remove debris, and carry extra fuel filters for a while. I would replace all the rubber line and blow the same materials through the steel fuel lines to clear them also. Plus, if the rubber parts of the fuel system are old, modern ULSD fuel can melt them. Causing more issues.

It's a PIA, but do right once, not partially many times, and risk IP issues.

Yeah I told them it was diesel. They had a problem with a tank and decided they aren't going to do it anymore.

I took all the fuel lines off and I'm replacing all the rubber fuel hoses and cleaning the others. I wonder if it's worth it to buy another filter/clear bowl setup to watch the fuel before the filter?

Yeah I DON'T want any issues with the IP or injectors as those are getting rebuilt right now. Does acetone/lacquer thinner remove the tank lining? Or do these tanks even have a tank lining?

 

[doug720]

Both could damage a liner. I assumed it was bare steel?

Any filter installed must have good connections that will not allow air to enter, or loss of prime. If not, you'll be frustrated and wasting lots of time.

 

[FJBen]

Both could damage a liner. I assumed it was bare steel?

Any filter installed must have good connections that will not allow air to enter, or loss of prime. If not, you'll be frustrated and wasting lots of time.

Not sure if Toyota OEM has a liner or not? I thought it was bare steel, but was going to ask to make sure.

 

[georgebj60]

I'm nearly positive the tanks are not lined. That's why the one out of my FJ60 had rusted from the inside out....

 

[doug720]

On my 9/85 60, the stock Toyota gas tank was not lined. I would assume, a stock diesel tank would be the same.

 

[Dave 2000]

Cooking oil. I have customers using it in their diesels, the crap that comes out as it cleans old diesel out, has to be seen to be believed.

Regards

Dave

 

[FJBen]

I'm nearly positive the tanks are not lined. That's why the one out of my FJ60 had rusted from the inside out....

On my 9/85 60, the stock Toyota gas tank was not lined. I would assume, a stock diesel tank would be the same.

I believe you guys are correct. So I suppose I'll try the acetone or lacquer thinner route and see where I get.
I'm really just surprised after 4 years it looks like this.

 

[Prairie Swamp]

Sodium Hydroxide (Lye) is one of the few things that will dissolve carbon. I don't think you're problem is crusty carbon - but Lye will dissolve anything organic including the sludge in your tank (and your skin BTW.) On my 3FE the EGR paths in the valve cover were 100% blocked with carbon. A hot tank in Lye fixed it up.

Acetone or lacquer thinner will flush the sludge out but they will attack almost every plastic so be careful there. On a bare steel tank you should be OK but watch out for the fire/explosion hazard.

Absolutely stay away from Muriatic acid.

 

[roscoFJ73]

I would use petrol then a good degreaser that you can flush with water. Dry it out and put something like light oil or diesel to stop it rusting. Toyota tanks are unlined.
Im surprised anyone is getting damaged injectors from bad fuel. I would have thought the fliter would have stopped it getting that far.

 

[redrock]

I had the same problem with 2 backhoes that sat unused for some time. It took a complete overhaul of sealed injector pumps and injectors. This is a perfect example of why biodiesel should not be used--the only thing worse is waste vegetable oil. There is a reason why many manufacturers of real diesel engines warn not to use biodiesel above 5% content. It is unlikely that a radiator shop will know how to clean this mess. They deal with glycols and mineral content. The stuff in your tank is a chemical cesspool of organics and petroleum. This sludge is not water soluble and no water-based cleaner will touch it. Pure gasoline will not dissolve it. Even though clean diesel fuel is a good solvent, it will only thin and dilute this residue. You really can't even scrape this stuff off--it is tougher than tar or asphalt.

When the heavy equipment people have this problem, they use MEK (methyl ethyl ketone). You can get it from home depot or lowes. It is probably the best solvent available and is less volatile than acetone. With considerable effort you could probably clean the pickup tube and float, but I would just replace them. Likewise, you MUST clean the hard lines between tank and engine and I would replace all rubber fuel lines. Replace all fuel filters and clean the heads. If you don't clean the entire fuel system, fresh diesel will create a super saturated solution and the sludge WILL reform in filters, pumps, and injectors.

Before I hear all the testimonials about biodiesel and wvo, go back and read the premise to the argument (post #1, 2nd sentence) and look at the pictures again.

 

[FJBen]

I would use petrol then a good degreaser that you can flush with water. Dry it out and put something like light oil or diesel to stop it rusting. Toyota tanks are unlined.
Im surprised anyone is getting damaged injectors from bad fuel. I would have thought the fliter would have stopped it getting that far.

Yeah my injectors and IP just had fuel sitting in them, so no surprise that they were all jacked up.

I had the same problem with 2 backhoes that sat unused for some time. It took a complete overhaul of sealed injector pumps and injectors. This is a perfect example of why biodiesel should not be used--the only thing worse is waste vegetable oil. There is a reason why many manufacturers of real diesel engines warn not to use biodiesel above 5% content. It is unlikely that a radiator shop will know how to clean this mess. They deal with glycols and mineral content. The stuff in your tank is a chemical cesspool of organics and petroleum. This sludge is not water soluble and no water-based cleaner will touch it. Pure gasoline will not dissolve it. Even though clean diesel fuel is a good solvent, it will only thin and dilute this residue. You really can't even scrape this stuff off--it is tougher than tar or asphalt.

When the heavy equipment people have this problem, they use MEK (methyl ethyl ketone). You can get it from home depot or lowes. It is probably the best solvent available and is less volatile than acetone. With considerable effort you could probably clean the pickup tube and float, but I would just replace them. Likewise, you MUST clean the hard lines between tank and engine and I would replace all rubber fuel lines. Replace all fuel filters and clean the heads. If you don't clean the entire fuel system, fresh diesel will create a super saturated solution and the sludge WILL reform in filters, pumps, and injectors.

Before I hear all the testimonials about biodiesel and wvo, go back and read the premise to the argument (post #1, 2nd sentence) and look at the pictures again.

I have heard of using MEK as well. I'll see if I can find it here. I was also told E85 to start and see if that would knock it out. What a pain!

I have all the lines off to clean. I'm going to replace all rubber lines and probably put some MEK or whatever in each of the hardlines and plug them and let them soak. I cannot get the pickup tubes anymore so I have started cleaning on them.

 

[redrock]

If you use the MEK, be cautious--it can be hard on some low-density plastics such as foams. I would not use it on the sender float. Speaking of which, the sender should be available in North America, and the pickup is available through Japanese sources.

 

[FJBen]

If you use the MEK, be cautious--it can be hard on some low-density plastics such as foams. I would not use it on the sender float. Speaking of which, the sender should be available in North America, and the pickup is available through Japanese sources.

My sender is junk so I ordered a new one. I looked for the pickup tube and it said it wasnt available so that’s the plan for cleaning it.

 

[augirthedude]

I'm nearly positive the tanks are not lined. That's why the one out of my FJ60 had rusted from the inside out....

At any sign of water in my fuel filter / water separator , I drain my tank when it’s near empty to remove water from my tank. I’m not surprised any more when I see water in my filter. I try not frequent the fuel station that supplies dirty / wet fuel.

 

[FJBen]

Threw a quart of lacquer thinner in that tank, put it in the back of my Tundra and drove around. It seems to work pretty well and some nasty stuff came out. Another round or so and I'll flush it out and put some ATF in there to coat the steel.

 

[Dilspec]

Might not be economical and I am assuming you thought of this. New tank?

 

[AirheadNut]

When I bought my G-Wagen it had a leaky fuel tank, but came with a POR15 tank cleaning/sealing kit. When I finally got around to dropping the tank and cleaning it up there were multiple pinholes in the bottom and around the outlet tube. I was very pleased with the POR15 kit; it had a cleaning detergent, an etcher, and a sealant. The fuel tank looked new inside when I finished with it.

 

[FJBen]

Might not be economical and I am assuming you thought of this. New tank?

The tank isn’t available new, but it is cleaning out nicely so it should be good to go. Seems lacquer thinner might be the best as long as no plastic is there.