I repaired my 180 gal 1/4" alum diesel tanks about 12 years ago with
West Systems - has held up extremely well. Cured west Systems epoxy is
definitely not bothered by diesel - it's the bond to tank material
that's gonna be your problem. The problem was "crevice corrosion" -
spyder leaks caused by some s/s washers that had been left in the tank
when new - s/s + alum + water = corrosion - Getting to "new metal" in
an alum tank is easy - use a rotary s/s wire brush and grind the hell
out of the surface after degreasing with acetone. I don't know what
your "special cleaner" is - but watch out for bull**** claims - test
everything first. Call the Gougeon West Epoxy people and talk to an
older person - and then a 2nd one.



On 08 Jun 2004 20:20:50 GMT, (Truelove39) wrote:

My 1981 Westsail 43 has well-made fiberglass fuel tanks, but one has a small
leak which amounts to perhaps one gallon per month.

Several inches down from the top, I can see and feel glass fibers in one small
area, and I believe that the fuel has, over time, dissolved the epoxy. I
assume that in that area it was just too thin when applied. The builder says he
used "hot-pop" epoxy, but can't tell me what it was or suggest a repair.

Since removing the tank involves removing the sole and part of the galley, I
instead plan to clean the area (I have some special cleaner I got from a
company that specializes in tank-cleaning) and apply some new epoxy.

What type of epoxy to use?

Any thoughts appreciated.

Good sailing,

John