Beardyspice Posted October 31, 2019 #1 Posted October 31, 2019 Hi guys, My New to me 05 RSTD has a bunch of what appears to be flaking tank liner in the gas tank. It runs fine and ive never had a problem as long as i'm careful when putting in gas. My dad got the bike in '15 with only 3000 miles on it so per a lot of articles I've read on the subject, it seems like it probably sat for a good while at some point. At this point it has 9000 miles on it and has never had a problem. I know that my options long term are to remove the tank and try to clean it out (pressure wash, shake with screws and cleaner, etc.) or buy a new tank. I also don't get great gas mileage. My question is this: Is there any problem with running seafoam through it with the current flaking situation. Will it cause more of the flakes to come off and increase the likelihood of stopping up a line? I will eventually clean or replace the tank, but at this point its outside of my abilities and budget and honestly, it runs fine. I'm baby stepping into maintenance. Thoughts?
RDawson Posted October 31, 2019 #2 Posted October 31, 2019 I would at least try to clean the tank. If it's flaking you're probably gonna stop up the petcock screen and fuel filter anyway. Remove tank and shake it with white vinegar in it, drain it and pour in some gas with 2 stroke oil in it to coat it. That's a cheap temp fix if not permanent and may keep you from being stuck on the road with a bad filter.
Sylvester Posted October 31, 2019 #3 Posted October 31, 2019 Ronnie has the right idea but I would go further and "Kream" the tank for a permanent fix. Worked great for years on bikes that sat around too long. At Amazon and Walmart.
MiCarl Posted October 31, 2019 #4 Posted October 31, 2019 Ronnie has the right idea but I would go further and "Kream" the tank for a permanent fix. Worked great for years on bikes that sat around too long. At Amazon and Walmart. If he's got a liner flaking it's probably Kreem that was put in without prepping the tank properly. I'm not a big fan of Kreem because it can damage paint almost instantly and if the tank prep isn't perfect it starts to lift and makes a mess. I think lining it is a good idea but I'd suggest an epoxy liner. I've always used Caswell but Red Kote is also popular. Pay close attention to the temperature when using epoxy liners. Too cold and it won't flow well, too warm and it sets up too fast.
saddlebum Posted October 31, 2019 #5 Posted October 31, 2019 If he's got a liner flaking it's probably Kreem that was put in without prepping the tank properly. I'm not a big fan of Kreem because it can damage paint almost instantly and if the tank prep isn't perfect it starts to lift and makes a mess. I think lining it is a good idea but I'd suggest an epoxy liner. I've always used Caswell but Red Kote is also popular. Pay close attention to the temperature when using epoxy liners. Too cold and it won't flow well, too warm and it sets up too fast. Ditto, Some years back coating the inside of a fuel tank was supposedly the cats rump for all sorts of vehicles and no doupbt if the tank is properly cleaned and etched inside it works great. But more often than not it fails and you end up with floaters that clog the fuel system. Sea foam will do nothing to solve that issue. BTW Princess Auto has sea foam on for $10.79
Sylvester Posted October 31, 2019 #6 Posted October 31, 2019 $6.89 down in the south, of course that is USD. I am not going to defend Kreem but I used it on a BSA and Norton Commando with great success.
BlueSky Posted October 31, 2019 #7 Posted October 31, 2019 My 85 Kawasaki tank had some rust inside. All I did was to remove it, slosh the gasoline around and dump it. I filtered the gas through a paper shop towel and repeated. Of course I also removed the petcock and made sure it was clean. And I installed a filter. So far I haven't had any problems with the filter plugging or carbs plugging because of rust particles. Coating the tank is probably the best solution if done correctly.
MiCarl Posted October 31, 2019 #8 Posted October 31, 2019 I am not going to defend Kreem but I used it on a BSA and Norton Commando with great success. It works great if done properly. Unfortunately if some yahoo does a slap dash job it ends up a mess of tatters that is impossible to remove. You do have to be careful of the paint with it. With epoxy I always gave the tank a good coat of wax to help if I got some where I didn't want it. My 85 Kawasaki tank had some rust inside. All I did was to remove it, slosh the gasoline around and dump it. I filtered the gas through a paper shop towel and repeated. Of course I also removed the petcock and made sure it was clean. And I installed a filter. So far I haven't had any problems with the filter plugging or carbs plugging because of rust particles. Coating the tank is probably the best solution if done correctly. If you're not going to coating it consider always parking it with a full tank. The fuel keeps oxygen away from the tank and not having a big pocket of air on top slows down the ethanol grabbing moisture from the air.
Sylvester Posted November 3, 2019 #9 Posted November 3, 2019 Put your machine up for the winter with pure gas (no ethanol) and Seafoam (Stabil if you like). Have a :sun1:y day.
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