| Author |
Message |
Bulldogie (69.4.194.137)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, May 13, 2004 - 8:23 am: | |
After I bought my bus MCI-8 I noticed a slight leak in the tank. Took the door off and found the place where someone had tried to fix a crack in the weld of the tank but it didn't hold. When I had emptyied the tank and then filled it with water and then dumped most of the water out. I tried to braze the crack with aluminum rod but the crack just got longer and longer as I heated the place needed to weld. Seems like the heat just stressed out the weld more and more. Question, is it worth wire feed welding the old seam or should I just replace the tank with a stainless steel tank? |
TWO DOGS (63.185.64.92)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, May 13, 2004 - 8:28 am: | |
take it to a welding shop....you probably could not find a tank or afford to have one made |
chuckMC8 (68.211.10.67)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, May 13, 2004 - 9:02 am: | |
I had nearly this same experience. I had to remove the tank (If you havent done this ,email me for some tips that'll make it easier. Thanks to Luke's mechanics who helped me thru this )
I carried my tank to the radiator shop (Who also repairs tanks) They vatted the tank, welded up the leaking seam (That had been patched with some kind of auto parts epoxy) and found some areas on the bottom that were leaking as well.
Did the neccessary repairs on the bottom and pressure tested it.
Cost me $127.00. It dosen't leak any more......hope this helps |
mel 4104 (208.181.100.94)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, May 13, 2004 - 9:55 am: | |
Chuck why not put the tips here on the board so we can all see what they are and they can be of use to every-one..thks mel |
chuckMC8 (68.211.10.67)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, May 13, 2004 - 1:14 pm: | |
Glad to- Here what I emailed da Bulldogie:
Hey Randall-Glad I'll be of some help on this one- I had the second tank
also.......Here's how to get the main tank out....undo the strap over the tank
that you can see..seems like it has 4 bolts with 9/16 head. Undo the fuel lines and the
big vent there by the lines. Now here's the kicker if you haven't figured it
out already-You have to get under the bus ( using the proper saftey proceedures,of course) and there's a cover, about 7 feet
long that goes from the front tank to the aux tank. Gotta get that off, and
the bolts are awful to get loose. They have kind of a carraige bolt style
head in the bays. What I finally did was to take a new 3/8 drill and in the
bays, just drill thru the head. Of course, I'm by my bad self, so there
wasn't any way to hold the top.
After that cover's off, you'll see three copper pipes that connect the 2
tanks. There's 8 - 5/16" (1/2" head ) bolts that bolts the pipe flange to the bottom of the
tank.
Don't try to slide the hoses off. They wont come and they are steel braided.
I lost my right thumbnail on that one with a screwdriver. Ouch.
Just unbolt it. If you're not gonna use the aux tank ( i didn't) go ahead
and unbolt the hose manifold from the bottom of it also.
Then, your main tank will slide out.
If you do as I did and take it to the rad shop for repair, consider if
you're not using the aux tank, have them weld plate over the holes in the bottom of the main tank. (Where the lines that go to the aux tank connect). Wish I had. I had to make a plate and
gasket to cover it, doesn't leak, but Could. Better to have it welded before
the tank is pressure tested, then you know.Funny, the MCI manual doesn't
cover this. Was a hell of a struggle for me till I called Luke and spoke to
his shop foreman. Then he had to ask around. I couldn't figure what was
holding the thing in....... |
Buswarrior (Buswarrior) (64.229.211.147)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, May 13, 2004 - 5:35 pm: | |
Hello Bulldogie.
Good advice above.
A light sandblast is also popular to help find the weakspots. Take the opportunity to coat the tank exterior in the coating of your choice: rust proofing, spray on bed liner, aluminum paint, etc.
If you don't have the aux tank, there is still a plate bolted to the bottom of the tank, that sits in a recess in the floor of the fuel tank compartment.
The tank won't come out unless you convince the bottom to lift out of the recess.
Take a piece of 3/8 or 1/2 plywood, about three feet long, and drive it under the tank. Attach chain through the fuel filler and pull out with the automobile of your choice.
Lifting the front edge of the tank does not lift the tank high enough to clear the recess, four feet further underneath, before the tank contacts the frame at the top.
Do not get carried away with replacing the 1/4 inch hardboard in the bottom with plywood...
If you increase the thickness of what's in there at all, you will not get the tank back in due to the conflict between the tank top and the frame.
And related, don't let your rad shop weld anything thicker than absolutely necessary to close off the bottom of the tank, or you'll be stuck!
You will also find the compartment very full of fuel contaminated dirt. Give it a good clean out, and inspect the seal around the bottom, and for evidence of corrosion. To the front, is your wheel wells, to the rear is the HVAC area. Fuel intrusion to this area, if you are still using the coach HVAC, or still have openings in your floor to that area, will stink out the coach in raw fuel smells if you spill while fueling, or have a leak again in the future.
happy coaching!
buswarrior |
Sam Sperbeck (204.248.119.254)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, May 14, 2004 - 11:01 am: | |
Hi Bulldogie,
To weld a crack, you first need to drill a small hole at both ends of the crack to relieve the stress that builds as the material is heated. Then you can weld without extending the crack.
Thanks, Sam Sperbeck
La Crescent, MN |
Bulldogie (69.4.195.198)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, May 16, 2004 - 9:00 am: | |
Well folks, Thanks for the information, I got it out and now to the repair shop. Thanks again |
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