Reply To: Hi from Australia
Electrolysis works really well for rust removal. For sure check out some videos of the process on YouTube, it will make it easier to understand. Once finished, tip out the solution & rinse the tank out with a bit of unleaded or diesel. Slosh that around so it COATS the ENTIRE INSIDE with fuel & tip it upside down and slosh it around as you pour it out again. This will coat the walls & prevent it from insta-rusting … think they call it flash rust, where the newly cleaned metal starts to oxidise instantly. The oil in the diesel or unleaded will coat the metal and protect it a bit. Can rinse tank with distilled water then rinse with fuel. Should be ok to just rinse it with fuel a couple of times.
I have done the electrolysis recently.
The tank is quite difficult to empty in that there is no clear access into the main tank area from either the fuel filler or from the fuel pump opening. Does anyone have any pointers how to best empty the tank? My mechanic suggested a bit of metho would help to remove the fuel. So I thought I might try tipping in a litre of that into the empty tank, slosh it around, tip out as best I can, then fill with unleaded and add a smaller amount of metho, then run the bike. I haven’t done this yet though.
After tipping the electrolysis mixture out as best I could, I sloshed some diesel around in it, and tipped it out.
There was a lot of black sludge still throughout the tank. So I then tipped 2 litres of white vinegar into it and shook it well. Then I tipped it out, and the vinegar was black.
Then I put some water in it, and shook it well, and tipped the water out. Also black. I repeated this about 7-10 times until the water was coming out reasonably clean.
Unfortunately all through this, there is also small bits of rusty metal coming out with the water.
Do you have any suggestions on how to proceed from here? I could try the electrolysis again, but I think the rust is just trapped in the main tank area, and its difficult to tip it out.
Thanks