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- Joined
- Apr 22, 2021
- Messages
- 105
- Reaction score
- 45
- Points
- 28
- Location
- Spokane, WA
- Vehicle Year
- 2000
- Make / Model
- Ranger XLT
- Engine Type
- V8
- Engine Size
- 5.0
- Transmission
- Automatic
- 2WD / 4WD
- 4WD
- Total Lift
- 3"
- Tire Size
- 245/75R16
Hey all, I figured I would post this here because I had difficulty finding much information about it online.
I, living in the shizz hole that is Spokane, am dealing with a vast amount of homeless people on a daily; it hasn't mattered much until last week when I had someone drill a hole in the bottom corner of my gas tank to steal my gas.
Understandably, I was upset, but I was mostly upset about how hard it was to find support for fixing plastic tanks when there were plenty of discussions about fixing metal tanks. After some research, I found a few options, one of which I successfully used one of them to plug the hole in my tank.
1.) I bought a variety pack of neoprene rubber expansion plugs on Amazon, the smallest of which (3/4 inch) was just small enough to hammer right into the hole. I tightened it as I tightened other expansion plugs (until you can't anymore); needless to say, I broke the rubber seal. Luckily, the kit came with one more of the same size, so I hammered that one in and hand-tightened it almost as tight as my fingers could get it, ensuring it was snug and had minimal movement. I then used the plastic JB weld and smothered it all over the top of the metal bolted area and the immediate area around the bolt on the gas tank. That has been working for me for the past few days, and I don't see that changing until the rubber eventually gives out from the gasoline exposure. Hopefully, because it's neoprene, it will last a while.
2.) The second thing I considered, which seemed to have some online support, was a pipe plug/bolt. This is my backup, which seems like it will be longer-lasting but will require a little more work than just hammering in an expansion plug. This would involve going to your local hardware store and finding a bolt or threaded pipe end fitting that is generally the right size (probably a little bigger). Then threading the hole in your tank probably means making it bigger, so consider that when buying the bolt. You can purchase gas-resistant Teflon, thread it on your bolt, then screw the bolt almost in, then, douse the last few threads with Seals All, then tighten the bolt. I would probably opt to cover the outside with more Seals All or JB weld just as an added layer of protection.
3.) This last method is the one that the old guys favored quite a bit, probably because of the simplicity-to-effectiveness ratio. This involves Seals All and Cheesecloth. First, you clean around the hole, scuff it with high grit sandpaper, then cut small squares of cheesecloth (obviously, big enough to cover the hole). Thoroughly soak them in Seals All; with the first one, you want to stuff the hole, making sure to get plenty of Seals ALL in the hole; put a second one on over the top of it, covering the hole, touching plenty of the surface, area of the freshly sanded surface of the tank. Let them harden; then you can keep putting more and more layers on, but make sure each layer completely covers the one before AND has surface contact with the gas tank, so the patch will progressively get larger and larger as you put more layers on. This, the old guys claimed, has lasted them years and years.
4.) The obvious last option is to replace the tank. Rangers tanks are pretty simple to drop. And they are relatively cheap (around $100 - $200) for a good-conditioned one from eBay.
A factor to consider when choosing which option to use is "To what extent is your fuel tank pressurized?" Mine (00 Ranger) seems to have minimal pressurization, but the fix I used should seal it airtight, easily withstanding the pressure due to the nature of the expansion plug clamping down on the hole.
I'm probably wrong about some of this, and I would like to hear from the more experienced folk about their solutions. This is just what I saw online after EXTENSIVE searching. There wasn't a lot out there for plastic tanks like mine.
I, living in the shizz hole that is Spokane, am dealing with a vast amount of homeless people on a daily; it hasn't mattered much until last week when I had someone drill a hole in the bottom corner of my gas tank to steal my gas.
Understandably, I was upset, but I was mostly upset about how hard it was to find support for fixing plastic tanks when there were plenty of discussions about fixing metal tanks. After some research, I found a few options, one of which I successfully used one of them to plug the hole in my tank.
1.) I bought a variety pack of neoprene rubber expansion plugs on Amazon, the smallest of which (3/4 inch) was just small enough to hammer right into the hole. I tightened it as I tightened other expansion plugs (until you can't anymore); needless to say, I broke the rubber seal. Luckily, the kit came with one more of the same size, so I hammered that one in and hand-tightened it almost as tight as my fingers could get it, ensuring it was snug and had minimal movement. I then used the plastic JB weld and smothered it all over the top of the metal bolted area and the immediate area around the bolt on the gas tank. That has been working for me for the past few days, and I don't see that changing until the rubber eventually gives out from the gasoline exposure. Hopefully, because it's neoprene, it will last a while.
2.) The second thing I considered, which seemed to have some online support, was a pipe plug/bolt. This is my backup, which seems like it will be longer-lasting but will require a little more work than just hammering in an expansion plug. This would involve going to your local hardware store and finding a bolt or threaded pipe end fitting that is generally the right size (probably a little bigger). Then threading the hole in your tank probably means making it bigger, so consider that when buying the bolt. You can purchase gas-resistant Teflon, thread it on your bolt, then screw the bolt almost in, then, douse the last few threads with Seals All, then tighten the bolt. I would probably opt to cover the outside with more Seals All or JB weld just as an added layer of protection.
3.) This last method is the one that the old guys favored quite a bit, probably because of the simplicity-to-effectiveness ratio. This involves Seals All and Cheesecloth. First, you clean around the hole, scuff it with high grit sandpaper, then cut small squares of cheesecloth (obviously, big enough to cover the hole). Thoroughly soak them in Seals All; with the first one, you want to stuff the hole, making sure to get plenty of Seals ALL in the hole; put a second one on over the top of it, covering the hole, touching plenty of the surface, area of the freshly sanded surface of the tank. Let them harden; then you can keep putting more and more layers on, but make sure each layer completely covers the one before AND has surface contact with the gas tank, so the patch will progressively get larger and larger as you put more layers on. This, the old guys claimed, has lasted them years and years.
4.) The obvious last option is to replace the tank. Rangers tanks are pretty simple to drop. And they are relatively cheap (around $100 - $200) for a good-conditioned one from eBay.
A factor to consider when choosing which option to use is "To what extent is your fuel tank pressurized?" Mine (00 Ranger) seems to have minimal pressurization, but the fix I used should seal it airtight, easily withstanding the pressure due to the nature of the expansion plug clamping down on the hole.
I'm probably wrong about some of this, and I would like to hear from the more experienced folk about their solutions. This is just what I saw online after EXTENSIVE searching. There wasn't a lot out there for plastic tanks like mine.
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