Greg Weld's 65 Mustang fastback track car

[GregWeld]

Originally Posted by syborg tt

I have no clue how you can weld an old gas tank. It has always scares the heck out of me. We had a kid at a local repair
shop die last summer when he tried to fix a leaky tank. It exploded and fortunately it killed him immediately and he didn't suffer.


ps I will be bringing my car over soon

He - unfortunately is up for The Darwin Award....



Welding on gas tanks is super easy --- and I don't do ANYTHING that isn't safe!



First you have to wash them real well with a strong mix of some kind of soap and water.... Gas is an OIL based product -- so you can't just rinse with water like some morons try to do.... I use Simple Green -- and it's a strong solution. TWICE.

Then I use the SNIFF TEST.... Still smell gassy? Wash it again!


Then I rinse two or three times - until there's no soapy water....


Then -- Here's the trick! I put DRY ICE in the tank -- as it dissolves -- it turns into an inert gas -- Carbon Dioxide (CO2).... NO OXYGEN - NO IGNITION. It's the FUMES that kill ya! (Gas fumes and air). I displace all the air in the tank with the CO2.

I'd use a back gas of Argon... but that's expensive for a "home guy".... as you'd have to displace the air in a pretty large space. I can do this cheaply ---- AND I CAN SEE IT WORKING --- when I use Dry Ice.