Tank clean up MEK

[Guest]

How long can I let MEK sit in a tank to remove a Kreem liner?

[Nessism]

How long can I let MEK sit in a tank to remove a Kreem liner?

As long as it takes. MEK won't hurt the metal. You gotta have good plugs for the various openings otherwise the tank will leak MEK all over the place.

It will help if you add some abrasive material inside the tank that you can shake around. Some people use roofing nails, I've used sharp edge stones like aquarium rocks. Shake the tank every so often and rotate the tank to assure the old liner is kept wet. Shake the tank as hard as possible to try to get the liner to release.



Some photos of plugs I've made...

[BADJACKSON]

Hey, those are some helpful pics! Thanks!
I was going to use the cap from the 1100 tank I have, as a plug. I traced out the petcock on a piece of aluminum to plug the petcock hole. I was planning on making a gasket too.

[Nessism]

A gas cap won't work since it's vented. You will need something for the sending unit hole too. Don't dump chemicals inside the tank with the sending unit in there.

[BADJACKSON]

Ok. Thanks.
I haven't figured out exactly what I will do about the sending unit hole. I'll probably do a version of the one in the picture.

[salty_monk]

Plumbing plugs also work at the gas cap & they are cheap.

[BADJACKSON]

Nice! I bought a rubber plug, but it's too big.

[BADJACKSON]

Well, tomorrow is the day. Unless my wife has a list of crap she'd rather I worked on. But I'll put up a Hell of a fight!

[BADJACKSON]

That MEK is making quick work of that bad Kreem liner. It has only been in for about 10 min, & already the stuff is gooey. I hope to get it all out soon.

[Nessism]

Make sure you use a flashlight through all the various openings to make sure all the liner is out. And I mean ALL the liner is out. An inspection mirror will help you see the top of the tank.

Next step is phosphoric acid to derust. Home Depot sells this stuff.

[BADJACKSON]

Thanks Ed.
It turned to goo, but it doesn't want to let go yet. Time will tell.

[BADJACKSON]

Phosphoric Acid won't eat Kreem? Seems like I could have skipped the MEK if it did...

[Nessism]

Thanks Ed.
It turned to goo, but it doesn't want to let go yet. Time will tell.

That's the same problem I had with that tank. You need some abrasive material in the tank to "scrub" the metal. Roofing nails, aquarium rocks, something with sharp edges to scrub the kreem off. Soak and shake, soak and shake, repeat again and again.

And no, the phosphate wash won't eat the Kreem.

[BADJACKSON]

I guess I could just fill the tank with MEK. It's going to cost a fortune though.

[bobgroger]

That's the same problem I had with that tank. You need some abrasive material in the tank to "scrub" the metal. Roofing nails, aquarium rocks, something with sharp edges to scrub the kreem off. Soak and shake, soak and shake, repeat again and again.

And no, the phosphate wash won't eat the Kreem.

I used about a quart of 5/8- crushed rock and shook it every half hour for a couple days. Cleaned it up nicely. Hard to get it all out but you can tell when it is....