Interior Prepping Of Gas Tanks For Painting

[twr1776]

I am considering having a tank painted but spoke with the painter and he wants the tank brought in without any fuel or flammable materials in the inside. The inside of the tank is pretty clean but I do not want to promote new rust forming in it while the inside is exposed to air and getting painted. Are there any products that are non flammable to coat or neutralize the inside of the tank while it is empty and keep rust from forming?

[Dave8338]

Unless your painter is planning to cut and weld on the tank, treat the inside with a light coat of Staybil Fogging Spray and send him the tank. :?

[twr1776]

Thanks for the reply. There is a ding on the tank he was going to pull & fill but I am not sure if he was going to put in some weld to seal it. It is a pretty small ding so maybe he could just fill it and not do any welding on the tank. I was going to use the fogging oil but it is also flammable so I am pretty sure his request is for insurance and safety reasons.

[renobruce]

Don't use any sprays or coatings that contain oils or silicone. I would drain the tank, then stuff a clean rag inside and let it sit at least overnight. Then stuff it with a fresh rag when you take it in. He will do the bodywork, then mask the tank, sealing off the lid hole, petcock, and float hole. If he's using a spray booth there will be no way any fumes will ignite. If he's using a heated spray booth, he should poke a pinhole into the masking tape over the petcock hole to provide a relief point for any pressure that builds up during the bake cycle.

[Nessism]

The flammability concern is silly unless the inside of the tank is wet. Just to reduce your painters worry, wash out the inside with something like denatured alcohol to take that gas smell away. Let dry with the lid open, no rag stuffed inside, for a day or so or force dry with a hair drier.

[gsgeezer]

Before doing bodywork or painting old bike tanks, I take them to a radiator shop that blasts the inside and coats them with a hard expoxy. Before I do that, of course, I remove the fuel valve and cap (if attached) and any associated fuel gauge internals (like on my old GS1000). As mentioned, NO SILICONE anywhere before painting.

[twr1776]

Thanks for the tips. I also saw some other posts mentioning Rustol as a cleaner/neutrailzer. Has anyone used it? As usual I am probably overthinking this but do not want to take any chances of starting interior rust formation on an otherwise good tank.