INSTALL A NEW FUEL TANK
Stage two was to purchase a new fuel tap,
but it took me a long time to discover that
domestic diesel taps (as used on heating
systems) are perfectly suitable for marine
applications. I have no idea why this is not
common knowledge or, if it is, how you
find this out, but eventually I did. A trip to
a local plumbing supplier later and I was
ready to fit my new tap.
During the fitting process I decided to
remove the tank and flush it through. It
was at this point that I noticed the bottom
of the tank was slightly rusty, although the
tank itself appeared sound. With the tank
back in and the new fuel tap and washer
fitted I was beginning to feel smug again.
I suffered very little leakage for a short
period but that said, I was only doing
gentle day sailing in relatively calm seas.
Return of the leak
The leak soon returned and I began to
dread mopping up half a cup of diesel
before each sail. The diesel smell was as
strong as ever and sailing became
unpopular with family and friends. Drastic
action was required. I needed a new tank.
The cost of a new metal tank was
beyond my budget, so I opted for a
42-litre plastic tank from Jay Wolfe Tanks
(www.jaywolfe.co.uk), along with a
tie-down system. I also purchased some
new metal hose tails for the CAV fuel filter
housing. Total cost approximately £160.
The old tank was attached to the rear
bulkhead by three bolts. These were of no
use to the new tank and it was clear that
I’d have to build some kind of platform or
shelf for the new tank to sit on. Luckily I
had half a sheet of 12mm ply and some
WEST System epoxy left over from a
previous project.
My plan was to make a box for the tank
to sit in and in turn sit this on top of
support legs. After much measuring and
planning I took the ply to Robbins Timber
Fuel filter was located beneath the tank
ABOVE The
plywood frame
built to support
the new tankRIGHT After a
redesign the box
finally fitted the
new tanklevel across the bridge deck and used a
smaller one when fitting each piece of
wood to ensure the platform was as level
as possible. The benefit of this is dubious
as no yacht ever stays level for long so
building a frame perfectly level seems,
within reason, a bit pointless. However a
lifetime of obsessing about things being
level meant that I felt compelled to try; it
just seemed the right thing to do.
At this point my inexperience began to
show and with hindsight I would have
approached the task differently. Owing to
time constraints and a fear of epoxying
bits of wood to the wrong part of my hull I
decided to install each vertical support
separately. It took me nearly three hours
to get the first upright epoxied in place,
mainly due to the amount of walking
required to and from my car and an ever
cautious approach to cutting it to shape.
Once cut, it took me a long time to find a
way to prop it in place while the epoxy
dried. I was eventually satisfied that it wasof Bristol (www.robbins.co.uk), who kindly
cut it to size for me at a very reasonable
cost. I then set about making the box.
Following the old adage of measure twice
and cut once I managed to build a box
that was about 5mm too small to contain
the tank and sit flush against the
bulkhead. A redesign resolved this, but
resulted in a box that didn’t quite match
the picture of an elegant piece of
cabinetmaker’s craftsmanship that I had in
my mind’s eye. This experience supported
my long term admission that the only
thing I can make to a decent standard with
wood is shavings! I pressed on.Tank supports
Having removed the old tank I epoxied in
a length of 2in x 1in (50mm x 25mm)
hardwood as a horizontal datum on the
bulkhead, which would also support the
end of the tank box. I then set about
building the supporting uprights.
Throughout this process I set a large spiritEditor’s tip:
Rob mentions it took
a long time to find a way to
prop the upright in place
while the epoxy dried.
Five-Minute Epoxy is an
excellent way to ‘tack’
components in place
quickly while the main
epoxy fillets
cure.