'99 MK II Fuel Tank Removal

[Steve Sayian]

I removed my fuel tank (aluminum) yesterday to clean it out.  Had to cut a 4" opening in the Port locker to access the outboard ear on the bottom of the tank to remove the three screws.  In my case, I also had to remove the feed line petcock and the return line nipple to get the tank out from its' perch.  Another issue was the extremely tight ground wire that was fastened to the top of the tank.  Ended up cutting it from the screw-on connector.  Will fabricate a longer lead when installng the tank.
Otherwise it was a fairly straight forward removal.  I am amazed that with the shape of the tank, it can stay up on the ledge without the back end falling onto the wood bulkhead.

Just wanted to pass along what I encountered with my particular boat.

Happy New Year to all.

Steve

[foursailing]

Hi Steve - What was the condition of the tank once it was pulled?

I used starbright enzyme tank cleaner last year and had good results. 

[Steve Sayian]

Bill,

There was a small amount of sediment in the bottom.  Less than I had expected for a 9-year old boat.  I used about 2 gallons of gasoline to clean the tank.  Did it by putting in small amounts and swishing it around and draining through the fill hose end.  There is no 'inspection port' in the tank so I filled it through the fuel sending unit opening.  After about 4-5 times with the gas, the tank is fine.  Letting it air out for the next couple months to dry and will install it in the spring.  I also spoke to the PO and he never used an algicide in the tank (and I'm not a fan of it either).

Steve