Racing Fuel Cell & Tank Equipment

Building an aluminum tank requires careful planning and construction. The dimensions need to be exact to fit in the space required. The aluminum needs to be welded to a high level so that no fuel will leak from the seams. A metal break or metal forming tools will help to bend the tank sections to meet your vehicle's needs. At the top of the tank, a hole needs to be cut to allow for the fuel pickup and fuel sending unit to fit properly. A return line or vent may need to be added if required. A fuel filler tube also needs to be added unless a fuel cap and bung is going to be directly bolted or welded to the top of the tank. Finally, mounting straps or hardware are needed to secure the tank to the vehicle.

To polish "alum tanks" you need aluminum polish. You can then either hand polish with a soft terry towel, or use a drill-operated polishing kit, which produces much faster results. Apply the polish to either the towel or polishing kit applicator and then work the polish into the fuel tank. Continue to polish until the desired shine is achieved.

When removing dents from an aluminum fuel tank, the first thing to do is empty the tank of fuel to remove the possibility of a fire hazard. Next, find a way to reach the dent with the tools you will be using. As most dents to fuel tanks are inward and not outward, you will need to determine if you can reach inside the tank through an opening in the top with a tool and be able to carefully hammer the dents back out. If this is not an option other methods include using dry ice to pop the dent, heavy duty suction cups to pull it out, or even carefully welding a temporary rod over the dent to pop it out. With this method, all fuel must be removed and precautions made so that the welder doesn’t ignite liquid or vapor fuel left over. If all of the above methods fail, the last option is to either replace the fuel tank or leave the tank with a dent in it.

A racing fuel cell or racing gas tank is a container to hold fuel in a race vehicle. It is typically square or rectangular in shape and either is horizontally or vertically bolted to the floor or hung from the bottom of the body at the rear of the vehicle. Racing fuel cells are mostly made from aluminum or plastic material. They also usually have one or two outlets on the bottom of the side or with a sump to supply fuel to the fuel pump. On top they will have a fuel cap to open when filling. They will also have a return fitting and a vent or rollover valve fitting. The rollover valve fitting has a check ball inside it so that in the event of a vehicle rollover, fuel will not spill out through the vent.

When cleaning the inside of aluminum fuel tanks, the first thing to do is empty as much fuel or diesel as possible. Next, determine if you are able to reach inside the fuel tank opening that the fuel sending unit or pickup drops into. If this is possible, you can use a fuel tank cleaning kit to wipe out all of the dirt and contaminants from the inside of the tank. If you can’t reach inside the tank, you will need to rinse it out. This can be done with a mild detergent and water by swishing the solution around inside the tank. Then empty the tank and rinse out with clean water. Finally, let the inside of the tank dry before reassembly, installation, and filling with fuel.

A JEGS expert is ready to answer your questions and help you find the JEGS fuel cell or aluminum gas tanks that you require for your specific application.