Leaking plastic fuel tank

I have a B&S Quatro plastic fuel tank and houseing(the kind that covers the entire motor) that is leaking at the seam, I have tried epoxy for fuel tanks, won't tick to the plastic, I have tried Seal-All for oil and gas, won't stick to the plastic. A mechanic says to solder the seam with a pencil type solder iron and use small strips cut from the plastic cap of a spray paint/carb cleaner can for solder. Does anyone have any experience repairing plastic fuel tanks? I thought I would ask before I start melting the seam. Oh, and yes I going to drain the remaining fuel and rinse and dry and test the vapor with a torch to make sure it is empty. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks and have a nice day. Geo

 

I have successfully welded plastic exactly as your mechanic describes but it was to hold water. Be careful with the fuel fumes.

 

I have done it too, but don't really reccomend it. You should be able to pick up a tank used from a small engine shop pretty cheap. Safety is a concern with that type repair.

 

I have the same thing $27.00 from Snapper
for a new tank.

 

What is the model, type and code numbers of your engine? There is a standing recall of certain Briggs fuel tanks which were produced in the early 90's that Briggs will replace for free at any authorized dealer. Post back with your numbers and I'll check if you have the affected tank.

 

puey61
Model 122702 Type 312001 Code 91041058
Thanks a bunch for checking this out. Have a nice day. Geo

 

ounce it`s welded it will just start leaking further down the seam.
I suggest you just replace the tank.

 

IF YOU HAVE A 122702 ENGINE IT IS A QUANTUM SERIES (NOT A QUATRO) I HAVA ONE I WOULD BE GLAD TO LET YOU HAVE IT HOWEVER YOU WOULD HAVE TO PAY SHIPPING FOR THE TANK,I DONT KNOW YOUR WHERE ABOUTS BUT IF THE SHIPPING FROM ZIP CODE 21227 ISNT TO MUCH FEEL FREE TO EMAIL ME AT (email addresses not allowed, moderator) ..... HOWEVER IF THE SHIPPING EXCEEDS $12.00 YOU PROBABLY CAN FIND A USED ONE CLOSER TO YOU.IF YOU HAVE A LOCAL RECYCLING YARD(DUMP)THAT IS A GOOD PLACE TO LOOK.

 

Cleancut:
Thanks a bunch for the offer but I got it fixed. Geo

 

1. Clean and rough up the plastic area that is cracked or damaged. Sand?

2. Dry area

3. Buy Power Poxy Plastic Bonder Pro Series #21801 Costs around $3.00

4. Follow instructions on package. 4 min set time.

www.powerpoxy.com

This expoxy is completely gasoline proof. Spoke to company and they will not advertise this product as gasoline proof because of liability involved.

 

drdokman;
I appreciate the response, however, you're a year late. Thanks and have a good one. Geo

 

Thanks for the great info. I have the same problem with a leaking plastic fuel tank. My model # is also 122702 (type 313901) and was built in 1991. I called Briggs and Stratton Customer Service and they were very helpful. They will be sending me a new tank free of charge.

 

Hi puey61, I would appreciate if you could check on my model Briggs engine. The tank is leaking pretty bad. It's model 121602 type 0121-E1. I think it is newer that early '90s, but not sure.

Thanks.

 

I've got a Yamaha YZ125 with a leaking gas tank (cracked at multiple seams). Replacement gas tanks for this motorcycle are hard to find an ridiculously expensive -- I'm not going to pay $250+ for what amounts to a 3 gallon plastic bottle with screw holes . The whole bike only cost me $900. I have already failed to bond the tank with two different epoxies that were supposed to be gas/solvent resistant. One held for a week before it turned to jelly and oozed out with my gas, the other withstood the gas, but wouldn't stick to the plastic for any length of time...it just peeled off like skin. Has anyone else out there had any luck with this powerpoxy? \

UPDATE: I just saw this video on how to use "********" to structurally bond polyethylene and it looks like it might do the trick. Anyone else tried it?

 

I know this is a very old thread but I just "soldered" the crack in my leaky plastic gas tank on my B & S engine and I am so stoked!! I would never have thought of doing this on my own and would not have thought that plastic would flow like it did on this repair. I had used epoxy and abs adhesive with no success in the past. This time I melted the plastic into the crack and put a water hose into the tank and covered as much of the outlets as I could to put the tank under pressure. After around 5 attempts, I finally got enough melted plastic to fuse properly with the existing plastic and it stopped leaking!! Thanks to the OP, posters and DoItYourself.

 

Success is a wonderful sound. Have a good one. Geo

 

Thanks Geo, I intend to! I'm surprised at your quick response but possibly you are a frequent poster unlike myself.
Anyway, with this new-found knowledge about melting/fusing plastic, I intend to do a lot of modifications on the many plastic tool cases that I have. Up to now, I have been snipping/sawing at the innards of the cases to make my tools/accessories fit better but now I am going to try using my 250 watt soldering iron and making finesse modifications. The pencil soldering iron I used on the gas tank would probably not be big enough for this purpose.