[darryljs]

Originally Posted by garnold

I've taken my gas tank down to the metal and it looks great. Should be a really nice paint job if I can take my time and do this correctly Seems like I have some rust in the tank and I have read that apple vinegar can clean that right up. Is this a good idea for our tanks? I was not sure if the tank had a lining that the vinegar would hurt.

Tanks usually don't have a lining. Here's the process used to clean a tank with light rust. Vinegar can be used to clean rust from the inside of a gas tank because it contains acetic acid. This can be accomplished by filling the gas tank with water and then draining that. Next, plug the hole where the petcock goes, and fill the tank with the vinegar, leaving it in overnight to dissolve the rust. Leave it in 24 hrs if rust is heavy. After pouring out the vinegar, rinse the tank with water. Next fill it with water and a small amount of baking soda to neutralize the acid. After 15 minutes, rinse the tank with water again and continue rinsing until the water you pour out of the tank is completely clear. At this point it is important to make sure the tank has no more water in it. This can be accomplished by getting as much water out as possible, adding WD-40 or rubbing alcohol to the tank, and rinsing it out with gasoline.
Alternatively, a salt and vinegar mixture can be used as these ingredients will react to form a weak sodium acetate and hydrochloric acid solution. This solution should remove rust more quickly than the acetic acid in vinegar alone.