The advertisement above states "Made from American Steel" not aluminum; corrosion is absolutely a concern.

 

 

I stand corrected it's actually aluminized steel.

 

That may be the case with most of their tanks but this specific one specifically states steel as you can see from the attached.

 

Aluminized steel is decent (What most cheap exhaust systems are made of, higher end are stainless) but the poly is a winner for me. I love my titan tanks.

 

What's going on here? Titan advertises that they make plastic tanks. The lower picture in the first post on this page shows a PLASTIC tank.

They show a plastic tank for 2017 Ford Super Duty trucks on their website

2017 FORD Crew Cab, Short Bed - Generation 6 TITAN Fuel Tank (7020217)

From the above webpage:

DESCRIPTION
55 Gallon*, extra capacity, extra heavy duty mid-ship replacement fuel tank for 2017 FORD F250 and F350 pickups with Crew Cabs, 6 ½ foot beds and Power Stroke engines. Constructed of our famous military grade, cross-linked polymer (XLHDPE). It’s at least ¼” thick and built to outlast all competitors. It’s tougher than steel and more durable than aluminum. The tank comes complete with black-coated, galvanized steel mounting strap, plated and galvanized front support system, rollover safety vent valve and accessories. Tank features exclusive low fuel trap design and hangs approximately only 1 ¾” below bottom of stock tank. The tank requires no fabrication or cutting, it is a direct fit, bolt in application. The new TITAN Generation 6 tanks feature an OEM style torque ring sending unit mounting system for easy, positive installation. This new torque ring design reduces installation time while also minimizing mistake during installation.

For model year: 2017
For F250 HD and F350 HD models with the Power Stroke engine.

 

Here's the online description for this exact tank.

 

This is from their home page:

In short, our products outlast and outperform metal tanks in almost every measurable way. That, in turn, shows off their real value; because while an aftermarket fuel tank from Titan Tanks costs more up front, the Total Cost of Ownership of a Titan Tank is lower, because there are no maintenance costs and they last years longer than a metal tank.

 

In my post above (#21) it mentions SHORT BED.

Maybe their replacement fuel tank for the LONG BED is aluminized steel?

 

Read the whole thread we are comparing two different brands of tanks.

 

correct, Titan makes plastic tanks

The steel one is the other brand the OP was comparing, Transfer Flow.

 

Yep. SORRY! I just realized the ad/pic for the aluminized steel tank is from Transfer Flow and the plastic tank is from Titan.

I would ONLY buy blowmolded or rotomolded tanks if I was buying one of these.

The EPA is involved in requiring certification for gasoline tanks but apparently they don't require it for diesel (edit: I'm not sure about the current regs on this).

Here's info on plastic tanks, EPA and CARB compliance for fuel tanks:
Plastic composite fuel tanks

Even more/better info (I'm still not sure about current EPA compliance requirements for diesel fuel tanks):
https://www.transferflow.com/regulations

 

On the issue of rusting for steel tanks.

I currently own a 2002 7.3 F350 with over 250,000 miles on it. This truck has a now 15 year old steel auxiliary tank by Transfer Flow mounted in the spare tire position giving the truck a 65 gallon total capacity (29+36).

For the entire life of this truck I have lived and driven in a rural foothill location traveling regularly in snow laden areas and occasionally off road including desert dry lake beds. For those not familiar dry lake beds are typically alkali and very nasty corrosive environments for anything that will oxidize and corrode.

A little over a year ago I pulled the auxiliary tank as I was having issues with the fuel transferring properly from the auxiliary tank to the main tank. I thought a clogged pick up sock was likely the culprit and expected to find debris/corrosion, etc in the tank. I was surprised how good the inside of the tank looked. The sock needed changing and as much work as it was to pull the tank I had the inside treated and had the sender rebuilt in addition to replacing the sock anyway. I was very pleased with the condition of the inside of the tank (and frustrated as that was not the source of my fuel transfer problem).

The outside of the tank however was not in the best condition. I am not sure what the exterior treatment to the tank was 15 yrs ago but much of it was peeling off and the exposed steel under it was rusting.

The rust was not penetrating or pitting and was not compromising the physical integrity of the tank but did look ugly. The other steel components of the under body of the truck frame were likewise rusting, the tank slightly more so. I removed all loose coating, sanded the exterior and repainted before remounting the tank.

It will be up to the reader to decide if the condition of the tank and it's service life is acceptable or not. Given the way I use my trucks overall I am satisfied but of course would have preferred the exterior coating had held up better.

For my 2017 6.7 I went again with a steel (replacement) tank from Transfer Flow, this time coated with a Line-X like material. I would have no hesitation going with the Titan plastic tank either but I feel a little more comfortable with the steel off road.

 

Plastic tanks and skid plates are the way to go. Light weight, long life, durable, no corrosion and easy to protect with a skid plate if you're an off roader or concerned about punctures of some kind.

 

Thanks for taking the time to write out that review. I believe steel tank is the way to go. You can't beat it for strength. And if you look at the skid plate that comes with the factory tank it's a joke. After reading your review and how long you have had it I feel much better about trying out transfer flow. I just truly believe factory uses plastic due to being much cheaper, and quicker to produce. And every other Diesel engine out there that is not in a light duty truck is running a steel tank.