well I walk out to the truck today and smell diesel, I take a peek underneath and voila, front fuel tank is leaking from what seems to be that front support piece of steel, I have no one to help me with any mechanical problems that I ever have so sadly I had to leave this to the pros and dropped the truck off at my local Ford dealer, I am now preparing myself for the $400 bill

 

was it like the punch a hole in it drip

 

exactly Joe f350

 

well just recieved call from dealer, $460 bucks for tank and new support straps with labor.......... and to put the cherry on top service advisor says the sending unit might be rotted out too so if it is, that will bump me up to $850!!!! WTF

 

some one steel ur fuel buy punching a hole in the tank wtf

 

doubt it joe,. if his sending unit is rotted out then id assume his tank is rotting as well.... not someone punching a hole in it. and ya, ford dealers are expensive. im sure you could have taken it to any ol shop and had them do it.

 

some try to steel my fuel they met my fist with there noise

 

Na I dont think anyone was trying to steal it, it was leaking from that front support strap, but dripping like a hole was punched, I don't have anyone else I could have taken it too, I think I'm going to take it back and try doing the work myself can I get a sending unit from a autopart store?

 

Powerstroker...........STOP!!!!! put your wallet down, take 3 steps back.......lol

First of all, if the tank really is beyond repair, you are better off going to a wrecker and finding a used plastic tank out of a newer truck. OBS powerstrokes are known to have them and it will be cheaper than anything at the dealership.

Second of all, you can patch your current tank.

Here is what I did with my rear tank when rust set in behind one of the holding straps.

Dropping the tank is optional.

You will have to drain the tank however, and drop the offending strap. Have some spare bolts handy because its possible you will have to destroy the original rusty bolts in order to remove the strap.

now you have the rusty area of the tank exposed.

Drain the tank the best you can, by siphoning the fuel out. The rest can be removed by placing a catch pan under the tank and poking a hole through the rust pitting with a SMALL scriber. Let it drain like that for a while....

Now take a screw driver blade and scrape the surface rust flakes off. After that, take a wire wheel in an angle grinder or drill gun to take off the deeper pitted rust. Be thorough here and take your time.

The tank can now be soldered depending on how big the pin hole is. Have a fire extinguisher right next to you at all times, and be very careful when you first start soldering. Again, take your time here and make sure you have good lighting to see if there are any parts that will not accept the filler material. If you do, scrape it off again, and repeat. At the very least, get enough on there to have a good joint immediately around the pin hole even if its not perfectly bonded across all the surface area you covered up.

After the solder is on, you can use that off the shelf fuel tank epoxy patch to cover up the solder joint. Make sure you thoroughly wipe down the area to remove any flux before applying the epoxy. Also be sure not to build up too much thickness ro cause a high spot on the tank that could get strained when you reinstall the holding strap.

Now get some rust paint or undercoating in a can and cover up the patch all the way. I prefer wax or ashphalt undercoating, others prefer chemical rust paints - your call. I repaired my fuel tank a couple years ago and its still doing fine to this day. If it ever leaks again, I am on the hunt for a plastic tank.

 

could I use my mig welder? or do you think the diesel fumes left in the tank would blow from the arc?

 

If it's got one hole rusted in it most likely it will have others before long. I would just replace it with a new one. About 120 bucks and be done with it.

AutoZone.com | | Fuel Tank | FUEL TANK

 

i just got a new tank and was done with it 4 hours it was the rear tank tho ford is ripping you off

 

I think I might take the day off tomorrow and go get my truck back but purchase the fuel tank that was shipped out, how hard is it to drop the fuel tank? I have never looked at where the sending unit is and where the fuel lines connect on this model truck, how hard would it be for someone with no experience to do this job alone

 

oh man.look what you have done.you took the truck in for repair before asking here.dont do that!
swapping a tank is easy as pie! (ok,its messy.but so what.)

i scored a 23 gallon midship (front) poly tank (like what was already there on mine) complete with a perfect sending unit and pickup for $65 bucks @ local salvage yard via searching here:
http://car-part.com/
couldn't find the right straps so i had to work one up (only cus i had to cut one off: )
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/9...nk-straps.html

instructions....if you look at it,you will see you wont need these:
1.disconnect batteries.
2.unbolt the straps.-ditch that shield if ya want.mine was rotten out,so i ripped it all off.
lower the old girl down gently-hopefully you sucked the fuel out so its not heavy.
3.disconnect the sending unit.
4.remove from vehicle.and replace.
5.have a cold beer,and smile knowing you saved a sheeeeeeet load of $.

oh i forgot of course,you need to unbolt the filler tube so it drops with the tank.
and 6,or ok,i guess 7. dont take your truck in for repair again without asking us first. that can get costly real quick.

i also agree with just ditching the old rusty tank.you have to low miles to just "make it work for now". replace the thing so your not just putting it off.unless $'s tight.in which case,personally id just wait and use the rear tank only until i could afford to swap it.
either way though,your not going to be paying 400 bucks lol.

 

Don't try to mig weld a fuel tank like this. You will likely just bow through and make the hole bigger (unless you are very skilled and feel confident enough to try it). Nice thing about soldering is you will not exceed the temperature of the parent material. You can even use a big soldering gun or iron of you don't have a small butane torch.

However I agree that if you can find a poly tank for $60 (&^*(()@!!!!) then go that route if you can.