Gas in fresh water tank

[Larry Paterson]

A friend of mine put about 3 gallons of gas in his 30 gal fresh water tank. He immediately pumped it out and put fresh water in and bleach. Repeated this several time and still has a gas smell. Is the tank ruined or can he salvage the tank. Thanks for any help.

 

[rduhon]

Where I work offshore, we had a big dummy screw up and try to fill a natrual gas condensate(drip gas) bucket in a pressured seperator(150 psi) with fresh water(35 psi). The condensate backed up into a 200 barrel steel fresh water tank.
We drained it, pressure washed it and that didn't work.
We tried several types of cleaners and it always smelled bad.
We ended up having to get someone to install a liner in the tank to get rid of the smell.
That would not be easy in a small tank in a recreational boat. But it will take a lot to get the smell out.
I think a lot of cleaning with potable water tank cleaners and bleach might help.
Be sure to run the soapy water thru all of the water lines also, so they too can be cleaned out.

 

[rawidman]

quote:

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Originally posted by Larry Paterson

A friend of mine put about 3 gallons of gas in his 30 gal fresh water tank. He immediately pumped it out and put fresh water in and bleach. Repeated this several time and still has a gas smell. Is the tank ruined or can he salvage the tank. Thanks for any help.

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I would say it's ruined. Bleach will do nothing for gasoline. Vinegar is a thought, alcohol (vodka) is a thought, a solution of water and baking soda (but not with the vinegar) is a thought, but in the end, I believe he'll have to replace it.

 

[Silverton_34]

Probably ruined but after all the above cleaning let the tank vent for a week or so and then see how it smells.

 

[Radioactive]

For me, it would be a "Rip and Replace".

Don't forget to replace the fill tube and the vent hose as well.