Some Rust

[Coyote]

My tank has had tape on the filler neck from being painted. I left it on there and just took it off There is rust. Not severe but enough to be a problem. Especially the lower third. I have always used Phosphoric Plus for this job. The last few times I was at Home Depot, I don't see it anymore. I have heard raves about the electrolysis method and would like to give that a go but I'm not sure how. I saw an illustration years ago. The only thing I remember is washing soda is used and a battery charger. Can anyone point me to a good explanation and an illustration? Much appreciated.
Ok, I read a lot and watched videos. Simple enough except a few things weren't clear:
How much washing soda per gallon of water.? A tablespoon was suggested, but that doesn't seem like enough?
How many amps? I have a trickle charger and a large charger that runs at 2, 10 and 50
How often to change out the sacrificial steel?
Average hours it will take?
And lastly. Do I need to change out the solution or should it last the duration?

[Suzukidave]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SyG0mu2T4u0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Last time i did one like this i used a L shaped piece of rebar that extended down into the tank ... just make sure it doesnt touch the tank .

[pearljam724]

Por - 15. Regardless of electrolysis, etc. The rust will reappear in the matter of weeks. If you don't seal it properly afterward. Is the rust on the interior or exterior of the filler neck ?

[Desert_75]

I used the POR-15 Kit as well and highly recommend it.

[Coyote]

I already have a can ordered -- as soon as I saw the rust in the tank. This will be my fourth tank with POR-15. Love it! They shipped it yesterday, Scheduled to arrive Wednesday. I usually cover the filler neck with packing tape. When I drain the excess I use a cheap sponge brush to paint the inside of the filler neck with a little bit of what drained out.

[pearljam724]

That's exactly what I also did. The filler neck I pictured had a fair amount of rust around the rim and down inside the perimeter wall. Even though the tank itself had only mild specs here and there. But, with specs of rust. All it takes is one particle to clog a jet. So, I did the complete tank. I also used it under the lid. The coin looking tab that is used for a breather was pretty rusty. Be careful not to cover the breather holes. There are two of them on opposite sides. It's a fantastic product. It's not cheap. But, worth more than the cost. Keeps your carbs clean. Not to mention what it does for your tank. Extends carb cleaning intervals. Dries extremely hard, very easy to use and doesn't fail. I've used Red Koat which works fine. But, still doesn't compare to Por-15. Red Koat creates a soft membrane inside the tank. I'm afraid the complete membrane will peal away as one someday. Kreem absolutely sucks. It's brittle and doesn't adhere well once it dries. As a result, it starts to crumble like shale in a year or 2. Without a doubt. Every person should buy a kit of Por-15 as soon as they buy a bike that is over 15 years old. I wish it was affordable to use on an old car tank. But, it's not. You're better off buying a new tank there.

[Coyote]

OK. One more time. How many amps and how much soda?

[mikefealk]

Soaking rusty parts in apple cider vinegar for 12 hours really does work used this all through my resto kinda amazing how good it works only 3 bucks a gallon too

[Coyote]

If I use an inline battery to keep the charger going, does it need to be a good battery? I have an old battery that won't take a charge.

[Alan H]

It's not really a battery then. It's a waste of power.
If it doesn't hold a charge, it just soaks 'some' power but won't regulate the voltage or do anything other than waste power.
If the charger is a regulated power supply, it doesn't need a battery in line, or anywhere else.
I'm not sure how a battery would keep a battery charger going anyway.
A battery charger will supply the amps the circuit will allow, depending on the resistance of the circuit. You can't regulate it other than with a varistat or something similar in circuit.

[Coyote]

A battery is used inline to keep an automatic battery charger from cycling on and off. Not needed with a manual battery charger as it has constant output.

[Coyote]

I read somewhere that electrolysis removes good metal as well as rust. Is this true?

[tricky1962]

No, good metal is not removed. You won't fill in any pits in the metal surface though

[tricky1962]

What I should have added is, rust consists of Fe(2+) and Fe(3+). When you carry out your electrolysis, you will convert these (+)s to Fe (0) ie iron. Unfortunately this iron won't have the same structure as cast or forged iron, it will be a very fine powder which gets washed away. So you will remove the rust from the surface of the metal, but not replace it with solid metal.

Hope this makes sense

[Coyote]

Looked at a bunch of instructional videos online. This one is the best by far. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTKHZSKuJtQ" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;