Fresh Water boat and tanks

[Woody5]

We have been searching for our boat in Florida and hear bad stories about older boats and fuel/water tank deterioration.
A Great Lakes sailor was telling me his 40 year old tanks are fine. He went on to say he recently cleaned them out and coated the interior of his tanks with Por epoxy. According to this sailor the product seals leaks and is impervious to fuel. I understand they have food safe tank sealant for water tanks as well.
I commented on his great looking topsides and he said Por also sells a great two part epoxy for fiberglass that is significantly cheaper than the typical offerings by Awlgrip and interlux.
Does any else have comment on these products?

 

[Woody5]

POR-15 Fuel Tank Sealer - 8 oz - Stops Rust, Corrosion, & Leaks | Seals Pinholes & Seams | Non-porous, Flexible Film | Resistant To All Fuels, Alcohols, & Additives

 

[backinblue]

We have been searching for our boat in Florida and hear bad stories about older boats and fuel/water tank deterioration.
A Great Lakes sailor was telling me his 40 year old tanks are fine. He went on to say he recently cleaned them out and coated the interior of his tanks with Por epoxy. According to this sailor the product seals leaks and is impervious to fuel. I understand they have food safe tank sealant for water tanks as well.
I commented on his great looking topsides and he said Por also sells a great two part epoxy for fiberglass that is significantly cheaper than the typical offerings by Awlgrip and interlux.
Does any else have comment on these products?

On an older boat, I would pay a lot of attention to tank construction and condition, not just fuel, but also water and holding tanks. Also look at whether they could be easily replaced if needed. As an example, Island Packet was/is known for building high quality sturdy boats. Their older boats used marine-grade aluminum for their tanks. Holding tanks have been known to leak and are not easily replaced without a lot of cutting. My current boat was only 7 years old when I bought it. Plastic holding tank had a crack in the top and needed replacement. Luckily that was not a hard removal/install.

 

[garbler]

Aluminum is a very poor choice for potable was.they grow white corrosion nodules in the inside, they get sour And terrible tasting. Any boat I’ve ever inspected with these had continuous problems because of this. I don’t have my old ABYC manuals handy but I think they recommend against aluminum.

On the subject I can say in all my years the best tasting, coolest and cleanest after tanks I’ve ever run across were is old vessels that had iron tanks that were cement lined. Of course they arent available anymore but we’re the finest

Rick

 

[garbler]

Aluminum is a very poor choice for potable was.they grow white corrosion nodules in the inside, they get sour And terrible tasting. Any boat I’ve ever inspected with these had continuous problems because of this. I don’t have my old ABYC manuals handy but I think they recommend against aluminum.

On the subject I can say in all my years the best tasting, coolest and cleanest after tanks I’ve ever run across were is old vessels that had iron tanks that were cement lined. Of course they arent available anymore but we’re the finest

Rick

Apologize for the numerous spelling and grammatical errors in this post. It seems like this gets worse all the time.

 

[backinblue]

I agree. I had a boat with AL water tanks and the screens at the faucets would clog regularly with small white particles.

 

[Pete Meisinger]

Using the liquid patch sounds good. Except the reason you are trying to do it on the cheap is access to the leak, you can't get to it to it for any type of metal patch.

8 ounces of a pourable patch will cover an area about the size of a dinner plate. To just pour it in blind you will need at least a gallon, and your tank must be clean and dry. Hard to do without access.

good luck, let us know how it works.

pete