Pin hole leak in fuel tank

I had a diesel fuel leak so I pulled the tank and discovered a very small pin hole in the forward top portion of the tank. It looks like someone drove a screw into it and the tip of the screw just barely penetrated the tank. There are no other leaks in the tank and the internals and outside are rust free. Any suggestions on how to patch this. I currently have a toothpick plugging the hole, but that is not a very permanent solution.

solder a patch on was the old fashioned way and still about the best long term fix, its not uncommon when people use too long a screw putting floor plates back

Dot punch it with a nail or something to get a nice depression then clean really well and scratch it a lot then try epoxy steel - "Abro Steel" is good stuff,

My soldering skills are nil so I think I will attempt the steel epoxy method.

If you clean it up very well (back to metal) and then screw in a short self tapper, then flux the whole job, heat, and solder, then you should be ok,

The solder will wick into a screw easier than a patch which you might find wandering out the way.


This will be, im sure, the best option,but, if youre going for others, then you may consider the same - use a self tapping, and your chosen "gunk" as the gunk will make for the seal, and the screw will provide the physical strength.

I used a pop rivit on a steel tank once, on the bottom too...worked great.

A 'sealed' pop rivet might be a better option than a screw?

Flossie said:

I used a pop rivit on a steel tank once, on the bottom too...worked great.

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You were slightly quicker than me but at least I've spelt rivet correctly

for information to solder a patch on you clean both tank around repair site and patch till bright ,add flux to both,spread a film of solder on tank and patch when cool enough place patch on tank hold down apply heat to center and remove when outer edges show they are melting

I did exactly that on my S2a petrol tank and never had a problem with it.

julianf said:

If you clean it up very well (back to metal) and then screw in a short self tapper, then flux the whole job, heat, and solder, then you should be ok,

The solder will wick into a screw easier than a patch which you might find wandering out the way.


This will be, im sure, the best option,but, if youre going for others, then you may consider the same - use a self tapping, and your chosen "gunk" as the gunk will make for the seal, and the screw will provide the physical strength.

Click to expand...

GuamBomb said:

My soldering skills are nil so I think I will attempt the steel epoxy method.

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I'm no better than you at soldering but I successfully filled a load of holes on the top of an Escort van diesel tank. There's a pressed depression on the top of the tank that's intended to stiffen the top panel but it tends to hold water and dirt so it's no wonder the tank rusts. I emptied my tank and on a hot sunny day spent a couple of hours melting solder into all the holes and then a continuous layer covering all the spots I had already done. As long as the tank is cleaned back to bare metal you can do it easily if you buy the solder that has a flux core. Saved me buying a new tank.