Gas Tank Sediment

[sailpablo]

Hello. We have a 1972 Pearson 30. Recently we have had issues with sediment in the fuel filter and gas tank. We have been told that Ethanol in the gas has eroded the tank and it is rusting.
The tank is 20 gallons and cannot be pulled out through the entrance to the engine compartment. Is there a coating or other process to line the current tank so the erosion doesn't continue or,
Is there some way to circumvent the large tank with a smaller tank in the boat. The only option we
have been given is to cut through the cockpit core, remove the tank, and replace it with another.

 

[Wanderer138]

Before you start cutting into the boat, you may want to check your tank again. Pearsons of that vintage were often fitted with Monel tanks, which don't rust.

Given the age of the boat, you may just have accumulated a lot of junk over the years. Junk can be removed from the tank using an electric automotive fuel pump and cheap filters of increasingly small size in series to bypass the fuel system. The filtered ("polished") fuel can be pumped right back into the tank through the fuel fill. You may have to run the pump for a while and replace the filters several times.

Once you've cleaned the tank, a Racor fuel filter/water separator is worth installing in the fuel line if you don't already have one. Get the one with the metal bowl. I fitted a ball valve and a short piece of tubing into the drain on mine so I can drain water and sediment into a glass jar at any time without undoing the filter. By the way, if available in your area, ethanol-free gas is well worth the extra cost.