Specific Tank De-Rusting With Kleen-Strip Concrete & Metal Prep

[Dr. Frankenstein]

I'm right on the cusp of getting my tank cleaned/de-rusted and was using vinegar, but that didn't do so well - I'm not at the stage yet where I can just add 5 gallons of gas to it after I wash and dry it out, so of course it flash-rusted over, so I refilled it; got home tonight and saw it dripping and had a little concern thinking it was the tank itself, but luckily it was just the vinegar making it's way out of the petcock holes after pushing past the duct tape...it had leaked down about a third of the way, AND of course what was exposed was now rusted Again!

I've been doing a lot of reading about different ways to do the tank, in such a way that will let me wait a while before installation - I may have to touch it up/repaint it, it would look better repainted anyway - and after reading about all the voodoo that we 'do-do' to gas tanks to get them de-rusted - The Works, electrolysis, Evaporust (don't have the cash for that), vinegar, etc - I think I've finally settled on Kleen-Strip Concrete and Metal Prep: $17 a gallon at Lowes and is said to leave a zinc oxide coating behind it that inhibits rust.

Some say to rinse it afterwards, some say to let it air-dry, keep it off the paint, etc...my Question is, has anybody used this stuff to de-rust the tank and if so, how did you DO it, and what were the results? After you used the Kleen-Strip, did you blow-dry it, air-dry it, coat the insides with anything After you did it? I'm not planning to line the tank with Kreem or POR, just de-rust it, so if you Have used this stuff a step-by-step would be great, I don't want to have to do this again.

I was thinking about draining the vinegar, neutralizing/rinsing it, throwing in some acetone and my big canister of BB's and slingshot ammo and rolling it all around to clean off as much as I can; take all that out, and then use the Kleen-Strip to attack what's left and hopefully it'll stay rust-free for a week or two...would rinsing it with diesel fuel after I Kleen-Strip it stave off the rust? Marvel Mystery Oil? ATF fluid? If you have any specific tips on using that specific Kleen-Strip, I'm all ears...

[toomanybikes]

I'm in the Evaporust camp ($17/gal on Amazon, and re-usable) and therefore have no info on Kleen-Strip. One plus of the non-acidic Evaporust option is that flash rust is easily avoided by simply rinsing the tank with gas after the evaporust sessions. There is no need to neutralize the acid, rinse with water, air dry, etc.

Once you do get it clean, I would just coat it with MMO and let it sit open in a dry space.

[Lucien Harpress]

Robin had a thread here a bit ago about somebody who used the metal prep option. Essentially that stuff is phosphoric acid, which works, but requires extensive cleanup afterwards. Robin had a guy who did that, thought he had cleaned it up properly, ran the bike for a while, then found out that the bit of acid that was left (because there was some) had started eating the cheap pot-metal that the carb bodies are made of. Ruined an entire carb rack.

I just cleaned my tank out a couple weeks ago, and I'm firmly in the Evapo-rust camp. The inside of my tank was very icky, but after a couple-day soak, I was extremely surprised by the results.



I couldn't afford the entire 5 gallons to completely fill the tank, but I got 3 gallons and that, combined with rotating the tank, was more than sufficient. After I was happy, I drained everything then used a shop vac (plus an extension through the fuel sender hole) to suck out all the crap that was left in the bottom. After that I quickly sloshed some gasoline around in it to clean anything I missed. (Note: DON'T MIX GAS FUMES WITH A SHOP VAC. It's a great way to blow something up.)

I've got a quart of 2-cycle oil sloshing around inside of it until I can paint it, but even then there's no sign of flash rust.

Maybe get a gallon or two, see what you can clean out with that until the next paycheck, and later on snag more if you need it. And as mentioned, it is re-usable a couple times.

Good luck!

[Track T 2411]

I used the kleen-strip as a solution on my 78 frame. It does leave a coating that is rust resistant. You do need to rinse thoroughly with water. When I did my fuel tank, I used muriatic acid (which is much the same), rinsed with water, and used compressed air and a hair dryer to dry it out. Then coated with MMO.

[Track T 2411]

20200926_130746.jpg (315.46 KiB) Viewed 268 times

20200926_172829.jpg (180.88 KiB) Viewed 268 times

Here's what the frame looked like after treatment. Heavily rusted areas turned black, as in the second picture...

[5speed]

any special prep to get paint to stick to your frame after track?

[pidjones]

Start with an etching primer.

[robin1731]

Robin had a thread here a bit ago about somebody who used the metal prep option. Essentially that stuff is phosphoric acid, which works, but requires extensive cleanup afterwards. Robin had a guy who did that, thought he had cleaned it up properly, ran the bike for a while, then found out that the bit of acid that was left (because there was some) had started eating the cheap pot-metal that the carb bodies are made of. Ruined an entire carb rack.

I just cleaned my tank out a couple weeks ago, and I'm firmly in the Evapo-rust camp. The inside of my tank was very icky, but after a couple-day soak, I was extremely surprised by the results.



I couldn't afford the entire 5 gallons to completely fill the tank, but I got 3 gallons and that, combined with rotating the tank, was more than sufficient. After I was happy, I drained everything then used a shop vac (plus an extension through the fuel sender hole) to suck out all the crap that was left in the bottom. After that I quickly sloshed some gasoline around in it to clean anything I missed. (Note: DON'T MIX GAS FUMES WITH A SHOP VAC. It's a great way to blow something up.)

I've got a quart of 2-cycle oil sloshing around inside of it until I can paint it, but even then there's no sign of flash rust.

Maybe get a gallon or two, see what you can clean out with that until the next paycheck, and later on snag more if you need it. And as mentioned, it is re-usable a couple times.

Good luck!

He used vinegar. It didn't run but a couple minutes at most. Ruined the carbs and a brand new fuel pump. Also had to replace the heads. It didn't help that it sat about 4 months with that crud in it after it died.

[Track T 2411]

any special prep to get paint to stick to your frame after track?

Nope, just a good wipe down with lacquer thinner, then etching primer...

[NotSoLilCrippseys]

I'm nobody's guru, so take my experience as anecdote or n of 1.

I started a GL1100 tank de-rusting last summer with 4 gallons of evaporust. It definitely did a number on the rust over a couple/few days, but it didn't seem to really be getting at the worst of it. I started with the tank in the frame. Then I pulled the tank and did it for a couple more days.

Then I decided it just wasn't cutting it and tried electrolysis. The electrolysis is amazing magic/science/chemistry. It just sucked the rust off the tank innards over a couple days. I've run about 4 tanks through the carbs since putting the bike back on the road. At each fill up, I peek in and find nice, clean metal. So far, so good.

I wish I hadn't spent the $80 on Evaporust, but electrolysis seemed like voodoo when I first read about it.

I've got nothing against evaporust and used the leftovers to clean some rusty parts - because I had the product. But I'm now a believer in electrolysis and will cut straight to that method on my next rusty tank.

[redglbx]

I used toilet bowl cleaner (thanks Ed!) which worked really well and fairly quickly. Poured it out (can be used to cleaned your toilets then) rinsed well with water followed by isopropyl alcohol to dry any residual water.

At this point I blew it out with compressed air but could use a shop vac as well and then lined it with Red Kote, turned out great ! Keep in mind that to use the Red Kote you need to remove the screens in the tank and plug the pickup lines. That’s what I did. I tried a number of usual methods prescribed with marginal results, the toilet bowl cleaner works !

[pidjones]

Let me add that before using most of these, I would soak with acetone for a bit to remove any varnish build-up. That will allow your rust eaters to work much better and faster.

[Don R]

I used diluted muratic acid with the tank in a big plastic tote just in case it leaked. I flushed thoroughly with baking soda water, then just water. I blew it dry with a shop vac with the hose on the exhaust and a hot air gun. Then I used northern tank sealer, it's blue. A friend gave it to me, he got it at Carquest. It Didn't plug the screens but I did root out the fuel lines with an old speedometer cable. I used plastic golf tees to plug the fuel lines, anyone that left enough acid in the tank to eat his carbs just didn't use proper care. 2 stroke oil in a little gas will keep it from flash rusting if you don't line it.
The pre wash with acetone or lacquer thinner is a good idea too.

[Don R]

I transferred the acid with a flashlight battery powered bilge/fuel pump. I got it at Menards in the as seen on TV shelf. It's way easier than pouring large amounts of corrosive chemicals. Flush it well in soda water after each use.