Fuel Tank Leak Part 2

Denial didn't work. Thread Blocker Green didn't work. So, I have (another) tank leak. I say another as I had some before, removed the tank, spent days testing and making sure there were absolutely no leaks. I went to extremes as I didn't want to deal with them ever again.

Well enough of that.

Realizing now that vinyl wrap is incredibly sensitive to aviation fuel, I also realize that I now have a method of testing my tanks for even the tinniest of leaks. Leaks that would pass the standard tests.

By the way, I will state that air and water tests at best, and I mean at best, find gross leaks. I filled my tanks with aviation fuel and still, this leak got by me. It has been posted many times that aviation fuel will go where most everything else will not..

I had some extra vinyl wrap left over from my color selection process. I used that to cover the rivet lines on both tanks to see if there were other leaks I missed. Also, being curious as to why I didn't see a blue stain on the current leak, I cleaned the rivet and left it exposed. In two or three days I will inspect it to see if there is a blue stain. If not, I will have proven to myself, that the vinyl wrap can detect most any leak.

The pictures speak pretty much for themselves. They show blue (dark colors work best) vinyl wrap along the rivet lines of my starboard tank. I will leave it for a few days to see if I can detect other leaks.

An added benefit is I get a glimpse of how the final wrap will look along the rivet lines. Also, you can see the vinyl wrapped intersection and gear leg fairings.

Vince

Vince