SO 43DS Fuel Tank

[alenka]

I recently traced a small fuel leak to the filler pipe connection at the tank. As with all such things a simple fix is turning into something far more complicated than it should.

In short, the plastic connection that goes into the tank needs to be re-seated and this involves undoing a retaining nut on the inside of the tank. Alas, the inspection hatch is well and truly stuck and applying an uneven force to it is only like to break the plastic fins.

Does anyone know where I can get a spare just in case this happens; Or does anyone know of a tool that will spread the forces evenly across all the fins to minimise the chance of breakage.

imgur.com/ZKdtVa3

[tilo]

I would try a vice grip across the hub of the inspection port (uneven number of fins, so it won't be perfectly centered) and use as long an extender (pipe) as possible over the handle of the vice grip to very slowly turn the inspection port. That should break it free. 

[sleighride]

I had exactly the same problem with my DS43. I found a spanner wrench worked best to adjust tightly against the center plastic wings; and then I used a large crescent wrench for leverage over the top of spanner wrench and it came loose nicely. Next step is to pump out most of fuel in tank if you have no already run it down since you need to extend your full arm into tank to get a wrench onto inner plastic nut to keep from turning when you tighten plastic nut on top. I also found that it was best to replace the rubber gasket at top that was too soft and a bit too large to seal properly and would twist away from sealing as I tightened the inner and outer nuts. I used a custom cork gasket in lieu of the rubber and that solved the problem and stopped the leaks from overfilling the tank. You of course have to remove the hose clamps on the fuel intake hose to fit on the cork gasket. I then sealed the final product with Sealall, which you can purchase from most auto shops. 

[hoppy]

I was planning to cut a piece of wood to make as a tool for opening the inspection hole to my water tank, but eventually I got it open.

[alenka]

Update.

I was pointed in the direction of Polyform which comes as plastic beads from eBay.  Add a small amount to a jug of hot water and they melt and go into a soft pliable plastic which was simply pushed into the space between the fins and removed when it starts to go hard again.

I made each infill one at a time and used the water tank as a mould rather than get any watery beads near the fuel tank. Placing the parts in the fridge caused them to go rock hard and then they were bolted to a piece of wood with a handle to give leverage.

It worked a treat!

Sorry I do not have any pics and I gave the finished item (which was a bit rough around the edges) to the mech that was helping me because he could lick it into a more useable device and had a good need for it.

I will be remaking another one to a better standard next year when I return to the boat and will post pictures then.

In short.

1/2Kg of polyform from eBay costs about £10.  Get the stuff that melts at 62 degrees. Some melts at 40 degrees and although it is kinder to work with in the Greek Ionian an extreme hot day might get close to this lower temp.

Place in fridge to harden but keep each part separate otherwise they weld themselves together.

Work with only a small amount at a time. Large amounts are just too difficult to keep pliable and mould.

[fishfingers]

Jul 2, 2016 9:19:37 GMT hoppy said:

I was planning to cut a piece of wood to make as a tool for opening the inspection hole to my water tank, but eventually I got it open.

I did just that. Cut some wood and used 3 bolts to do the job. Measure twice, cut once! I did it the other way around. It opened with very little force with the right tool. Don't know how to attach a picture sorry.

Does anyone know what thread the access points for the fuel lines have? Looking at the picture above in the first part, you can see 2 sealed but unused access points. Thinking of using them for my polishing system.

[fishfingers]

Oct 20, 2016 3:03:41 GMT fishfingers said:

Jul 2, 2016 9:19:37 GMT hoppy said:

I was planning to cut a piece of wood to make as a tool for opening the inspection hole to my water tank, but eventually I got it open.

I did just that. Cut some wood and used 3 bolts to do the job. Measure twice, cut once! I did it the other way around. It opened with very little force with the right tool. Don't know how to attach a picture sorry.

Does anyone know what thread the access points for the fuel lines have? Looking at the picture above in the first part, you can see 2 sealed but unused access points. Thinking of using them for my polishing system.

[alenka]

Fishfingers.

Good alternative.

With regards fuel polishing I fit a Fuel-Gaurd a couple of years ago into the main line prior to the primary fuel filter.



After a few hours of running the fuel level in the bowl dropped an inch or so.  The installation was checked for leaks and refilled. But it happened again and day by day the fuel level would get lower and lower.  The guys at Fuel-Gaurd were very proactive and we worked through a couple of scenarios. They even sent out a replacement unit.... The same thing happened with that one too - after a week to ten days the fuel level dropped to around 50% of the bowl, but gets no lower.

Two years on and we just live with it because it hasn't as yet caused a problem.

At the start of this season I checked the filter as we were motoring at higher than normal revs and noted that very, very small air bubbles were come up from the drain tap at the base of the unit! Before we hit the water next year the tap will be removed as it is not essential and the bowl filled to the top again. I suspect a less-than-perfect seal associated with the tap might be to blame.

(This was the only bit that wasn't included in the second kit sent to us!!!!)

[fishfingers]

Alenka, tanks for the advise on the fuel polisher.

My concerns were the access ports to the fuel tank.  I dislike drilling holes into the tank without the proper enforcement around the hole.  The fuel tank in my 43DS already has some spare access ports (similar to the outlet and return ports) which are sealed.  These are properly enforced and threaded as well.  I could not determine the thread size without draining the tank and taking out the fuel outlet fitting for measurements.  One fine day a month back I did just that.  For those interest, the thread is an M16 thread (thread pitch 2.0 mm).  Could not buy any fittings off the shelf hence I had two made.  The outlet to the polisher was 90% to the bottom and extended to the bottom via a small section of fuel hose to avoid any metal to plastic contact.


I will try to post a couple of pictures if I can work out again how to insert pictures.

[dwsmith]

I have a 2003 DS which is leaking around the connection of the fuel fill hose connection fitting to the tank. Closer inspection shows the rubber gasket is not between the tank and plastic right angle neck but on top of that connection providing zero sealing. After pulling the hose off the plastic right angle connection I was able to move/swivel/up and down the plastic right angle connection. There is about a 1.5mm gap between the tank and flange sealing surface. I reached inside the tank in an attempt remove the flange nut but was unable to loosen the nut.

My question is does anyone know the size of the internal nut holding the flange on or is there a special tool or method for removal?

I don't have any tools that large and would prefer not to go down the path of trial and error method of purchasing tools.

Thanks in advance for your help

David

[rxc]

I am now going thru this process, and it has taken me over a week to get the tank open, the fuel pumped out, and the fill fitting off of the tank. The gasket appears to have swelled, probably due to exposure to the diesel - it does this to a LOT of different plastics.

I needed to make a tool to open the access hatch, and had to make three prototypes before I succeeded. A tool made out of Plexiglas fractured, then one made out of wood could not hold the center bolt, so I ended up with a wood structure, reinforced with steel. 5 carriage bolts in a circle, and one in the center, with three nuts tightened up to one another so that I could use a socket wrench. It came out easily once I had a tool that could bear on all five of the access hatch flanges. It will come in handy to open up the water tanks.






I purchased a small 12v diesel pump from Amazon for about $14, and pumped all the fuel out of the tank into potable diesel jugs. The pump is very nice - unfortunately, it does not fit into the portable jugs, so I will have to use a funnel to get the diesel back into the boat when this is all finished.



Then, I could not get a pipe wrench to hold the nut on the inside of the tank that secures the fitting. Eventually I switched to a large Channel-lock pliers, which did the trick. The inside nut is very large 72mm across the flats. I think I will look for some sort of wrench when it comes time to put it back on, because the diesel has swelled the fitting, and it will be hard to tighten.

I removed the level sender and the pickup tube in order to get a grip on the nut for the fitting. The sender just barely fits thru the hole in the tank.





Once the fitting came out, it was clear that the leak was caused by the swelling of the rubber gasket. It should have had an ID of about 60mm, but it had swelled to about 69mm and did not fit under the flange.





I cannot find anyone local who has a suitable gasket, so I have sent off some messages to various custom gasket companies, to see whether they can cut me a gasket. I shudder to think about what they will charge for a one-off gasket. I have also found suitable material available on Amazon in sheet form (~$14), so I may have to fall back on that, and cut my own.

I will also use this opportunity to clean out more of the plastic debris from the bottom of the tank, and retireve a small piece of plastic/paper from the cap on the bottle of Biobor that I use to prevent growth and water in the tank. It fell off into the fill pipe about 2 years ago, and has caused problems three times since then, when it got sucked up against the pickup tube.

More to come....

[MalcolmP]

Rxc

Very useful write up, thanks for sharing. I would like to add to Hints and Tips when you finish.

You should be able to get that gasket from Jeanneau America, that design is on a lot of Jeanneaus, hopefully cheaper than a custom one ...

Malcolm

[rxc]

Malcolm,

Thanks for the comment. I think that a call to M. Rigeaux will be in order tommorrow. I have already found an appropriate tool for the inner nut - it is called a "plumbers wrench" over here, and it is used to loosen large nuts on the bottom of sink fittings. $12 at Home Depot.






Ralph

[andreshs1]

This is a great post indeed
I have been postponing the repair on my tank for a year now...just filling vary little fuel at the time 🤩

Now I feel that I am ready to tackle the problem

Cheers!!

[rxc]

Just a quick update. M. Rigeaux does not have any parts in stock, and is in the process of contacting the tank manufacturer. As a backup I have found a source of nitrile rubber that is 3/16" thick, and it is on its way to me so that I can cut a replacement gasket myself. It should arrive by the end of the week.

I had also sent out some feelers to sales departments of various rubber merchants to see if they would cut one-off gaskets, but none have replied. Evidently too small an order.

Oh, and I found the small gasket from the BioBor cap. As well as two plastic chips. THere are probably a few others back in the back of the tank where I can't see them. I may try to pump the tank dry, now that I understand the geometry.

More to come.