I'm very unhappy as I write this.I just bought the KBS tank sealer kit in hopes of saving money and not buying new tanks for my truck.I spent the first 2 days of Memorial weekend cleaning and preping the tanks. I followed the instructions to a "T".This afternoon when I put the GOld Seal in the tank,I rolled it around for about 15 minutes per the instructions.When I tried to drain the sealer I found that it was already setting up.I kept rolling and draining excess paint as best I could for about 45 minutes.When I finally finished it looked very good inside.Nice and smooth and no puddles that I could see.
When I checked the tank again after about 4 hours,the paint inside was bubbled and blisterd extremly bad.Now obviously I must do the extra work,cost and effort to strip the tank and start over.For this time and effort,I wish I'd just bought a new tank for $140.
I live in Southern Calif, I did the work in about 78 deg temp and almost no humidity, it was a perfect weekend.
Can you PLEASE tell me what I did wrong?
I feel discouraged and "gun-shy" now and thinking I'll just spend the money on new tanks and forget using a sealer.
I feel sick to think I must spend another $60 on a tank kit+buying stripper and the time end effort to do all of this work over again.
I had high hopes for KBS, can you tell me what I did wrong so I can continue and get a good seal without blisters and bubbles?
About this topic
- Posted by D.B. 9 months ago. There are 15 posts. The latest reply is from KBS Coatings.
- 1 Members Subscribed To Topic
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I am sure we can help you figure out what happened.
Please help us by answering a few questions.
What is your tank made of?
How did you dry your tank and for how long after you rinsed the RustBlast out?Let us know and we can get to the bottom of this. We stand behind out products.
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Thank you for answering me quickly.
My tanks are made of steel.The truck is a '76 Ford F-100.
It has dual tanks.The main tank was in bad shape.The tank in question is the "spare tank".
The spare tank actually looked like brand new inside(after 30+years),which is why I tried to seal it first,because I thought that one would be relatively simple and problem free.
I got to the stage of cleaning and RustBlast with both tanks.
I let the tank sit for 24 hours to dry before I applied the Gold Sealer.
I looked inside it and saw no eveidence of water/moisture left so I thought it would be safe to try the Gold Sealer.
When I opened the can of Gold Sealer, I mixed it very well and very carefully as per instructions.
When I poured it into the tank, it seamed kind of thick.
After I emptied the sealer fromj the tank, I worked it by rolling the tank for about 30-45 minutes.
As I said, it looked good when I finished but after 4 hours, wow, blisters all over the place.
I'm sure KBS is a good product,if you can hlep me I would appreciate it.
I'm newly married and just got my wife moved to the US from Thailand...so right now expenses are critical
and I need to learn to finish this job with no more problems.
I'm on the way to buy some stripper now to clean out the tank and start over again. -
I'm not a KBS tech, but I just used a tank sealer kit on my motorcycle tank (which went well), and I think you might not have gotten all the water in the tank out.
From what I understand, moisture cures the sealer so even if there was a tiny amount of water left in some crevice of the tank it would have made the sealer cure too quickly, causing the bubbling.
Due to the design of my motorcycle tank, it wasn't possible to drain all the water out so I had to bake it for a few hours in my oven to boil all the water out. I think it's possible 24 hours wasn't enough time for all the water in your tank to dry out on its own, unless you used a vacuum or hairdryer.
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awlriteeden,
I want to thank you for your help and advice.
You've definately been more help than the KBS people have been so far.
I checked the tank very carefully inside and it stood out in the hot sun for a few hours too.
I know the instruction say that being dry is critical, but the instruction sheet also does not
tell exactly HOW dry it needs to be or how to check if it is.
So Q:HOW DOES ONE KNOW WHEN THE TANK IS DRY ENOUGH TO POUR IN THE GOLD SEALER?
I saw no moisture/water inside and the day was relatively low in humidity.
Now the nightmare is trying to strip the inside paint and save a $200 tank.
I started the process of stripping, but I can tell that one application won't be enough.
For all of the money effort and especially the time I've spent, it seems I would have been better just to buy new tanks -
The Tank does need to be BONE DRY. And then the tank needs to be back to Room Temperature before pouring in the sealer. Can you verify that you did both?
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As our instructions say .. "3) After rinsing, allow tank to dry completely before proceeding. Drying is best accomplished by introducing forced air into the tank by using a shop vac, blow dryer, or fan. A white powdery residue may appear after drying. This is the zinc phosphate coating advantageous for Sealer adhesion. (NOTE: Drying is a critical step. If the tank is not completely dry, the Sealer will not adhere properly.)"
You can find the complete instructions here: http://www.kbs-coatings.com/Gold-Standard-Tank-Sealer-Information-Instructions_ep_39-1.html
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Thanks KBS for your reply.
I went and talked over the situation with the distributer whom I bought the Tank Sealer Kit from.
Those guys are great and we talked for a long time.
I told them how I preped the tank and also how I was sure it was dry.
Thier thinking is that it probably should of been dry enough.
But anyways,
we're also wondering if maybe I should only have used about 3/4 of the contents of the Gold sealer,
maybe there was just too much product in the tank to work with and also to remove, seeing how my tank is very difficult to drain.
Just a guess.
They promised to help me get to the bottom of my mistake and to make this process a success.
Any other ideas?
Please let me know.
Thank you. -
Hey D.B., no problem at all, I'm glad to be able to help.
Although you left your tank in the sun for 24 hours, I strongly suspect there was still some water hiding among your tank's baffles. Even if all the water did evaporate, the interior of the tank could have been very humid due to the poor ventilation inside the tank.
Imagine leaving a jerry can with some water inside with the cap off out in the sun. Chances are not all the water will evaporate, due to the poor ventilation and lack of direct exposure to sunlight. This problem will only be exacerbated in a large fuel tank with possibly more water and a design that makes draining or ventilation difficult.
If you're going to attempt this again, I'd recommend baking the tank like I did for at least half a day. My motorcycle's tank only holds 3 gallons, and still I had to bake it for 6 hours to get all the water to boil off. If not you can also use a heatgun on the exterior of the tank.
Good luck! By the way I spoke too soon. Some of the excess sealer in my tank that I couldn't drain off puddled near the fill hole, and there's some noticeable bubbling, though the bubbles are tiny and it doesn't look like the sealer is blistering or peeling off. Keeping my fingers crossed...
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The other thing may be that you rolled the sealer around for too long and the coating on the inside was just too thick. It is designed to be drained out. Does that make sense?
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I really appreciate all of the input.
awlriteeden: IF I do attempt this again, I'm thinking I'll borrow my brothers welding tanks and heat the entire outside of the tank,plus also use the shop vac to get any humidty out of it.
However, I'm still kind of "gun shy",and if I can get the tank stripped clean of all the Gold Sealer,I might just leave it bare.After all, it lasted 30+ years with no rust whatsoever.
I'm thinking a 20.5 gallon tank is better left up to the professionals to seal and I just don't have the resourses to pay for them.
Good luck with you cycle tank-I hope it stays good for you.KBS Coatings: I rolled it for about 15 minutes.Constantly moving it and never letting the tank sit until after I drained the exceess back into the original container (about 1/2" worth in the bottom of the can) and after I drained it I continued to roll it and get out as much access paint as possible before I let it sit.
I worked it for about 45 minutes after I drained it.
It looked good-it looked thin after I finished.
So, maybe if I have the intestinal fortitude (and cash to buy another kit) to try it again,I will
bake and heat and dry the heck out of it for a few days and only use about 3/4 of the can for about 5 minutes then drain it. -
Please give us a call. (877-548-9323) We can send you another kit for free. We stand behind our products. And it sounds like you have a good idea of what to do next time so that you do not have the same issues.
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Thank you for calling. We will get your kit shipped out today. Please let us know if you have any additional questions.
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I recieved the kit in tact and on time.
Thank you very much -
Your welcome. Please let us know if we can help you in any other way.
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