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Anyone have source or guidance for selecting thickness for fuel tank material?

L

lr172

Well Known Member
I plan to build a 150-200 gallon fuel tank for mogas storage. It will be rectangle in shape and will use 5xxx series aluminum with welded seams and some internal baffles for structural support. I am struggling to find sources that can help me to determine the thickness of material that I need to use.

Anyone have experience doing this or know of a good site to find it?

My son is going to be putting on 100's of hours on the 6 as he goes for his ATP and worth the time and cost to transport mogas to the plane. $2 a gallon adds up over 10's of 1000's of gallons.

Thanks,

Larry
 
A friend bought a large aluminum semi tractor saddle tank (100 gal?) at the salvage yard. He mounted it on a Harbor Freight kit trailer and put a heavy duty tongue jack with a wheel (so he could roll it around in the hangar) on the front. To this he added a 12V fuel pump and hose set up from Tractor Supply. This should be cheaper and more substantial than a home made tank.
 
It depends on the size of the tank design. The taller the tank, the higher the hydrostatic pressure at the base, which determines the sheet material thickness
 
I would second consideration of the used truck tanks. Very cost effective starting point if nothing else. ~$400 used - $1400 new. Sloshing minimized when full or empty (the mission).

Near you: https://rivervalleytruckparts.com/part-description/?tpi-part=84896769

Many dedicated trailer tanks are made from 1/4" tread plate, but the cost of aluminum and TIG welding the tanks makes them rather costly.

New tanks (farm tanks) close to you Milwaukee, WI - https://www.jmesales.com/brands/JME-Tanks.html

Just my 2 cents . . .
 
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Sometimes I would have to offload all the fuel from a boat's tankage and I always scrounged up 55gal drums. Many service facilities have those things literally scattered about their yards.
 
55 Gallon UN Drums for Fuel

I fueled my Cessna 180 for about six years with autogas (before Ethanol). Thousands of gallons and the Continental O-470L ran great. For fueling my plane at the public airport I carried closed-head UN-rated steel drum with a Fill-Rite DC pump and a water-block filter and ground wire. I placarded the drum and the back of my truck. The steel drum was purchased used, very cheap where I live, it was clean and rust-free. I loaded the empty drum strapped to a hand cart by rolling it up heavy-duty tailgate ramps for filling at the gas station and pumped all or most gas out of it (into my airplane but could be another tank) before trying to roll the drum down the ramps out of my truck bed. I was challenged by the Fire Department at the airport but I was following all the rules and so they allowed it. Obviously securing the drum in the back of the truck is critical. If you want to get fancy, new or used stainless steel 55-gallon drums are available.
 
Pretty sure

You will likely be able to buy a tank cheaper than you could source the materials and have it welded.

Search for farm fuel tanks. A quick search yielded many options and most were less than $1500. In fact, there was a 270 gallon cylindrical tank with feet for $1150, however, it was made of steel. You can also search fuel transfer tanks. If you are planning on hauling it, look into the legalities of hauling gasoline; it is very restrictive.

Also, if you are located on a public airport, there are usually rules on how much you can store at or it the hangar…

Been down this road.
 
Fuel tanks........

rocketman1988 said:
You will likely be able to buy a tank cheaper than you could source the materials and have it welded.
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Look up Westtechequipment.com (out of Salt Lake City) and search for the TTR110. It is a 110 gallon tank approved for gas, aviation fuel etc and DOT approved. It is a $709 deal! I bought mine from JME Equipment and they list what looks like the same one for $876. They are in Milwaukee, WI so shipping may be less. You will need a transfer pump (mine is 12 volt, powered by a 12 volt battery I keep on a slow charger), hoses and nozzle, available from Westtech or your local Farm and Ranch store. Mine is mounted on a small flat trailer I got at JAX (local Colorado company). As mentioned, some states have a fuel limit for hauling non-commercial fuel. Some airports have restrictions as well. I have been fueling the Cub with non-ethanol auto fuel (with the EAA STC) from this tank for years. There are two stations nearby that sell non-ethanol fuel. Usually about $0.44 more than regular unleaded. And WAY cheaper than 100LL. And no lead-fouling worries. 100LL has more lead than a C-90 needs....
 
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Thanks to all for the input and guidance. I will check out the state regs and start looking at some of the ideas posted here. I have a tig welder and can weld up to at least 1/4" aluminum, but haven't looked at the latest cost of the raw material.
 
Building stuff........

lr172 said:
Thanks to all for the input and guidance. I will check out the state regs and start looking at some of the ideas posted here. I have a tig welder and can weld up to at least 1/4" aluminum, but haven't looked at the latest cost of the raw material.
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We builders do love to build stuff! I think an aluminum fuel tank would be a worthy opponent! Make sure you are following a good design, even if it is your own. Internal baffles etc. Those are REALLY long weld lines that need to hold fuel. The only way you will know if you have a leak is to fill it with fuel. If you find a leak, the entire (100+ gallon) tank will need to be cleaned out. :eek:

The other issue is DOT approval. How does one go about securing that if the tank is going to transport fuel from the "fuel farm" to your airplane? Not sure. That may not be an issue but something to consider. :confused:

If you build your own, you HAVE to post pictures of it! Us builders would LOVE to see your work! :)
 
Roadjunkie1 said:
The only way you will know if you have a leak is to fill it with fuel. If you find a leak, the entire (100+ gallon) tank will need to be cleaned out. :eek:

)
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Not sure I would agree with that statement. I would pressurize it to find leaks before introducing gasoline. The regs have me kind of concerned.
 
size matters

I see you are set on a larger tank, bought or fabricated.
Some thoughts before you proceed:
If you make it too heavy you can't move it unless you plan to fuel from your vehicle. This idea works for some people but seems quite a hassle to drive around with a large tank of fuel at all times. If you want to store the tank in the hangar you'll need to have it on wheels and comply with all sorts of rules and regulations as well as trailer registration etc.
Don't overlook the 5 gal gas can, preferably a "Jerrycan" if you live in a free state, otherwise you'll have to use an environmentally compliant and inferior plastic one. "Jerrycans are prohibited in CA"
In any case, filling a few cans on the way to the airport is a very minor inconvenience and gassing up is very simple on a low wing aircraft.
Storage is a none issue, as you'll be emptying those cans most of the time and take them back with you for the next round trip.
Just a thought and you can "tank" me later.:D
 
yes

lr172 said:
Not sure I would agree with that statement. I would pressurize it to find leaks before introducing gasoline. The regs have me kind of concerned.
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Even in "free states", there are regs on storage and transport of gasoline. Look it up on google as it is different from state to state...

Probably something you don't want to get caught doing illegally as it is considered HazMat...
 
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