Interior Fuel Tank Repair
Good morning!
I have a problem that I hope some of you all may be kind enough to help with.
I am working on the fuel tanks for an RV-8, and while the tanks do not leak, however there is a problem with the capacitance plates in one of the tanks. Specifically, in the right tank there is a short between the plates and/or the plate wiring and the fuel tank itself; and of course, for the capacitance plates to properly function, then there needs to be electrical isolation between these items.
Now then, this is really annoying since I checked, checked, and checked some more during the construction process and there was never an electrical problem until I checked again after the leak test.
Anyway, it is now necessary to cut at least one access hole in the rear baffle plate so that I can get inside of the fuel tanks in order to effect repairs.
Therefore, do any of you all have any advice for doing just that?
I checked the VAF archives and I did learn how the process works in general: drill out an access hole; make the repair; then use pulled rivets, aluminum sheet, and Pro Seal to patch over the access hole.
However, I do not know the specifics of the process, such as:
Just what type of pulled rivets should be used?
What size should the access hole be?
And what should be the spacing on the rivet holes?
Thanks much in advance and please let me know if you need anything clarified.
Good morning!
I have a problem that I hope some of you all may be kind enough to help with.
I am working on the fuel tanks for an RV-8, and while the tanks do not leak, however there is a problem with the capacitance plates in one of the tanks. Specifically, in the right tank there is a short between the plates and/or the plate wiring and the fuel tank itself; and of course, for the capacitance plates to properly function, then there needs to be electrical isolation between these items.
Now then, this is really annoying since I checked, checked, and checked some more during the construction process and there was never an electrical problem until I checked again after the leak test.
Anyway, it is now necessary to cut at least one access hole in the rear baffle plate so that I can get inside of the fuel tanks in order to effect repairs.
Therefore, do any of you all have any advice for doing just that?
I checked the VAF archives and I did learn how the process works in general: drill out an access hole; make the repair; then use pulled rivets, aluminum sheet, and Pro Seal to patch over the access hole.
However, I do not know the specifics of the process, such as:
Just what type of pulled rivets should be used?
What size should the access hole be?
And what should be the spacing on the rivet holes?
Thanks much in advance and please let me know if you need anything clarified.