Boyd Tank Installation

[pjmoreland]

Eliminating the safety roll-over valve on the vent did not solve the fuel leaking issue. I discovered that the electrical connector I have on the Aeromotive pump is becoming saturated with fuel when the tank is full. I recently rerouted the electrical wires away from the fuel lines so I could tell if the fuel was getting on the wires from the fuel lines. The connector is still becoming saturated with fuel. I'm thinking fuel is wicking up the pump wires from the pump. I sent a message to Boyd Tanks to find out if they've seen this before. Here's a video that shows fuel dripping off of the connector.

https://youtu.be/ycdYeLjtAPA

[Rich72C10]

wow - making me not to ever want to put one of these tanks in....

[May70]

Any update on this? Ive emailed them twice for an inquiry with no response.

Granted there was a lot going on down there the past week. They posted on 9/30 saying they were having power issues.

[pjmoreland]

Dave Boyd explained to me that the leaks I have been dealing with are a result of overfilling the tank. They can be avoided by leaving the tank one to two gallons below completely full. I have noticed that the leaks have happened only when the tank is filled absolutely all the way up to the top. It isn't particularly convenient to stop filling at less than all the way full though. This would be even more inconvenient for someone who has installed a long filler neck that runs over to the side of the bed. Apparently the auto manufacturers build features into their tanks that cause the gas pump to shut off at an appropriate level that will leave some unfilled space in the tank. Dave is working on a prototype fill restriction that I believe will be installed in the filler neck and will cause the gas pump to stop filling at the appropriate time. He is waiting on me to give him a measurement of the height of my filler neck, but I am away from home right now.

[Jason Banks]

I have the same tank set up as you and don't have the same problems. I usually hold the nozzle up off the floor of the bed and watch the fuel level rise.

It appears that California have those 'bellows' on the nozzle that you have to compress to get the fuel to flow?

I'm guessing that isn't allowing you to get the nozzle deep down in the tank and it doesn't shut off until fuel is up in the filler.

If I were fueling up in Texas without the bellows and just dropped the nozzle in until it shut off, I would end up underfilled.

I was searching for CA gas pump bellows and found this where they call it a Nozzle Foreskin. Apparently this is a big problems for some motorcycles.
https://www.advrider.com/f/threads/c...stions.646709/

Here's another interesting one:
https://www.k1600forum.com/threads/c...le-key.186582/

[Jason Banks]

Link was dead in those forum posts...but it appears they sell that key still
https://www.aerostich.com/aluminum-g...ozzle-key.html

[pjmoreland]

Yes, I think you are right about the vapor scavenging bellows on the CA nozzles being part of the problem. It is possible to hold the bellows back by hand, and that's what I'll be doing for now.

[pjmoreland]

I received a custom fill restrictor from Boyd today. I haven't filled my tank with it installed yet. It protrudes below the top of the tank, so it should cause fuel to come up the filler neck and shut off the fuel dispenser when fuel in the tank reaches the bottom of the restrictor. This will trap a layer of air at the top of the tank, which should prevent overfilling of the tank.

[kwmech]

So it only leaks when you put fuel in it?? Got it! I am having my own issue with them at the moment

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by kwmech

So it only leaks when you put fuel in it?? Got it! I am having my own issue with them at the moment

It leaks if I fill the tank absolutely all the way to the top. Fuel wicks up through the fuel pump wires. Based on some internet searching I've done, this is a common issue with custom fuel tanks in general. The fuel doesn't seem to wick up the wires if I leave the tank an inch or two shy of all the way full. This restrictor should make it easier to fill the tank to the correct level.

[kwmech]

I would think if wicking through the wires it would do it just sitting there. Shouldn't leak at all regardless.

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by kwmech

I would think if wicking through the wires it would do it just sitting there.

It does do it just sitting there parked in my garage, but only if the tank is totally full. My guess is there is some damage to the wire insulation where it passes through a gland seal at the top of the tank. Take a look at this video of the leak.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycdYeLjtAPA

[kwmech]

Those wires are usually epoxied in place aren't they?

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by kwmech

Those wires are usually epoxied in place aren't they?

The wires pass through a cord grip similar to the one below. You can see it in the video I posted above. It's the blue one.

[kwmech]

So if the tank is dropped to get a complete look and access to that, can it be taken apart and the wires glued to seal?

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by kwmech

So if the tank is dropped to get a complete look and access to that, can it be taken apart and the wires glued to seal?

Yes. I have removed my tank about 5 times now. It is easy. I will be investigating the wires soon.

[May70]

Is boyd pretty responsive? Ive emailed twice and FB msg'd them and no response.

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by May70

Is boyd pretty responsive? Ive emailed twice and FB msg'd them and no response.

They're reasonably responsive. Sometimes it takes them a couple of days to respond.

[kwmech]

Originally Posted by pjmoreland

They're reasonably responsive. Sometimes it takes them a couple of days to respond.

I've been waiting 2 weeks by phone and e-mail

[May70]

Originally Posted by pjmoreland

They're reasonably responsive. Sometimes it takes them a couple of days to respond.

Originally Posted by kwmech

I've been waiting 2 weeks by phone and e-mail

I emailed them in Sept, then again in Oct and then messaged their Facebook since then.

[kwmech]

Originally Posted by May70

I emailed them in Sept, then again in Oct and then messaged their Facebook since then.

Any response??

[May70]

Originally Posted by kwmech

Any response??

No. That’s why I was curious how others we being responded to. Not sure if you have to purchase something first to get a response or what the deal is.

[67C10Step]

Must be more of an indication of demand or free time. Back when I purchased my tank from Boyd's (about 2 years ago) the communication was very satisfactory.

[pjmoreland]

I removed my fuel pump last night to inspect the wires for any damage that would allow fuel to wick up the insulation. I did not find any damage. The wires run through an electrical connector inside the tank. I disconnected the two halves of the connector, and there was a small amount of white powdery substance inside. Not sure what that was. Maybe mold release agent that fuel getting inside the connector has washed off of the seal? Anyway, I'm assuming fuel is getting into the wires through the top end of that connector.

I just put it all back together as-is. I'm going to give the fuel restriction a chance to prevent leaking. I filled the tank up with the restriction last night, and it did its job well. There is no fuel leaking this morning.

If the fuel wicking issue shows up again, then I'll look into a solution.

[kwmech]

Cross your fingers