225 Fuel Tank access

[jdrago]

Can someone point me to a blog about the remove of the 5200 to access a fuel tank on a 225?  Wanted to inspect it and also recover a flashlight that rolled down there last year.  Currently appears to have the factory orginal seals on the the tank cover.  Any help is appreciated

Jim

[gran398]

The only way to remove 5200 is to mechanically break the bond, i.e a good x-acto knife.

[Blue Agave]

Sure hope that they did not use 5200 to seal the fuel cell door, but you never know.

Like gran said, utility knife and a screw driver.

[flounderpounder225]

The only way to remove 5200 is to mechanically break the bond, i.e a good x-acto knife.

I bought a can of this stuff, when removing my Johnson 225 off the Osprey, which had 5200 securing the bracket to the transom, it works pretty good at softening and dissolving the bond.
Marc
http://www.marineformula.com/

[gran398]

Well that's good to know. Never heard of anything that would dissolve 5200...thanks Marc

This stuff could save a rigger a LOT of time.

[jdrago]

Not sure its 5200, its white and appears to be factory original and is quite robust.  Did they use something else originally? :|

[Blue Agave]

Doubt that the factory would sealed the fuel hatch with 5200, probably silicone or similar product.

[jdrago]

Ok, let me start over.  I'm the 2nd owner and tank is original.  The real question is did the deck come equipped with a separate tank cover that is removal able or did it just have a small indention as a guide for the future and required cutting?  

When I did a close inspection, it appears to be gel coated and it matches the deck to the left and right of the tank "line".  Doesn't appear to be a sealant and when I dug at it it appeared to be fiberglass under the gel coat.  ALso reached underneath through the access hatch and could not find a seam on the back side.

[pete]

what year and model is it?do you heve some pics?are there any screws around the edge ot the hatch out line?does it look like this one?

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=7421

[pete]

ok,just went out and looked at mine,the only way to get to the tank is cut the deck,why do you need to get in there?gas fumes?hopefully not.

[seabob4]

You know, Pete, ever since this thread started, I wanted to come on and say, "There is no tank hatch".  At least not on the Ospreys I built...

[fitz73222]

It does beg the question as Pete mentioned. "why do you have to get in there"? This could be the start of a very interesting thread. There are alot of people that at some point, will be faced with this situation. How do you do this without destroying a perfectly good floor and repairing it to look like original deck? I can see this being more of a surgical extraction than "we're rippin the floor out anyway" senario.

[seabob4]

It does beg the question as Pete mentioned. "why do you have to get in there"? This could be the start of a very interesting thread. There are alot of people that at some point, will be faced with this situation. How do you do this without destroying a perfectly good floor and repairing it to look like original deck? I can see this being more of a surgical extraction than "we're rippin the floor out anyway" senario.

Fitz,
It was done many a time at the plant when some moron would drill through a poly tank.  At least when they hit aluminum, they figured they should stop...maybe not, but whatever...

Drago,
There should be strips of smooth glass where the hatch used to be, but WC/AS decided to get rid of it.  That is where the cut needs to be, on the inside edge where the smooth glass meets the non-skid.  I've seen it done more times than I care to remember.  The opening will have to be enlarged a little, but that's the key, you can always make a hole bigger, it's tough (ever heard of "peening" a hole?) to make them smaller.  Once the tank is pulled, the opening can be ground to clean up the edges, then, while the tank is out (and still providing clearence for the tank to go back in), cleats are secured to the underside of the opening all around to allow the piece that was cut out to rest on them.

It's quite an undertaking, and quite a bit more to make it look perfect when it's done.  So, as Pete asked, what's going on to make you think you have to pull the tank?  225s used poly tanks, they rarely have issues...

[jdrago]

Thanks all, that confirms my suspicion on the deck.  Original reason was to inspect that area and recover a pelican flashlight that rolled down, but that was when I though there was a hatch (based on the line).  Tank is good so guess I just go buy another light and call it a day  :cyclops:   Again thanks to all!

[seabob4]

Thanks all, that confirms my suspicion on the deck.  Original reason was to inspect that area and recover a pelican flashlight that rolled down, but that was when I though there was a hatch (based on the line).  Tank is good so guess I just go buy another light and call it a day  :cyclops:   Again thanks to all!

Well, that was an easy one...