Fiberglass gas tanks and Ethanol

[Anthem]

Can someone please enlighten me on the risks, if any, of having a boat with a fiberglass gas tank(s) and having small percentages of ethanol in the gas. I did a search here on THT, and found just one thread on the issue, somewhat off topic. This does not apply to my boat, but I know some boat mfg use this method and I'd be curious how they are dealing with some of of the potential problems. Again, maybe it isn't even a problem, hence this thread.

Thanks in advance for any assistance.

[johnrudenj]

The tanks should be replaced. From what I understand the fuel breaks down the resin. This will weaken the tank itself plus the resin will pas thru fuel filters and deposit itself in the internal parts of the engine.

[bilfshr]

Go to "bertram31.com" THere has been much discussion about it on that board. Bertrams have fiberglass tanks. Jeff

[RI Builder]

Anthem:

This past summer I bought an older (1989) boat as a pseudo project boat to restore for my dad. I researched this topic to no end, and my head is still spinning. From what I found out (from online, industry people, respected boat yard mangers, etc.) there is no sure answer, it depends.

Widely, it depends on the resin that was used on the tank. The consensus that I got was that if the tank was built post 1988 (a large amount said 1985), it is generally considered that the resin used is safe. I will look and see if I can find some of the links on the topic.

I fully plan on replacing the tank, but wanted to know if it was safe for the rest of this year.

EDIT: Links

http://www.boatus.com/Seaworthy/fueltest.asp

http://www.naftc.wvu.edu/NAFTC%20ene...iberglass.html

http://boatingsailing.suite101.com/a...ms_for_boaters

[Anthem]

Thanks for the links guys, I'll definitely give them a look; I guess I'm looking to know specifically what the mfgs have said about new boats coming out with fiberglass tanks and how they are dealing with ethanol. Are they ignoring the problem, saying the resin they use is sufficient or ducking the whole problem?

[jhebert]

Definitive information re one prominent manufacturer of fiberglass gasoline tanks:

http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/012667.html

[nanjemoycat]

BoatUS's site has extensive article by "Sea Worthy" mag on the subject in the ethanol section.

[granpafish]

Eliminate the guessing and contact the boat manufacturer. Give them all the info including hull ID# and they can tell you if you need to replace or not.