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Building Your Own Fuel Cell.

3K views 25 replies 15 participants last post by  412unner 
#1 · (Edited)
Im getting ready to build my fuel cell and was woundering if anybody could give me some pointers on how to do it. Since there is no 'off-the-shelf" fuel that fits my dimensions I guess I have to make one.

I was just woundering on some of these things as listed.

-which to use alluminum or sheetmetal
-do i need to cross brace the box
-were ideal location to put pump (internal)
- would like to use larger pump b/c of motor upgrade in future
-how to fab a sending unit (will stock do or do i need something else)
-specific type of welder needed? or mig will do?
-do i need to coat inside with something special?
-how to prevent future leaks from occuring
-fittings
- is this street legal?
might of missed some but there the general stuff im thinking of before starting this.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Go to the dodge section and look for my name under" new pics" you will see some pics of my 41.5 gal fuel cell. I don't know how to link you to it.

Your picks look fine. How many gals is it ? Your baffels should extend top to bottom and side to side though. I would try to stick with your factory pump if you can.
 
#6 ·
i built mine out of 11 ga. steel. i used the factory pump and sending unit.
i just added a longer hose to the pump and added longer wires to it .i put a short piece of radiator hose on the pump so it wouldnt bang around in the bottom of the fuel cell.

the baffle i just cut 45s in the corners of it and welded it up with a wire welder.

to check for leaks i just shot about 4psi of air in it and checked for leaks with soapy water.and yes i had a couple.
 

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#8 ·
If you are worried about a good tank, find the local dairy tank manufacturer in your area (they are everywhere) and get one of their welder dudes to fab you one on his off time. These guys are masters with the TIG and make things everyday that don't leak. An added benifit is that they work in stainless... and that they have lots of good scrap laying around.

Also, in the baffles, cut a few half circles in the bottoms of the baffle plates - to allow the fuel easy transfer between baffles. They won't stop the fuel flow, but the tank will be adequately be baffled.


[___O____O_____]
 
#10 ·
so whats the concensus on how thick i was thinking bout 16ga but i see that godzuki used 11ga what are the rest of you running? and would 16 be ok?
would also mig it shouldnt be to bad miging 16ga what do yall think?
 
#18 · (Edited)
chris demartini said:
Are factory steel gas tanks coated inside? The ones I've looked into look bare to me.
Older gas tanks-some old VWs for example-were bare metal, and would eventually rust out. Most new tanks are made from leaded metal or terne metal I believe its called, something like that, and you will notice the filler and seams are soldered.

Think about how you will use the vehicle, I am in the process of constructing a custom gas tank, and decided I would rather risk a little rust than having any type of liner clogging my gas lines while out in the middle of nowhere, I won't take that risk!

On another note, seams can leak, so design your tank with as few seams as possible. If you have access to a brake or a way to accurately bend metal, bend corners instead of welding corners.

I had a piece of 16g squared to the rough dimensions and used sheet metal snips to cut it into a "plus sign", the middle was the bottom and each side of the plus sign I broke and became the sides

I also made flanges on one side of each part that came together, it is easier to fit up and weld, less chance to burn through also.
 
#20 ·
If you already have an injected vehicle with a factory pump, okay, put it inside. but if you have a carbed engine, buy a holley pump and regulate it and put a deeper pickup area at the back of the tankwith baffles around it. it will always be the low point. Works well with climbs, but it can starve you in a steep decel off a hill
 
#21 ·
here is the layout I used for mine. I used 2 pieces of 1/8" aluminum. I used a brake to bend the aluminum 90 degrees at the red lines. Than TIG welded the two pieces together. The three center lines are for the filler (coleman racing) stock toyota pump and stock toyota sender. There are pics in my buildup thread.

I did not use any baffles because I did not see any in the stock tank. If I have a problem and feel I need baffles I will make another one.
 

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#22 · (Edited)
I used this site while designing my tank, it is a conversion calculator that will tell you how many gallons it will hold.

First find volume of your future tank in cubic inches (multiply height times length times width for a square tank) plug your number into the calculator and select gallons (US liquid) in the convert to list. Works really well.;)

3672 cubic inch = 15.8961039 gallon [US, liquid]

Ooopppps! I forgot the link, DOH!

http://www.onlineconversion.com/volume.htm
 
#23 ·
412unner said:
I used this site while designing my tank, it is a conversion calculator that will tell you how many gallons it will hold.

First find volume of your future tank in cubic inches (multiply height times length times width for a square tank) plug your number into the calculator and select gallons (US liquid) in the convert to list. Works really well.;)

3672 cubic inch = 15.8961039 gallon [US, liquid]
how about a link to the site? :flipoff2:
 
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