15 replies to this topic

[Stevie W]

Hi All,

I have just tested out my entire electrcial system after a total rebuild and all is ok and everything works fine.

So I filled the fuel tank up and connected the pump back to the inertia switch. When you switch on the ignition the pump runs but there is no fuel being delivered to the filter/pressure regulator. I left the pump running for several 20 sec bursts but still no fuel.

Do these pumps require priming or could there be an airlock between the pump output and the float chamber valves?

Any help would be appreciated!!

Steve.

Edited by Stevie W, 26 June 2010 - 06:28 PM.

[Pauly]

Have you connected the pump the right way? Theres an inlet and outlet.

[Stevie W]

Hi Pauly,

Yes all connected up the right way round!!

Thanks,

Steve.

[MRA]

What about electrically ?

[Stevie W]

Yep,

Red lead to positive supply, black to earth!

Steve.

[dklawson]

There are square Facet "brick" pumps, black plastic pumps, and the "silver top" Facet pumps that look like a metal cylinder. Which type do you have and where is it located on the car?

[Stevie W]

Hello Doug,

It's the brick type fast road pump. I've mounted it on the offside rear subframe lower web where the old SU electric pumps used to sit as this positions it below the tank outlet.

The strange thing is yesterday evening I ran the pump with an open outlet and you could feel the air pulsing down the pipe so it is not drawing anything from the tank. This morning I'm gonna pull the tank outlet pipe off of the coarse pump input filter to see if there's a blockage in the actual tank! Have alreadt dissmissed this as impossible but you never know with Minis!

Thanks,

Steve.

[Stevie W]

Hi All,

Thanks for your help with this one. Pump turned out to be ok and running fine....

Noticed something was amiss when I took off the fuel pipe from the tank outlet and.......zippo, not even a drop!!

Carefully removed the tank (with a couple of gallons of fuel in) drained the tank and found the outlet pipe is totally blocked by something.
As the tank was ok before powder coating I can only assume the heat used (200c) during the painting process has damaged a soldered/brazed joint on the outlet.
Anyway, tank is now very shiny but totally useless!!!!

I am now on the look out for a decent 2nd hand 5.5 gallon tank if anyone knows where I might find one?

Cheers Guys and Gals...

Edited by Stevie W, 27 June 2010 - 05:58 PM.

[dklawson]

You had the tank powder coated? The 5.5 gallon tanks I'm familiar with have an internal plastic screen on the pickup tube. When I've lined tanks to plug pin hole leaks I have used steel rods to "knock" the filter off the pickup tube and put a Vaseline covered wire in the pickup tube to keep the hole open during coating.

Before you give up on this tank, remove the sending unit and use a light to look inside. If you see a plastic glob on the end of the pickup tube you MAY get lucky and be able to carefully knock it off. If you are lucky, just remember to put a coarse element pre-filter before the Facet pump to keep trash out of it.

[Stevie W]

Cheers Doug,

Problem wasn't the plastic filter at the end of the pipe as that surprisinlgy is still ok, but rather that some idiot had fitted one of those rubber bungs to the outlet pipe that stop grit etc getting up the pipe during blasting and coating but fitted one that was too small!
This then got stuck down the pipe effectively making a petrol tight seal.

Sadly I have had to cut off the outlet pipe where it comes out of the tank then file it flush with the tank then drill out the pipe to release it from the tank. This is the only way I could discover what was wrong.

Now I have a nice clean pipe with the plastic filter re-attached but no way of re-fitting it into the tank as it now sits flush with the tank outer surface. From where I stand I now have 3 options:

1). Braze an extra 1" length on the pipe whilst it's out of the tank, then get someone to braze the pipe back into the tank as long as I can
man-handle the pipe back to the correct position through the sender unit hole.

2). As above but attempt to use some fittings with an olive that will clamp the inner pipe to the fitting and allow me to attach the fitting to
the hole in the tank.

I would imagine the first option is the best, it's just a case of finding someone who can do the work. I don't want to dump an otherwise good tank if I can help it as second hand ones are very rare.

Steve.

[dklawson]

The problem with option #1 is finding someone who is willing to do the work. Welding or brazing on a gas tank is dangerous work if you are not experienced with it.

For option #2 you would need to buy something like a "bulkhead compression fitting" for the correct size of tubing. You could attach the old pickup tube to the fitting. Then, fit a rubber washer to the body of the bulkhead fitting and enlarge the hole in the tank to just barely clear the body of the fitting. Finally with all that done you could fit the fitting (with washer) from the inside of the tank and secure it in place with its mounting nut on the outside. The only problem would be that the fitting will stick out of the tank further than the old tubing nipple did.

There is a third option you could try if you can find some copper tubing around 1/4" or 6mm outside diameter. This will involve your sourcing two things you may not have... a plumber's soldering iron and acid flux. The soldering irons I'm talking about look like the ones in the link below:
http://www.projectau...ering_irons.jpg
They have large masses to hold a lot of heat. You cannot use an electronics grade soldering iron for what I'm about to propose.

If you have acid flux, the copper tubing and the big soldering iron, you can clean the old pickup tube thoroughly and enlarge the bore of the copper tubing to just fit over what's left of the old pickup tube. Clean everything down to shiny bare metal (pickup tube and copper) then apply the acid flux and solder the copper over the old pickup tube. Next drill the hole in the tank until it is large enough for the copper to just pass through. Remove all paint from the area for something approaching a 12mm circle. It must be really clean. Apply the acid flux to the bare metal on the tank then "tin" the area with solder. Make sure it thoroughly covers and wets the surface. Use a steel wire brush to make sure the solder really tins the surface well. Finally, insert the pickup tube with its copper extension through the hole in the tank (from the inside). Apply a bit more acid flux where the copper passes through the tank. Then solder in place making sure you produce a complete and large fillet with the solder. This is a repair you can do without an open flame and it will restore your tank.

[MRA]

We weld tanks it is at least 10 working days to turn one around but that is simply to let it breathe....... However I did watch someone years ago weld a completely full tank !! And I wouldn't do that

[mk1leg]

If you fill the tank with water and fairy liquud then you can weld or braze......

[MRA]

And afterwards you could have a noce warm bubble bath

As long as it is vented correctly or filled correctly (preferably with a non combustible liquid) you should be ok...... if not then it is a potential bomb

[dklawson]

Well I'm too chicken to weld on a tank. I'll stick to soldering instead.