Fuel tank

[Doxy]

I bought Doxy last fall and have been going over systems. I noticed the top of the fuel tank has some heavy rust scale. Does anyone know how thick these tanks are? I was surprised Pearson used steel tanks. Has anyone changed one. Doxy is a '78.

[Rusty Pelican]

I have a 1979 P323, Volvo Md11C
Do you have a Volvo MD11C?
I am almost 100% certain your tank is aluminum and was speced out in the initial design and the tank was fabricated by this company.
http://www.floridamarinetanks.com/
There is a tag on the tank. I replaced mine in 1997. I gave the part # to these guys, they looked up the plans, had it in less than a week.
The "rust" you see is dried fuel.
The tanks generally last 20 years. The good news, if you need to replace the tank, it come out easily through the locker.
I have friends that have encapsulated tanks fail, what a disaster

BobG

[Bill1188]

Pulled my tank in fall of 2015. Easy to remove out of port side. Pumped about two gallons of a substance that is best described as thick and looking like diarrhea. Pressure washed inside of tank. Also cleaned copper pick up tube that was virtually closed with deposits. Tank is aluminum and like new. Peace of mind knowing tank is without issues now.

[Rusty Pelican]

Thanks, that is a very good idea.
Project for the fall

[Doxy]

I'm not sure what the original power was. I bought Doxy with a Yanmar 3YM30. I'll check the tank with a magnet. That would be great news if it is aluminum.  thanks

[selene]

You may get really lucky, and find out it was monel - some owners report that. An upgrade at original purchase.

In general there is a label on the tank, just forward of the fuel gauge.  Difficult to read, so I used my phone to photo it, and then looked at the image....

[Alma]

I'll bet it is monel. It isn't likely Pearson put a copper pickup tube in an aluminum tank.

[Doxy]

I checked the tank with a magnet today. Definitely steel.

[Alma]

Good news if it is Monel. Monel can be magnetic just as some stainless steel alloys are magnetic. It will last forever if the mild steel straps do not 'induce' rust...

[Chance]

I own Hull 10 Pearson 323 1977 Chance

My fuel tank is for an Atomic 4 gas engine, and I believe it is aluminum.  It's still in great shape and I check the strapping on the tank, along with the steering every spring.  Chance has been in fresh water all 40 years, except for one year when we did the Loop. 

Bob K
Chance

[Dolce_Vita]

Our 1977 323, hull #42, has an atomic 4 engine and a Monel tank. The tank is still in perfect shape.

[GULL]

I also have a 1978 with a Yanmar YM30. When I bought the boat last summer the tank was leaking. After pumping out the fuel I pulled the tank and found about a half dozen pin hole leaks under the rubber lined hold down straps. The tank was Monel. I had a new aluminum tank made for it by Luke in RI (did a great job at a good price). After 38 years I dont think the original tank owed me anything (got a $1,000 price reduction from the seller that covered the cost of the new tank and labor to replace it). One thing I did differently was I replaced the 30 gallon tank (originally sized for an Atomic 4 gas engine) with a 20 gallon tank. Same footprint, just 6-8 inches shorter. Now I have plenty of room to work on top of the tank to get to the various fittings and the 20 gallon capacity (think 1 gallon per hour chugging at 6 knots) is more than I need for harbor hopping in Long Island Sound.