Repairs

[Chuck]

Hello everyone. Got a couple of repairs scheduled for spring. The one I need some advice on is a leak in the holding tank. Anyone ever fix a plastic tank with some kind of exotic glue or maybe plastic weld. It might be better to replace the tank but I thought that might be a little pricey and a lot more work.

[jimmy palmisano]

i used fiberglass but sometimes it`s better to just replace because it does twist and can crack

[jimmy palmisano]

oh and one time i took a tourch and found a good size piece and kind of plastic wielded it on low temp and kept smashing it until it was all smeared it worked

 

[Tony durfey]

Hi,

    Just a thought.  Harbor Freight make a plastic welder.  It has mixed reviews but may work for you.  Also You Tube has been helpful in the past for finding ways to do things.  H/F link  http://www.harborfreight.com/plastic-welding-kit-with-adjustable-te...  Hope this helps, Tony, Joy and Cool Paw Luke

[Tim Dailey]

Maybe this will help?

pg 68 - 73 from Itasca Service Manual, 1975-76 Supplement

[Chuck]

Thanks dude. Copied it to my computer. Even if I don't use it now handy for the future.

[Richard W. Cobbs]

I bought a Harbor Freight plastic welder to repair my two holding tanks.  There appeared to be a steep learning curve in using the welder, but I was eventually able to fix both tanks except for a leak at the top.  I didn't remove the tanks and the top leak is a not so subtle reminder to dump the tank!  My tanks are a whitish plastic that seemed to accept a weld with plastic from common milk bottles.  I can only say, go slow, don't heat it up too much to the point were it burns.  Also, my tanks are only supported at the ends and are subject to varying stresses as the tank fills; I also bought some cargo straps at HF and installed two on each tank at approximately 1/3 locations.  My tanks are 35 years old and still working adequately. Good Luck with your projects, and let us know how they turn out.

[Chuck]

Thanks for the response. Be at least 3 more months before I can tackle this job. Way too cold outside in northern ontario.

[Nick Thegreek]

I have made repairs before on plastic with sheet pvc and the glue plumbers use for pvc pipe .First measure the area to be repaired then cut an oversize piece of PVC sheet that is about 1/4 inch thick. Clean and lightly sand the area to be repaired wipe with acetone let dry a few minutes then apply the PVC glue primer (It is usually purple) let that dry a few minutes then coat the repair patch and the tank with PVC general purpose glue and put the patch over the bad spot. Hold in place for a few minutes and then allow the repair to dry for at least a day. I found that General purpose PVC glue works on a variety of plastic compounds. I have even laminated sheets of PVC together to make electrical boxes for motorcycles-etc.

[Chuck]

Didn't know they made sheet pvc. Thought it was only pipe. Got nothing to loose by trying one of these ideas before spending $400 and a lot of time to change the tank.

[Nick Thegreek]

Yep you can order some online I happened to find mine from an old store display. PVC actually chemically welds itself together  ever try pulling PVC pipe apart?