Re: test aluminum gas tank for leaks
Okstate, I don't know if you got this problem fixed, but I'll give you another solution that you might want to try, for two reasons. I'll cover the reasons after the method. Go to any weld supplier and ask for a can of liquid penetrant and another of developer. The instructions are on the can, but I can lead you through it very easily. The process is simple enough. Spray the penetrant onto all of your welds. It will draw into any openings in your welds. Wait 7 to 10 minutes, clean the surface penetrant off, and spray developer on. The developer is like flour, and will draw penetrant back up out of the cracks. Depending on the indications you get, you'll know how deep the holes are. The hardest part of it is interpretation, but if you go with this, I'll tell you what I need and I'll interpret it for you. This is what I do for the Navy. <br />Now, the advantages of this. 1st, it's very simple. No air pressure worries. It's cheap, and it's accurate in reading what's below the surface. If you have porosity, laps, seams, etc... in the surface of your weld, it would be best to know how deep they are. This way, you can fix it right now and avoid a leak in the future. Anyway, I was doing a search for something else and saw this. I thought it might help, if you haven't finished your work yet, or maybe it will help someone else.