Help with pulling gas tank on 1986 Sea Ray SRV 230

[aberrant]

Hi all, I recently picked up a 1986 Sea Ray SRV 230. I've been trying to track down a gas smell and I'm pretty sure it's the aluminum tank corroding from the bottom. I'm looking to replace it with a poly tank. Fortunately there are two hatches I can remove to gain access to the tank, the only unfortunate thing is that I believe I will need to cut some of the deck to actually lift the tank out. I wanted to run my plan by someone with a little more experience than me to make sure it is sound before I start cutting. I've attached a picture down below of what I'm dealing with. As you can see due to the length of the tank in order to get it out I'll need to cut the aft deck support, it's not a full height bulkhead, the bulkhead is only about 12" tall and then there's a gap and at the top right under the deck strip that holds the hatch is a dome shaped piece of fiberglass which looks to just support the deck in that area.

So my plan is to cut out that small strip so I can lift the tank out and then to re-fiberglass that strip back in after replacing the tank. Does this approach make sense? Is there a better way? I'm trying not to remove the engine so I'm hoping this gives me enough room and hoping I don't have to cut the other hatch support between the seats.

 

[alldodge]

Assuming there is very little room between the tank and the deck (no assumption needed, you did say that), that is doable, but I would think about removing the motor then get it out that way Note many times the cross piece is aluminum under the glass

Before you do that and the boat being a 86 model, I would look real close at the tank fill hose. In the 80's there was no ethanol fuels so no issues. The ethanol fuel of today eats thru the rubber

 

[aberrant]

I checked all the lines but I'll double check again, I know there's also no anti-siphon so the fumes could be emanating back through the line.

I measured and if I removed the motor I still wouldn't have enough room to get it out, I only have ~40 inches from the cross piece to the transom and the tank is ~50" long, I don't see how else I'd get it out without cutting anything.

 

[alldodge]

A fellow on my dock was having the same issue and he was thinking tank. He kept putting it off, and one day he was fill the boat and noticed the smell real bad. Opened the hatch and the bilge had about 8 inches of gas in it. After the clean up, found the fill hose was falling apart on the back side at a bend, and was not seen just looking

Check the height at the motor to stringers, most cases it deeper

 

[tpenfield]

It looks tight to see if you can get the tank to move backwards enough so that you do not have to cut the forward cross member and the surrounding deck. Best to take a few more measurements to see if the tank can slide backwards while the engine is still there.

You may need to undress the front of the engine (pulleys, etc) to get a few more inches of clearance.

 

[aberrant]

It looks tight to see if you can get the tank to move backwards enough so that you do not have to cut the forward cross member and the surrounding deck. Best to take a few more measurements to see if the tank can slide backwards while the engine is still there.

You may need to undress the front of the engine (pulleys, etc) to get a few more inches of clearance.

This is an interesting idea, there is short bulkhead that separates the engine from the fuel tank that I would need to remove to try to do this though but replacing that might be easier than replacing part of the deck/support arch.