47-55.1 Gas Tank Removal Safety Tips Please

[MiraclePieCo]

I have a first-gen Camaro gas tank in the rear of my panel and for some unknown reason I run out of gas at 1/4 full on the gauge. So I need to drop the tank to access the sender to see what's the problem. Any safety suggestions for removing a tank full of fumes?

[mongocanfly]

Ive use a high temp 3m 433 silver tape over the fill tube when I pull mine out...mostly just to keep gas from spilling in the shop floor..works for fumes as well
and don't do it in a closed shop...have a fire extinguisher handy as well
you may just need to adjust your float..does it read over full also?

[_Ogre]

just use a floor jack

[MiraclePieCo]

Originally Posted by mongocanfly

you may just need to adjust your float..does it read over full also?

I think it does read over full. I'm guessing that the float is hitting the tank floor at 1/4-full on the gauge so I need to raise the float?

Originally Posted by _Ogre

just use a floor jack

Will do.

[jweb]

It my be the ohms of the gauge vs the ohms of the sending unit.

I think the truck stock gauge is 0-30 and the Camaro sending unit is 0-90. If that's not the problem than an adjustment to the float should fix it.

[72Mountaineer]

Do it logically. Find out how many gallon tank you have. Drain the tank (as much as possible), measure the ohms, add 5 gallons, measure the ohms, 5 more gallons, measure again. See where your gauge reads at each filling, then you can tell how far off the gauge is to the actual amount in your tank. Removing the tank should be the last resort.

[mr48chev]

Carry a gallon of gas with you drive it until you know it is out of gas, put enough in to get back home and then pull the EMPTY tank. I don't know how many tanks I pulled that some idiot had stopped at a station on the way to the shop and filled the tank when I worked in a Pontiac dealership in Texas and for some reason gas tanks were on my job list.

Don't smoke while pulling it and don't use an old school drop light with an incandescent bulb. A floor jack or transmission jack or even a motorcycle jack works pretty good to save dropping it on yourself.

Check the range of the sending unit with the sender out of the tank and grounded to the truck with the wire to the gage hooked up.