Van's Air Force
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Fuel leaks
- Thread starter Redbud
- Start date
More common than any of us would like.
There are all different kinds of fuel leaks. You need to remove the wing root fairings and get a small inspection mirror to see the rear baffle area. Clean off all of the blue and start watching. A common error is for the builder to use the rubber or cork gasket provided in the kit on the fuel sender or cover plate. Those are almost guaranteed to leak after x years, but there can also be various areas where the builder had issues with the proseal. Getting tanks sealed is one of the harder jobs for new builders, so small leaks are not uncommon, but I would absolutely NOT go so far as to say "most vans aircraft." I resealed two tanks a couple months ago. Once the rear baffle was off, I could literally remove the proseal with my fingernail - not enough activator used and it never fully cured. I did a slosh removal last month and those tanks had leaks as well - builder put the rear baffle on backwards, creating large gaps in the corner that were not well sealed. It is not really surprising anymore to see these kinds of errors.
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