Leaking Gas Tank?

[RC Pete]

I have a 1949 1/2 ton 5 window Chevy Pickup and have noticed that I may have a gas leak.

My garage smells very strongly of gasoline vapors. About a year ago the truck sat in the garage for a long time without ever being ran and the smell slowly disappeared, perhaps because enough gasoline vapored off so the level was below the leak. Recently I filled the tank up and drove the truck around and parked it back in the garage. The gas smell in my garage returned and is stronger than ever. I do not smell gasoline when I am in the cab outside the garage or when driving it. I also must admit that I haven't looked at the tank or any hoses or anything at this point.

I believe this may be a very dangerous problem due to the gasoline vapors in my garage possibly causing an explosion, especially since I have a propane fired water heater in the garage with the pilot always lit.

Any advice?

Thanks,

RC Pete

 

[vwnate1]

RIGHT NOW go park the truck outside of your garage ! .

I hope the propane heater is at _least_ 3' off the ground as required by federal saftey standards ? gas fumes settle and when they build up sufficiently the big bang is terrible . water heater too must always be 3' off the floor .

Ahem , sorry now on to truck fixing :

The most common place for the fumes is the filler neck hose so order up a new filler neck hose and rubber grommet for where the filler neck pokes through the cab too , if it's all painted over not to worry , just buy some single edge razor blades and gently slide the blade under the lip of the rubber where it meets the paint , once the filler neck is out you can collapse the old rotted rubber inwards and discard it .

You'll prolly need to remove the seat to acess the filler neck , it's pretty simple , remove the lower seat cushion and then the side panels then simply unscrew the four 1/2" nuts and lift the entire seat assy up and out , I like to work from the passenger's side so the big old steering wheel isn't in my way .

New hose clamps would be nice too .

Vacuum up all the old dirt & fuzz and look at the fuel gauge sender in the center top of the tank , if it's stained there's been some leakage there too , gently snug up the screws and install the filler neck hose , you'll prolly need to cut the old one away . the filler neck is bolted to the tank so look for stains there too as stains or lots of dust and fuzz in one area tend to indicate leaks .

I hope this helps...

-Nate