Do plastic fuel tanks leak/crack on Grady Whites

[Noble Savage]

My 1996 Tournament 192 has the original plastic fuel tank. I keep a cover on the boat and when I crawl under it, I can smell a very slight smell of gas or maybe just oil. This year of boat only has two small screw top inspection ports and does not have the screwed down removal floor panels of some earlier years. My mind instantly goes to the worst case scenario...cracked or compromised tank that requires cutting the deck and costly repairs. But perhaps its just a small leak at the fuel gauge or other fittings. My question is whether anyone has removed a plastic tank from a grady white and found damage or leaks to the tank OTHER THAN AT THE FITTINGS. It seems that a tank rubbing for years could cause a leak, or just plastic expanding and contracting, etc. I was out on my friends 22 foot Grady this weekend and he needed to replace the metal tank...but again, I'm wondering about plastic. Thanks

 

[DennisG01]

Generally speaking, plastic tanks are better than aluminum tanks in this size range. Sure, anything can happen -- but many, many manufacturers (high end ones, too) use plastic tanks on smaller boats. It's extremely rare to have an issue with a plastic tank, itself.

Gas smells can be from old lines... fuel sender gasket... etc.

 

[Hookup1]

Could be the vented fuel fills. Most time I climb up the ladder to get on the the boat up on the trailer I smell gas as I pass the vent.

 

[SkunkBoat]

Yes the cover can hold in the gas smell from the vent. Remove a pie hole from the deck at see if it smells in there

 

[Andrew93]

The plastic tank in our old 2001 Sportsman leaked at the sending unit. The rev nuts rusted and pulled out allowing it to drink water. The repair worked well and was not too hard to do.

I posted about it here post #15

Plastic Fuel Tanks

Has anyone replaced their aluminum tank with a plastic one like the ones made by Moeller?

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