Gas Tank / SENDING Unit (Part 1 of 2)

[boydg1]

Gas Tank / SENDING Unit (Part 1 of 2)


…. When I POSTED “Inside Your Gas Tank “ (Ref. http://www.fordfestiva.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=34104 ) I removed and cleaned up the fuel Pick-Up Line and Sending Unit, see pics. The battery went dead in the camera and consequently DIDN'T get “before pics” to show just how CRUMMY it was before I cleaned it up.
FILTERING SCREEN: but, you should get some idea from what it looks like now. The REDISH BROWN stain around the skeleton portion of the screen pick-up was just totally covered, the whole FILTERING SCREEN with this thick same color crud. Used an acid bush, an equivalent brush might be a toothbrush, and gently and very patiently with a good detergent lightly scrub the screen under running water until it gets to looking like the finished product in these pics. After cleaning up the FILTERING SCREEN it fits too LOOSE on the PICK-UP pipe and I had to use a twisted wire wrap twisted tight enough to grip the PICK-UP pipe, see pic.

.

[boydg1]

Gas Tank / SENDING Unit (Part 2 of 2)

Gas Tank / SENDING Unit (Part 2 of 2)


…. SENDING UNIT: The FIRST pic of the SENDING UNIT will give you a better idea just how BAD and CRUDIE the entire fuel Pick-Up Line and Sending Unit was before I cleaned it up. The SENDING UNIT opens up very easily, there is a little TAB on the cover that is bent over through the elongated hole with rounded ends, see 2nd pic, near the FLOAT arm, bend this TAB just enough and the cover will hinge right off as in the pic. Once again, I used an acid brush or you could use a soft toothbrush, and gently and very patiently with a good detergent lightly scrub under running water cleaning up this unit. Being VERY careful around the rheostat area. This car has had so many tankful’s of gas (480K miles) that the slider arm that slides over the rheostat and indicates the amount of gas left in the tank, which is regulated by the float that floats on top of the gas in the gas tank. This slider arm which has gone back and forth over the rheostat so many times that it has finally worn through the resistive wire windings on the rheostat. Believe it or not it still works, even with the broken windings on the rheostat. Of course it does NOT give a complete reading, it just tells me that the gas tank is full when I fill-up and for the first 45 miles or so. Then it goes to empty which is NOT really empty.
…. If I knew for sure the type of resistive wire and size, probably #28 or #30 wire or so, I could rewind this rheostat without much difficulty I would think. Does anyone know about this or where I could get this wire or any other info on this?
…. I also had a problem with rodents. They had eaten through one of the wires where the connector plug plugs on the SENDING UNIT outside of the gas tank and I corrected this problem along with removal of quite a few acorn shells.
…. A word of CAUTION if you decide to open up your GAS TANK and do a thorough cleaning remember to DISCONNECT YOUR BATTERY TERMINALS and don't do anything that would cause SPARKING!!
.

[FestYboy]

i'm working on this as well, and believe we're looking for 1ohm/inch 30ga wire. i'll be snooping radio shack for this and some other industrial sources. i know that the empty reading should be about 93ohm and full at .5ohm.

[boydg1]

.... Hi Festyboy, I've been patiently waiting for your response, perhaps you have forgotten me. Did you find the correct type / size wire we need to rewind the fuel tank sensor with? Not trying to be pushee just kinda checking in with you?

.

i'm working on this as well, and believe we're looking for 1ohm/inch 30ga wire. i'll be snooping radio shack for this and some other industrial sources. i know that the empty reading should be about 93ohm and full at .5ohm.