Well oh boy what a day !
Last night the 'tank heater' actually got the citric acid up to 43 degrees Centigrade before I turned it off. This morning the objective was to drain the tank, sand blast it and paint it in Rust-Oleum assuming the paint got delivered.
It started off well - I set the tank draining first thing before I fed the livestock, and it was just dribbling when I'd finished breakfast. So I removed the Level Gauge and Tap, and set it up for Grit blasting. The citric acid had done its work and the horrid flaky rust was all gone with an almost shiny surface left. There was however a lot of what ever that it had been painted with - a very resilient black hard paint.
Grit blasting was going pretty well, except that the black 'paint' (it must be something tougher than paint) wasn't shifting very easily with the grit blaster. I tried hot strong caustic soda solution, and some paint stripper of the sort that stings your hand through rubber gloves, neither had much effect. I reckoned that the Rust-Oleum would be happy on top of it as it was obviously stuck well
At this point I decided to check the diesel level in the compressor, and just as well I did. There was a fire raging at the far end of it's cabinet. Not a little baby thing, but a raging inferno blown by the radiator fan of the compressor.
I shut the engine off and high tailed it into the workshop to grab the CO2 extinguisher that I'd placed next to the laser engraver when I got it.
A couple of blasts put most of it out, just a bit still burning on the hot silencer - another squirt and it was out - but WHAT had been burning? Some fluid - I tentatively started the engine again, and something was being blasted through the air and oil coolers by the fan onto the hot exhaust - but what
All too bally hot to investigate so I went and had lunch while it cooled a bit.
Returning half an hour later, again I started her up, but this time holding a powerful torch which revealed diesel leaking from a hose and being fanned all over the place. All it was in the end was a loose hose clip which when tightened was fine - but it could have been a disaster. Togged up in the blasting gear I would neither have heard nor smelled the fire, so I was very lucky something told me to check the level in the tank
So back to the task in hand - I blasted the tank all over, a very tedious long winded job, then blew out all the sand with the compressor and set it up for painting.
A slight delay as by then it was feed time for the pigs (obligatory pictures to satisfy Will-D !) Then I painted the tank with a long armed 'radiator roller' inside and outside. I'll leave it over night and give it a second coat in the morning assuming this coat is dry.
Then pack up the sand blaster followed by a badly need shower and an even more badly needed glass of Old Speckled Hen
