Repair of wet wing leak

On Nov 8, 8:23*pm, "Jon Woellhaf" wrote:
Do any of you have experience repairing a slight, but annoying, leak in a
wet wing tank? Mine's on a 1980 182Q.

The basic procedure is to drain the tank and open up access panels in
the tank. Then you should clean off the sealant in the area of the
leak and apply new sealant and allow to dry. Cessna access panels
typically require sealant when being installed, others use gaskets or
orings. There are two types of sealant, low adhesion for panels that
need to be removed and a tougher high adhesion for the actual tank
structure. Part numbers vary but there are a number of different
makers of these two part sealants. Make sure that what you are using
is correct number for the application and that it traces to the
manufacturer's part number. In an older aircraft it can be difficult
to precisely locate the leaking area as sometimes the fuel will run
along the structure and appear some ways away from the actual leak.
If it is a fastener that is leaking that is easier to determine. It
is possible to lay new sealant on top of old but sometimes the new
sealant doesn't take. Thorough mixing and accurate measuring of
sealant components is very important if it is to cure properly. On a
lot of older aircraft, particularly Mooneys, eventually there is
nothing to be done but completely open up the tanks and remove all
existing sealant and reseal every seam and joint, not a job for the
faint of heart. It is sometimes possible to drain the tank as above
and drill out a leaking fastener and replace it with a blind rivet
coated in sealant.

John Dupre'