Fuel tank seal/bladders

[Steven B]

Does anyone have a good recommendation for a weeping fuel tank  in a mooney M20 K on the west coast. TYIA!!

[Fritz1]

to my best knowledge there are three shops that strip and reseal tanks, they are MN, TX and FL, Weep No More in Wilmar is probably closest to you, they did my tanks in about 2 weeks, usually 6-9 months backlog

[Ragsf15e]

7 hours ago, Steven B said:

Does anyone have a good recommendation for a weeping fuel tank  in a mooney M20 K on the west coast. TYIA!!

You might try a repair.  Id ask Top Gun in Stockton first.  They might do repairs or know who does.  The MSC in troutdale oregon is another option.  He used to do full tank reseals but might still do repairs.  Don Maxwell in texas is one more option for a repair.  They are real good but not exactly west coast.

[OR75]

seconding the MSC in Troutdale as a great option.

feel free to pm for details

one recommendation if you do a reseal or repair is to have them check the fuel nut caps and change all the machine screws with the right length to not puncture those nut caps

I am not sure if there is a source of those machine screws painted (white as most planes base color is white) 

[wombat]

I just got my plane back from Wet-Wingologists in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.   Yesterday at about noon.   And so far, no leaks!

I'm from the west coast as well (North Central WA) and this was just about as absolutely far away from home as I can get in the continental US.

[OR75]

12 hours ago, Steven B said:

Does anyone have a good recommendation for a weeping fuel tank  in a mooney M20 K on the west coast. TYIA!!

picture of what it looks like ? some repairs are not difficult 

[Steven B]

[OR75]

thinking a full reseal could be needed as the leak seems to propagate along the rivets line 

[Steven B]

Ok. Thank you for your help

[A64Pilot]

13 minutes ago, OR75 said:

thinking a full reseal could be needed as the leak seems to propagate along the rivets line 

I’d sure try a patch first, it could still be one small seep, that travels along the outside of the leak. Full strip and reseal is in my opinion where you end up after fixing a couple of leaks, you may get several years out of a fix, or may not too.

I’ve fixed more than one leak on brand new airplanes, the most difficult thing is finding exactly where the leak origin is. Often where it’s appearing may not be where the actual leak is.

[Bolter]

3 hours ago, Steven B said:

 

That looks like the wing walk, which is a common weeping location. The repeating flexing from walking on it works the screws' sealing loose.  This is fixed by removing the screws and adding sealant.  Do a search on MS, and you will find the details on the sealant.  

[Steven B]

Great advice. Will definitely go down the patch road first. Thank you. 

[Pinecone]

21 minutes ago, Bolter said:

That looks like the wing walk, which is a common weeping location. The repeating flexing from walking on it works the screws' sealing loose.  This is fixed by removing the screws and adding sealant.  Do a search on MS, and you will find the details on the sealant.  

My thought also.

It may be a very quick and easy fix, from the outside.  I had one screw leaking.  Shop did not even charge for that (they were doing other things also).

[OR75]

3 hours ago, Pinecone said:

My thought also.

It may be a very quick and easy fix, from the outside.  I had one screw leaking.  Shop did not even charge for that (they were doing other things also).

I don't think those are the panel screws. those look like the rivets line

the panel / screws are forward of that (almost at the front end of the wing walk).

The fix could involve opening that front panel and "paint" sealant over those rivets in the inside. 

 

[DCarlton]

After a TON of consternation, I decided to go with bladders today and put down a deposit.  I canceled my reseal appointment only because of the long trip from KCRQ to KBDH.  I figured $4K in fuel, hotel and roundtrip air fare costs.  For anyone considering bladders, it's a long lead time item.  Eagle Fuel Cells makes the bladders for Griggs and they are out of some of the required material.  Apparently two of the three companies that make the material have closed (sigh) slowing deliveries.  So... I'm expecting the bladder kit in 5-7 months (TBD).  If I can't get through my next annual, I'll ground the plane and wait.  I was looking forward to working with Paul at Weep No More and experiencing MN, but it's a long hot haul in Aug from SOCAL when you have other obligations and pressures to get back home.  Looking forward now to documenting and reporting out on the bladder install.  BTW, prices have gone up 14% in the last 10 months (sigh).  If you are considering bladders, don't delay.  Hope I made a good decision.  

[A64Pilot]

One of the reasons I bought my airplane was it has bladders.

I really think that they are pretty much a permeant fix for me. At my age it’s not likely I’ll be flying this aircraft when they age out. I’ve seen many over 40 year old bladders that weren’t leaking, yet.

Keeping a bladder airplane in a hangar really seems to increase their life, the theory is the heat from the sun over years degrades the bladders, they often fail on the top.

[DCarlton]

8 hours ago, A64Pilot said:

One of the reasons I bought my airplane was it has bladders.

I really think that they are pretty much a permeant fix for me. At my age it’s not likely I’ll be flying this aircraft when they age out. I’ve seen many over 40 year old bladders that weren’t leaking, yet.

Keeping a bladder airplane in a hangar really seems to increase their life, the theory is the heat from the sun over years degrades the bladders, they often fail on the top.

Almost every expensive project we’ve undertaken at home recently has required rework even when we tried to hire the best and offer a blank check. My last annual inspection required rework….twice.   My confidence is low.  Sealing these tanks is an art.  At this point, if I had a leak and required warranty repair work 13 flying hours away, I think I’d light a match to the airplane and walk away.  Hopefully the bladders will be a permanent solution that is installed correctly the first time.  If so they should easily outlast me and the airplane.  And… if repairs are required it can be accomplished locally.  

[Ruthie]

Good Day Mooney Owners,

 

This is Ruth Griggs. Griggs Aircraft owner of the Mooney Bladders STC for C, D, E, F, G and J models.

We currently have a set of 8 bladders in stock 64 usable gallon.

P/N  B800

Models C, D, E, or G 

 

If interested please contact me asap, they will not be here long.

 

Thank you

Ruthie Griggs 

570-836-5757

 

[AJ88V]

Curious about how much bladders cost (installed) these days.

[Slick Nick]

53 minutes ago, Ruthie said:

Good Day Mooney Owners,

 

This is Ruth Griggs. Griggs Aircraft owner of the Mooney Bladders STC for C, D, E, F, G and J models.

We currently have a set of 8 bladders in stock 64 usable gallon.

P/N  B800

Models C, D, E, or G 

 

If interested please contact me asap, they will not be here long.

 

Thank you

Ruthie Griggs 

570-836-5757

 

Hey Ruthie, have you got some photos that you could post? I’m curious what these look like. 

[bigmo]

12 hours ago, AJ88V said:

Curious about how much bladders cost (installed) these days.

I was looking at a J with leaks and was thinking about incorporating this into the purchase. "Turn-key" was $16K for the 64 gallon. It was a lot, but at least done forever (ish). Luckily I found another "more better" plane. Reasonable for the amount of work IMO.

[Rusty Pilot]

On 8/15/2024 at 8:51 PM, DCarlton said:

After a TON of consternation, I decided to go with bladders today and put down a deposit.  I canceled my reseal appointment only because of the long trip from KCRQ to KBDH.  I figured $4K in fuel, hotel and roundtrip air fare costs.  For anyone considering bladders, it's a long lead time item.  Eagle Fuel Cells makes the bladders for Griggs and they are out of some of the required material.  Apparently two of the three companies that make the material have closed (sigh) slowing deliveries.  So... I'm expecting the bladder kit in 5-7 months (TBD).  If I can't get through my next annual, I'll ground the plane and wait.  I was looking forward to working with Paul at Weep No More and experiencing MN, but it's a long hot haul in Aug from SOCAL when you have other obligations and pressures to get back home.  Looking forward now to documenting and reporting out on the bladder install.  BTW, prices have gone up 14% in the last 10 months (sigh).  If you are considering bladders, don't delay.  Hope I made a good decision.  

Griggs installed mine a couple of months ago.  I also had to wait quite a while for them to come in, but they actually installed them ahead of schedule.  With the new fuel senders and my new engine monitor I am getting excellent fuel readouts.  I am 100% satisfied.  Good luck!