PIREP: Weep No More

[Jamie]

I'd also like to add that the folks up there at Willmar were incredibly nice. It's on my list of places to go again. 

 

This. While the annual was being done on mine, we wandered next door to Weep No More. He was in the middle of resealing... literally up to his elbows in the tank, but took time to explain what was being done. I asked about bladders and he showed me a section of wing (leaning against the hangar wall) that had had a bladder in it. He kept it around to show what a bad bladder installation can do.

 

Both Weep No More and Willmar Air Service are great people.

[yvesg]

Should have tried 'chemical stripper'

 

http://mooneyspace.com/topic/5334-oxygen-leak/?hl=+chemical++stripper#entry68831

During a paint job insist that the paint shop does not put chemical stripper directly on any tank covers.

One way to avoid this is to mask the covers with aluminum foil tape during chemical stripping and then

later remove paint from the tank covers mechanically. A good shop, that's not cutting corners, will

hopefully either know this or have some other tricks up their sleeve.

 

Otherwise, count on tanks leaking within a year or two.

Thank you fantom. The bird is getting in for this in a week. I am pretty sure that the shop would be aware of this however better be safe than sorry. I will ask questions about this.

Yves

[M252]

Wet wing fuel tanks are standard on many aircraft. Are Mooney fuel tanks more susceptible than those of other aircraft?

 

I would assume that there are standard repair techniques available given the large number of aircraft w/ wet wing tanks (why do we need a specialized fuel tank re-sealing service for Mooneys?)

[carusoam]

It's not a need, as described by some doing it themselves. It is a desire.

Choices are:

(1) patch

(2) go with bladders

(3) strip and reseal

(3a) self supplied effort

(3b) mechanic supplied effort

(3c) automated system supplied by experienced technicians in the Midwest, with an available pick-up service and warranty period.

How does that sound? i'm going with patch first, then after forty years, I'm going with the strip and reseal.

Best regards,

-a-

[M252]

That sounds good - indeed (1) appears to be applied to many commercial aircraft to keep down-time short and costs low...

[OR75]

when resealing the tanks, make sure the shop uses the right screws.

actually they are cheap enough that one should change all of them and make sure they are the right length so that they don't puncture the nutplates)

i hate it when a 5 cents saving can result in a several hundred dollars expense for rework.

[nels]

Just got the bill from Paul (will be picking up the plane this weekend).  He'd quoted me $7600 plus tax and shipping on the materials, as well as any additional parts and a full tank of gas.  The total (not including the gas) was $7951.57.  Here's the breakdown:

 

Poly-gone, $1120

Fillet sealer, $224

Brush coat sealer, $224

Access panel sealant, $64

Top coat, $91.68

Labor, $5876.32

Nutplates, 22 @ $5 ea, $110

Fuel drain valves, 2 @ $40 ea, $80

Shipping, $30

Tax, $131.57

 

The nutplates were capped/sealed nutplates in the access panels, and had been damaged previously when someone installed them with too much sealant in place.

How many guys are working on the reseal? At $5876 for labor and at a labor rate of $50/hr that would be 117 hrs labor. That's about three weeks labor. Seems like a long time. Is it all hand labor or do they fill the tanks with stripping solution, recirculate it for a day through a filter, drain, then start the hand work. Sounds like a lucrative occupation. Maybe they charge $100/hr or more. If that is the case I can understand the labor cost.

Looking at the cost, I would be tempted to try it myself first as I'm just that way. Would probably make me realize I should have let a good shop tackle the job.

Anybody ever fully stripped a tank themselves?

[Awful_Charlie]

Did a leak repair a few years ago.  It was an arm shredding fingernail breaking and generally fairly unpleasant experience, and that was just for a leak repair!

 

http://mooneyspace.com/gallery/album/13730-/

[danb35]

Paul's bill called out labor at $70/hr, working out to just over 80 hours.  He'd quoted the job at a flat rate, and met that rate.  I suspect he had fewer hours of hands-on labor and consequently makes more per hour, but that's just a guess on my part.  I helped my A&P patch the tanks a few years back, and just getting in there is an unpleasant job.  Assuming Paul's reseal works as well as his reputation indicates, I'm glad to pay an expert to do the job right.

[danb35]

I flew commercial up to MN Friday to pick up the Mooney on Saturday. The tanks look good, and the lack of signs of leaking on the bottom of the wings looks even better. He'd filled the tanks with as much as they could hold, just to make sure there weren't any leaks.

There was some minor paint damage around the upper access panels, but they'd been starting to wear anyway. Everything else looks just fine.

I'd been concerned about the weather in MN and its effect on my being able to return--it turned out to not be a factor at all. And yes, I had a nice tailwind for most of the trip back. I hadn't paid enough attention to the weather at home, and had to divert to my alternate, FLO. Fortunately, FLO was where my car was parked anyway, so it was only a minor inconvenience. My wife drove me back to pick up the plane yesterday afternoon.

[Zulee]

I'm glad to hear such good feedback on Paul and his revealing process. I have mine scheduled for May 13th, and already crying about the $8k.

I would like to hear anyone's experience with bladders and cost compared to reseal.

Thanks

Rick