Attaching fuel sending unit

[matthieu]

People of iboats

Greetings! I just removed the old corroded fuel sending unit out of my aluminum fuel tank on my 1996 Scout Sportfisher 16' and I'm now very confused The previous unit was attached with rivets to the tank, not a great idea as I had to take them out by drilling and they ended up in the tank. not pretty. Now I'm left with 5 hex holes and 4 holes where the rivets used to be. Some people have suggested using a bolt with a washerJB welded upside down from the inside, creating some kind of posts to attach the unit to with nuts. No idea how to make them stay in place while the epoxy cures :-/ Anyway, any suggestion would be appreciated. Photos attached.

 

[smokeonthewater]

There are several options but none of them involve ANY adhesive.

If the new pickup covers the existing holes you can use screws in new holes, you can use bigger screws in the rivet holes, you can make a bigger cover plate to fasten down over the hole and then fasten the sender to it.
Those are probably the best options off the top of my head

 

[Chris1956]

That fuel tank does not have very much life left. Either replace it now, or just use rivets to attach the new sender, with a new rubber gasket. If the sender fails again, it will definitely be time to replace the fuel tank. BTW, the remains of rivets in the fuel tank is not an issue. The fuel filter will capture them, if they even get sucked into the fuel line. Using a drill to remove the rivets is real dangerous, as they create lots of sparks from the commutator of the motor.

 

[matthieu]

Thanks, I know about the drill, but no choice really. Do you guys suggest self taping screws?

 

[Fed]

I've seen drilled & tapped flat rings that have a slot cut in them to allow you to get them inside the tank, that would give you a fresh start.
I guess to fit them you could screw a bit of threaded rod into one hole to hold it up until you got some more screws in.

 

[smokeonthewater]

There's ALWAYS a choice.... Your family won't feel any better about losing you because you made an excuse....

Air drill, hand drill, fill the tank with water, buy a new tank...... All better than dying.

Self threading screws would be ok IF they are fine thread.