{"id":2124,"date":"2017-11-25T22:45:43","date_gmt":"2017-11-26T04:45:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/?page_id=2124"},"modified":"2017-11-27T11:54:28","modified_gmt":"2017-11-27T17:54:28","slug":"use-a-plastic-bag-as-a-fuel-tank","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/?page_id=2124","title":{"rendered":"Use a plastic bag as a fuel tank"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you’ve ever built a plane powered by a .10 engine, you probably know that the fuel tank can be\u00a0kind of a pain. \u00a0For one thing, most planes in this size don’t allow a lot of room for a tank, so you have to use a really small one. \u00a0Then you find out that a 1 or 2 ounce tank doesn’t really allow the clunk weight to clunk, so you get to fly inverted only for about the first quarter of the tank of fuel. \u00a0After that the engine sucks air when the plane goes inverted.<\/p>\n

One way to avoid this kind of trouble is to make a fuel tank from a plastic bag. \u00a0A plastic bag will allow the engine to suck all of the fuel out without ever getting an air bubble. \u00a0Also, the tank will be able to hold a greater amount of fuel than a rigid tank in the same fuel tank compartment.<\/p>\n

The tank is made from a sandwich bag. \u00a0You could try other types of bags. \u00a0Here’s mine:<\/p>\n

\"DSC_0559\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Cut a notch into the end of a piece of fuel line to prevent the line from becoming blocked if the bag gets sucked onto the line.<\/p>\n

\"DSC_0560\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This is the pickup line. \u00a0Attach the other end of the pickup line to a piece of brass tube. \u00a0Attach the engine line to the other side of the brass tube.<\/p>\n

\"DSC_0561\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Put the notched end into the bag. \u00a0It should reach almost to the bottom of the bag. \u00a0The brass tube should be inside the top of the bag, positioned in the middle of the open side.<\/p>\n

\"DSC_0562\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Fold the open end of the bag over the fuel line.<\/p>\n

\"DSC_0563\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Roll the bag around the line and secure it with a cable tie.<\/p>\n

\"DSC_0564\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Here’s what it looks like after being tested for leaks. \u00a0(There weren’t any.)<\/p>\n

\"DSC_0565\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I used a small piece cut from a manila folder to protect the bag from sharp edges.<\/p>\n

\"DSC_0568\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The muffler pressure line is not used. \u00a0There is only one line coming through the firewall.<\/p>\n

\"DSC_0569\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Turn the crank on your pump until all the air is out of the line, then connect it to the line on your fuel tank. \u00a0While observing the bag\u00a0from inside the airplane, pump some fuel in. \u00a0Then reverse the pump to remove the air from the\u00a0bag. \u00a0Empty the bag completely, so you can start from zero and determine how much it\u00a0should hold. \u00a0While watching the bag from inside the plane, count how many cranks it takes to fill it\u00a0to a comfortable size. \u00a0If you land your plane with fuel remaining, empty the bag\u00a0first, then start from zero again. \u00a0If you pay attention to the sound and feel of your pump, you should be able to tell when it\u00a0is empty. \u00a0Then pump the amount of fuel you have already designated as a full tank.<\/p>\n

Purging air should be necessary only once at the beginning of the day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you’ve ever built a plane powered by a .10 engine, you probably know that the fuel tank can be\u00a0kind of a pain. \u00a0For one thing, most planes in this size don’t allow a lot of room for a tank, … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":33,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2124"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2124"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2124\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2155,"href":"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2124\/revisions\/2155"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/33"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2124"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}