Jim,

I cut the 110 gallon iron tank out of my Panda 40 last winter and put in an
aluminum day tank while I pondered the options. Just recently I decided to
fabricate from fiberglass a single top piece about 96" to 108" long, two
bulkheads and at least 2 baffles. The bottom and sides of the tank will be
the existing bilge floor and hull, although I'll put in several additional
layers of epoxy/fiberglass for safety.

I'll probably have to cut my single top piece into 3 sections for ease of
installation, but this isn't a problem. I'll have large clean-outs so I can
reach all areas of the tank. The various pieces of the tank will be bonded
to each other and the boat using West Systems epoxy, but I plan to make the
pieces with polyester resin (provided there are not compatibility issues).
If this all goes well, which it probably won't, I should have more space
under floor than before plus another 10-30 gallons of capacity.

I'll keep the day tank (23 gallons) and transfer fuel from the main
fiberglass tank (100-130 gallons) to the day tank as needed. I intend to
test the fiberglass tank for a few months with fresh water prior to
committing to diesel.

If anyone has feedback on the above, I'd welcome hearing it. Jim, good luck
with your project.

Shane Wilson
SV Muse - Panda 40
Port Townsend, WA




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Received on Tue Nov 15 16:15:42 2005