Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2004 8:30 pm
Like Paul said you'll end up with a deadly rust bomb. Tickinggggggggggg!
Save you time , money and your life buy a new tank. Air under pressure is very dangerous. There is alot of energy stored and when it is released suddenly it can be deadly. ASME and the National Board have written codes and standards to promote the safety and integrity of boliers and pressure vessels. In these codes there are specific engineered procedures for fabrication and repairs of pressure vessels. Welders certified under specific weld procedures may be allowed to repair a pressure vessel as long as the agency he or she is employed with carries a "R" repair stamp. Repairs of this nature would consist removal of the corroded area and installing an inlay patch. Repairs are then hydrostatically tested at 1.5 times the max. allowable working pressure or design pressure. An overlay/ belly patch is not design to hold higher pressures. I have seen .500" wall pressure vessels open up like a torn beer can due to poor repair procedures and or techniques. I have also seen the aftermath of a catastrophic pressure vessel failure were there was a loss of life ...... not a pretty site. One individual had four children.
Compressor tanks are fairly low price. Or buy a new or fairly used compressor. Schedule tank drainout / blowndown biweekly to eliminated internal corrosion issues
In a nut shell if you fix it or someone not qualified makes the repair and something bad happens ....you won't have a leg( or some other body ) to stand on in court. My occupation - Authorized State Boiler / Pressure vessel inspector/ engineer .