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07-19-2016, 05:38 PM
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#1
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Almost There
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 83
Year: 2000
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HELP! Hole in floor! Need answer ASAP.
Hey guys so I'm just about to put in my flooring tomorrow and there's a hole in the front right side of the bus above the diesel tank that had a metal panel on it originally.
My question and concern is: Will I ever need access to this hole for any reason? Should I cut a hole through my insulation, subfloor etc. to have access to it? Or can I just seal it off and not worry about it?
Here is a picture of what I mean
Any info on this would greatly help, as my time to work on this is limited to the next couple of days.
Thanks!
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07-19-2016, 06:18 PM
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#2
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Skoolie
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Texas
Posts: 218
Year: 1997
Coachwork: AmTran
Chassis: Genesis
Engine: DT466
Rated Cap: 84
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You will want access to it. That is how you replace a fuel sender and such.
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07-19-2016, 06:18 PM
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#3
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Bus Nut
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Garden State (rural NJ)
Posts: 378
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Does the hole provide access to anything important; fuel pump/filter, hanging hardware, etc?
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07-19-2016, 06:57 PM
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#4
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Mini-Skoolie
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Mississippi
Posts: 27
Year: 1997
Coachwork: Amtran
Chassis: International 3800 chassis
Engine: T444e
Rated Cap: 77
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Ok I have same issue with one big question
Is that how I get my dash fuel gauge to read correctly
I thought was gauge but not looking like my problem
__________________
Cheryl Ann
Blessed to be Alive!
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07-19-2016, 07:02 PM
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#5
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Bus Nut
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Garden State (rural NJ)
Posts: 378
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cheryl_ann44
Ok I have same issue with one big question
Is that how I get my dash fuel gauge to read correctly
I thought was gauge but not looking like my problem
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What is the problem with it now? Is it at least consistent in the way it reads?
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07-19-2016, 07:05 PM
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#6
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Almost There
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 83
Year: 2000
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BusFiend
Does the hole provide access to anything important; fuel pump/filter, hanging hardware, etc?
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This is what's inside.
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07-19-2016, 07:20 PM
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#7
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Bus Nut
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Garden State (rural NJ)
Posts: 378
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PowerDaniels
This is what's inside.
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Looks like a float/sending unit to me. If you ever need to replace it, to get your gas gauge working again, you'll want access to it.
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07-19-2016, 07:28 PM
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#8
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Bus Nut
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Richmond Virginia
Posts: 932
Year: 1984
Engine: 366 Big block Chevy! :) w/ Stick shift
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Hi,
I have a gas motor but also have a plate access in the floor to the sending unit (also known as the gas gauge fuel level sensor, by me because sending unit always trips me up for some odd reason) it is called a sending unit because it "sends" the gas level information (measured in resistance) to the gas gauge.
Goodness can you imagine having to drop the gas tank to replace one? yikes!
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07-19-2016, 08:44 PM
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#9
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Oklahoma aka "God's blind spot"
Posts: 2,446
Year: 1989
Coachwork: 1853FC International/Navistar
Chassis: 35' Retired Air Force Ambulance
Engine: DT466, MT643
Rated Cap: 6 souls and a driver
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IF YOU DECIDE TO COVER IT....
Lay down a tape measure and document the outer edges with digital camera... Or phone
Distance from wall, size of circle... Etc.
Digital film is cheap!
__________________
I once complained I had no shoes....
Until I met a man with no feet
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07-19-2016, 08:54 PM
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#10
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Mini-Skoolie
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Mississippi
Posts: 27
Year: 1997
Coachwork: Amtran
Chassis: International 3800 chassis
Engine: T444e
Rated Cap: 77
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It only reads 1/2 when is actually full
__________________
Cheryl Ann
Blessed to be Alive!
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07-19-2016, 08:56 PM
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#11
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Mini-Skoolie
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Mississippi
Posts: 27
Year: 1997
Coachwork: Amtran
Chassis: International 3800 chassis
Engine: T444e
Rated Cap: 77
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It only reads 1/2 when is actually full
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07-19-2016, 09:15 PM
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#12
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Oklahoma aka "God's blind spot"
Posts: 2,446
Year: 1989
Coachwork: 1853FC International/Navistar
Chassis: 35' Retired Air Force Ambulance
Engine: DT466, MT643
Rated Cap: 6 souls and a driver
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Double post
__________________
I once complained I had no shoes....
Until I met a man with no feet
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07-19-2016, 09:42 PM
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#13
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Bus Nut
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Garden State (rural NJ)
Posts: 378
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cheryl_ann44
It only reads 1/2 when is actually full
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Sounds like a new float/sending unit is needed.
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07-19-2016, 10:35 PM
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#14
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Mini-Skoolie
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Mississippi
Posts: 27
Year: 1997
Coachwork: Amtran
Chassis: International 3800 chassis
Engine: T444e
Rated Cap: 77
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Well I guess that I'll need to get greasy then cause that thing is nasty
And find that part
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07-20-2016, 07:18 AM
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#15
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Bus Geek
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Columbus Ohio
Posts: 18,830
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Carpenter
Chassis: International 3800
Engine: DTA360 / MT643
Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
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Diesel fuel is pure Hell on sending units.. thus why the hole above it in the bus floor... you may get many many years out of yours but you may also only get a few.. quality of fuel and additives (northern areas of the country) play a big part in how long that sender lasts...
ive seen a lot of people locate a cabinet above it in their bus and simply cut out the cabinet and make a new piece for their cabinet bottom to place there... or as others mentioned you can mark it and make sure its something easy to remove.. school bus gas tanls are in safety cages that are very much a pain to remove to drop the tank..
-Christopher
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07-20-2016, 11:17 AM
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#16
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Vacaville, Ca
Posts: 1,634
Year: 1988
Coachwork: Crown / Pusher
Engine: 8.3 Cummins
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Looks to me it's to access the fuel level sensor only, so if it was mine I would cover it & if you ever have a problem with it just drop the tank, it really isn't that hard & I've dropped quite a few fuel tanks & even did the one on my bus with about 60 gal of fuel in it, best way is use a transmission jack with a piece of 3/4 plywood on the jack cut down to what ever size you need to keep it stable.
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07-20-2016, 11:20 AM
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#17
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Vacaville, Ca
Posts: 1,634
Year: 1988
Coachwork: Crown / Pusher
Engine: 8.3 Cummins
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cheryl_ann44
Well I guess that I'll need to get greasy then cause that thing is nasty
And find that part
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I'm using a fuel tank for my grey tank & this is the new sender I'm using, direct bolt in also.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
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07-20-2016, 11:33 AM
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#18
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
Posts: 1,793
Year: 1997
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: B3800 Short bus
Engine: T444E
Rated Cap: 36
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Stu & Filo. T
Looks to me it's to access the fuel level sensor only, so if it was mine I would cover it & if you ever have a problem with it just drop the tank, it really isn't that hard & I've dropped quite a few fuel tanks & even did the one on my bus with about 60 gal of fuel in it, best way is use a transmission jack with a piece of 3/4 plywood on the jack cut down to what ever size you need to keep it stable.
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Oh boy.... Have you dropped a school bus tank yet? I have. It's not fun. The tank is usually protected by a cage made out of 3/16" walled 2"x3" steel tube. The cage alone must way close to 200lbs. I'd keep that hatch somewhat accessible. Even if it's inside a cabinet that makes it difficult to reach it'll still be a smaller job than dropping the tank if you need to muck around with the sender.
In regards to the fuel gauge not working, mine was in the same boat. It would always read somewhere around 1/4 tank. The problem ended up being that the wires were corroded. The sender worked fine. I ran new wire, cleaned the contacts on the sender and it's been reliably reporting the tank level since!
Good luck!
EDIT: Oh, and I should add that all that work was easily accomplished by climbing under the bus to run the wire then making the connections through that access hatch. A year after that fix I did end up dropping the tank to paint it, relocate it and mount it with lighter brackets. I made a new access hatch to reach the sender in it's new location.
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07-20-2016, 11:44 AM
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#19
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Vacaville, Ca
Posts: 1,634
Year: 1988
Coachwork: Crown / Pusher
Engine: 8.3 Cummins
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jazty
Oh boy.... Have you dropped a school bus tank yet? I have. It's not fun. The tank is usually protected by a cage made out of 3/16" walled 2"x3" steel tube. The cage alone must way close to 200lbs. I'd keep that hatch somewhat accessible. Even if it's inside a cabinet that makes it difficult to reach it'll still be a smaller job than dropping the tank if you need to muck around with the sender.
In regards to the fuel gauge not working, mine was in the same boat. It would always read somewhere around 1/4 tank. The problem ended up being that the wires were corroded. The sender worked fine. I ran new wire, cleaned the contacts on the sender and it's been reliably reporting the tank level since!
Good luck!
EDIT: Oh, and I should add that all that work was easily accomplished by climbing under the bus to run the wire then making the connections through that access hatch.
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Mine didn't have a cage but it's made from some VERY thick steel, I personally have not seen any Crown with a cage & yes I did remove mine & relocated it about 30in rearward so I could mount another 112 gal tank for my greywater.
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07-20-2016, 01:07 PM
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#20
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Almost There
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 83
Year: 2000
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Thanks everyone for all the opinions and information!
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