550 fuel line connection at the de-aerator question

Hello,

I had fuel smell in the cockpit of the 550 and I am VERY happy I did this job now. The front rollover valve was leaking profusely and honestly it was a very unsafe condition (there was fuel running down the outside of the front of the tank). When I filled the tank only to 3/4 level the smell in the cockpit was non-existent, but I am SURE that when I hit the brakes hard fuel was spilling from the front valve. I figured I would let everyone know, simply filling it to 3/4 or less is not a safe way to go! Thankfully I didn't wait to do the job.

During the replacement of the tank we ran into a snag though. The line that comes from the front rollover valve has a connector that plugs onto the deaerator (part #32 on Ricambi's diagram) and during removal the rubber inside got damaged (see picture of the plug attached). My idea was to simply cut it off and put a real rubber hose in its place, but I figured I would ask before I do that. It is a plastic host that the fitting goes into so I thought I would check with others here before I cut it.

Any thoughts on this from others who have done this job are greatly appreciated!!!

Best,

James

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