AdBlue in a Diesel Tank in Aghalee: Why It Occurs and How to Prevent It
AdBlue already in the diesel tank? Then set this page down a moment, keep the ignition and motor off, then call 0333 366 0103. A drain and a thorough flush, carried out right where the car stands in Aghalee, is usually what it takes if found before the motor runs. If you are reading before it has happened, the remainder of this page is about why it takes place and how to make sure it does not.
AdBlue in a diesel vehicle: two tanks, two fillers
Plenty of newer diesels around Upper Ballinderry, as well as Aghalee, run on two liquids; the engine takes just your diesel. AdBlue goes to the exhaust, where it is sprayed into the gas to clean it, and it lives in a tank of its own.
Every tank has one filler of its own. Many of motors have a single flap for both, while others move the AdBlue filler to the boot or under the bonnet. Diesel goes in on each forecourt call-out, again and again. Much less regularly, the AdBlue side is topped up — normally from a bottle, by a person thinking about where it goes. It's in that gap that the mistake happens.
Aghalee: how AdBlue in the diesel tank occurs
Rarely is it carelessness: normally three things coincide.
On a driveway off South Crescent before work, or in the car park at the pub in the village heading home: that's where the rushed top-up happens. What is the reason for the rush? As AdBlue runs low the vehicle warns you, and once it is empty, limp mode kicks in.
Next, the hand reaches for the cap it knew on the old vehicle — since a hire car, a new motor or a company car puts the fillers somewhere your last one did not.
A spout-topped bottle finds no obstacle at a diesel filler any more than at an AdBlue one. And so the pour, once begun, carries on. Aghagallon or the heart of Aghalee: it takes the same few seconds in both.
Which filler is for AdBlue, and which for diesel?
A few seconds is all the checks take — so check them before you pour anything, on a driveway in Gawleys Gate or a forecourt in Aghalee.
- Blue and lettering: an AdBlue cap is frequently blue, or says "AdBlue", where a diesel cap usually does not. Go by the cap, not where it sits.
- Many motors fit AdBlue the smaller filler of the two.
- The flap. Look inside your fuel flap for a label. Plenty of cars say there which fuel goes where.
- Can't find it next to your diesel filler? In that case look below the bonnet or in the boot — the owner's manual says where.
- The person who drove the car last. On a hire or company car picked up from somewhere like the car park at the nearest station, ask before you leave, not when the light comes on.
How to top up without AdBlue in your diesel tank
On the day the warning comes on — wherever it is in County Antrim — a routine to follow.
- Park and switch off. Not on a slope, not with your motor running, and not in a rush on the side of Dunskey Street.
- Locate the AdBlue filler, check the cap, and say the word "AdBlue" out loud while unscrewing it. It seems daft. It does the trick.
- Leave the diesel cap on. If both sit under one flap, check your diesel cap is still closed before you lift the bottle.
- Pour slowly, using the bottle's own spout. Stop when it's full or when the bottle is empty.
- Shut the cap, and look again — confirm your diesel filler remained closed throughout. Only then, start the vehicle.
If at stage two or three you find you have already poured into your diesel side, stop there. Stage five stays out.
Put AdBlue in your diesel tank around Aghalee already?
Short list, then. Top of it: the motor remains unstarted. On plenty of diesels your ignition alone runs the fuel pump, and so do not switch the vehicle on. AdBlue doesn't mix with diesel — it sinks to the bottom of the tank, where the fuel is drawn from — so don't top up with diesel to thin it.
The attendants at the nearest petrol station, another forecourt nearby or any forecourt will usually help to push the car away if asked. Your own driveway around Aghalee is where it should stay.
Already started? Stop when it is safe, then switch off. The next exit is the place to leave when you're on the M77, over 50 miles from Aghalee. A short hop across Aghalee is a smaller job than a run towards Lisburn, under 10 miles away, so tell us roughly how far it went.
Aghalee: what takes place when we turn up
Our engineers come to the car wherever it has stopped, whether that is outside the local primary school, close to the centre or on your own drive. What fluid went in, the quantity, and if it ran: our technicians ask because those answers set both work and price. During the call itself, you are told the price — before anything else.
Then that tank is emptied and your system rinsed thoroughly. With AdBlue that counts more than with petrol: it crystallises and is corrosive to some of the metals in a fuel system, so it does not wash out on its own. Testing is at the end: before that, fresh diesel is added, and the fuel filter is cleaned or replaced if necessary. Next we fire it up and check it runs properly before we leave.
Using pumps fine on a working forecourt and quiet enough for use outside a house at night, most jobs in which your engine has not run take about half an hour once we are there. The insurer will ask for an engineer's report and your VAT invoice, and both are yours at the end. Payment comes on the day, with no deposit. Plenty of insurance policies include misfuelling cover, so it is worth checking yours while we're on the way.
About Aghalee itself
Aghalee is a small locality in County Antrim, situated inland at an elevation of 31 metres, approximately 9.6 miles from Lisburn. Aghalee is characterised by its predominantly detached housing stock and is located near other localities such as Aghagallon and Lower Ballinderry. Aghalee has a population of around 595 people and is part of the wider region surrounding Lisburn. Aghalee is also some 329 miles from London, reflecting its relatively remote location in Northern Ireland.
AdBlue drains about Aghalee, and County Antrim beyond
Being a small village, Aghalee has the same vans as nearby places — Lower Ballinderry, Derrymore — right across BT postcodes and the wider area beyond. A postcode starting BT67 0 gets our van to you fastest.
Moving the car is not necessary. A driveway, a lay-by on the way to the green space at the edge of the village, a side street close to a street just off the centre: our engineers drain the car where it sits. Awkward to pin down, like the back of the far end of the built-up part? Close to a border? Asking beats guessing, and so ring.
The short version for Aghalee people
Read the cap before you tip. Petrol in Diesel empties it on the spot, anywhere across County Antrim, if AdBlue has gone in your diesel tank all the same — and so leave the car off then phone 0333 366 0103.