AdBlue in a Diesel Tank in Almodington: How It Happens and How to Prevent It
Stop reading a minute if your diesel tank already has AdBlue in it: ignition off, engine off, and ring 0333 366 0103. A drain and a thorough flush, done right where your vehicle sits around Almodington, is normally all it takes when caught before your motor runs. Not happened yet? Further down, the page covers the why it takes place and the how to avoid it for good.
Two fillers, two tanks: AdBlue in a diesel vehicle
Many current diesels on the roads about Almodington and Bracklesham carry two liquids, not one. Diesel goes to the motor. AdBlue's own tank holds it, and from there it goes to your exhaust, where spraying cleans the fumes.
Every tank has one filler of its own. Other cars put the AdBlue filler in your boot or under the bonnet; a lot of others place the two side by side behind one flap. The diesel side is topped up at the pump all the time. The AdBlue side is fuelled far less frequently, normally from a bottle, and usually by a person who has to stop and think where it goes. Mistakes happen in that gap between them.
Almodington: how AdBlue in the diesel tank happens
It is seldom carelessness. Three things tend to line up.
The warning comes first. As AdBlue runs low the car tells you, and if it runs out completely, your vehicle drops into limp mode. So the top-up is done in a hurry: on a drive off Batchmere Road before work, or in the car park at The Bell Inn on the way home.
Then, the hand goes for the cap it knew on the old vehicle — since a hire car, a new vehicle or a company car puts the fillers where your last one didn't.
And the bottle fits. A bottle with a spout goes into a diesel filler as easily as an AdBlue one, so nothing stops the pour after it has started. Whether it takes place in Somerley or the middle of Almodington, it is the same few seconds.
The AdBlue filler and the diesel filler: telling them apart
Before you tip anything, whether on a drive in Birdham or a forecourt around Almodington, check these. They take a few seconds.
- Colour and lettering: an AdBlue cap is often blue, or says "AdBlue", where a diesel cap normally does not. Go by the cap, not its position.
- The size. On plenty of cars the AdBlue filler neck is the smaller of the two.
- Check inside the fuel flap: plenty of vehicles have a label there saying which fuel goes where.
- The handbook shows where it is when the filler is not next to your diesel cap: your boot, or under the bonnet.
- The person who drove the vehicle last. On a hire or company car collected from somewhere like the car park at Chichester, ask before you leave, not when the light comes on.
How to top up without AdBlue in the diesel tank
The day the light comes on, anywhere around West Sussex, use this routine.
- Turn off once parked — level ground, motor stopped, and never in a rush by Almodington Lane on the verge.
- Silly as it sounds, saying "AdBlue" aloud while you unscrew the cap does the trick — after you've found your filler and read the cap.
- Leave your diesel cap on. If both sit under one flap, check your diesel cap is still closed before you lift the bottle.
- Using the bottle's own spout, pour slowly — and stop when it is full or the bottle is empty.
- Close the cap and check a second time. Make sure your diesel cap was never opened. Only then start the vehicle.
If at stage two or three you find you have already poured into the diesel side, stop there. Never go on to stage five.
AdBlue in your diesel tank already, around Almodington?
Short order, then. Top of it: the engine remains unstarted. Do not switch your ignition on; on many diesels that alone runs the fuel pump. Thinning it with more diesel fails, because AdBlue settles to the bottom rather than mixing — and that is where your fuel is drawn from.
If you're on a forecourt, whether it's the Shell or the Esso, ask the attendants to help roll your car clear of the pump. At home around Almodington? Then the vehicle stays where it is.
Already started? Pull over when it is sensible, then turn off. Almodington lies under 10 miles from the Waterlooville Bypass; on it, use the first junction. About how far did it go? Hopping across Almodington is less a job than a run of under 5 miles towards Chichester, so tell us.
Almodington: what occurs when our technicians turn up
Outside Sidlesham Primary School, near Easton Viewpoint or on your own driveway: wherever your car has stopped, our technicians come to it. Both the work and our quote depend on three replies — what fluid, which amount, and if it has run — so our technicians ask. On the phone call itself, you hear the price — ahead of dispatch.
Then your tank is drained and the fuel system flushed thoroughly. More than with petrol, it counts with AdBlue: crystals build up, some metals are attacked, and none of it clears away unaided, no matter how long it is left. Once your filter has been flushed — or replaced, where needed — clean diesel goes in, and then your vehicle gets tested. Next we fire it up and make sure it runs smoothly before leaving.
Most jobs are done in about half an hour after we arrive, as long as your motor hasn't run — and the pumps we use are safe on a live forecourt and quiet at night outside a house. No money upfront; you settle up that day. At the end, a VAT invoice and a report from the engineer are handed to you for your insurer. Before we get there, have a look at your policy; many carry cover for misfuelling.
About Almodington itself
Almodington is a small village in West Sussex, situated near the coast and close to the city of Chichester. Almodington lies at a low elevation of around 4 metres, and its location near the sea has influenced its development. Almodington is characterised by its predominantly detached housing stock, and its proximity to nearby places such as Somerley and Earnley.
AdBlue drains around Almodington and across West Sussex
Being a coastal village, Almodington has the same vans as surrounding areas — Earnley, Highleigh — right through PO postcodes and the wider area beyond. Give a postcode beginning PO20 7, and our van arrives fastest.
Your car stays where it is. The drain happens on the spot, whether a driveway, a street by Earnley Church, or a layby towards RSPB Medmerry Nature Reserve. If you are close to a border, or somewhere hard to describe like the back of Earnley Viewpoint., ring and ask rather than guessing.
In short, for Almodington drivers
First, the cap; after that, the tip. AdBlue in your diesel tank regardless? Leave it switched off and ring 0333 366 0103; Petrol in Diesel empties it on the spot, across West Sussex.