AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Balloch: What Now?
All of that turns on a single detail: if the engine has been run after the AdBlue went in — far more than anything else. Out in Feabuie or here around Balloch, an unstarted motor should remain unrun. Usually that is emptying and thoroughly purging it on the spot in Balloch — so leave your key and motor off then call 0333 366 0103. Already started? Pull over once you safely can, then turn everything off. A larger job, yes, but the same first step.
Wherever in Highland it took place, one of the situations below matches yours.
AdBlue in a diesel on a Balloch forecourt
The cap you unscrewed was the wrong one — and you only notice it while you are stood at the pump, bottle or the nozzle in your hand. It could be the Tesco, or perhaps the Highland Fuels, or a different station in Balloch.
In short: there is no better spot exists to discover it. The AdBlue is in the tank and nowhere else. Nothing has pulled it in.
What to do: do not get back in and start the vehicle to clear the pump. Three things: a push into a bay with the staff helping, the bottle kept, and a ring to us from where you stand. Our equipment is explosion-proof and fine on a live forecourt, so a vehicle that can't be pushed clear is emptied where it is at the petrol pump.
AdBlue in your diesel tank on a Balloch drive?
Days had passed with the dash light on. Only by the recycling, the empty container in hand, did you glance back at the cap you had opened on the drive. Homes just off Underwood Place get hit as much as everywhere else.
What it means: if you have not driven since, this is nearly as good as the forecourt. Being reluctant to blend, AdBlue settles to the base in your tank and stays. A night parked changes none of that.
Keep your keys indoors overnight — or someone may drive it off first thing — then phone us. In Viewhill or here around Balloch, the drain is done at your drive. The pumps are quiet enough to use outside a house at night.
On the road around Balloch with AdBlue in a diesel
A mile or two beyond topping up, the engine began misbehaving: rough running, smoke, less power, lights on the dash. Culloden Road, perhaps, or the way to Inverness — a trip of under 5 miles.
Meaning? Your fuel pump has sucked the AdBlue up. It's been through the fuel filter and the fuel lines and, the further you went, into your high-pressure pump and your injectors. It travels further with each extra mile driven and every restart.
What to do: pull over where it's safe to do so and switch off. Service stations farther on are too far: on the M90, over 50 miles out of Balloch, use the first junction. Don't restart the vehicle to see if it has cleared; it will not have. About how far had it gone? Say so when you phone.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
A week ago, the car was new to you. Unknown to you, the AdBlue and diesel inlets sit side by side here — unlike your own vehicle, which has none or keeps it in another spot. Any driver, wherever across Highland, could do the same.
What it means: the same as the scenarios above, depending on whether it's run, with one more stage. Plenty of rental and company agreements need the owner's approval before repairs.
Do this: hire firm or your fleet manager to begin with, us second, since settling it early saves time. Waiting for an answer at the car park outside Inverness Airport, or near Culloden-Balloch Baptist Church? Keep your engine off throughout.
Unsure about AdBlue in the diesel tank around Balloch?
Now and then, "I think so" is the most anyone can honestly say. The bottle is lighter than it should be, there is a faint smell of ammonia around your filler, and you can't remember which cap you took off. The gates of the local primary school in a hurry, perhaps, or someone's driveway over in Newton.
The point: your engine isn't hurt by a little AdBlue splashed around the filler. If it is inside your diesel tank, though, that changes. You can't tell which by turning the ignition, and doing so will draw in any AdBlue that is in your tank.
Next: assume it got in, and keep the motor off. Checking a tank that proves clean is better than draining one after it has been run — so phone then tell us what you noticed.
Balloch: what each AdBlue drain has in common
No matter the case, a single opening is used. Three questions are asked when our engineers reach the car — at a filling station, a driveway, a street by Battle of Culloden Burial Memorial or the car park outside the pub in the village: the liquid, the amount, and if the motor has been started. On the phone, before dispatch, you hear our quote, and those replies shape the work too.
AdBlue forms crystals and eats at certain metals in fuel systems, so it does not rinse out unaided; that is why a full flush, after the drain, matters much more here than with petrol. The fuel filter is cleaned, or replaced where it needs to be; clean diesel goes in; and the vehicle is tested. The majority of unrun cars are a half-hour job after the moment our engineers get there.
Our engineers start it last. Our technicians make sure it runs smoothly on fresh diesel before leaving. Our technicians do the entire job where the vehicle is, and lasting damage is very unusual if it has been noticed soon. Nothing is paid upfront, settlement is made on the day, and you receive what the insurer asks for: an engineer report plus a VAT invoice. Plenty of policies cover misfuelling, so check yours while the van travels.
About Balloch itself
Balloch is a suburban area situated on the coast of the Moray Firth, near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. Balloch sits at an elevation of 58 metres, looking out over the water, and is located close to other nearby places such as Viewhill and Cradlehall. Balloch is characterized by its predominantly detached housing stock, which reflects the area's residential nature. Balloch is also relatively close to the historic site of Culloden, which is a short distance away.
AdBlue drains round Balloch and across Highland
Balloch is a residential suburb, and the same teams that cover it work the towns around it too, Culloden and Cradlehall among them, across the IV postcode area. A postcode starting IV2 7 is the quickest way to tell us where you are.
No moving is required, whether parked centrally in Balloch or on a lay-by heading to Culloden Wood, and so keep it where it is. The van drains it in place. If you are somewhere hard to explain, close to The Barn Church or close to a boundary, ring and ask rather than guessing.
Your situation, in one line
Not run yet: keep the vehicle off then call. Whatever case fits, Petrol in Diesel handles the rest on 0333 366 0103, throughout Highland and within Balloch — after you pull over, switch off then phone, if it's run.