What Now? AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Barmulloch
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank depends on one thing more than any other: whether your engine has run since it went in. Anywhere your vehicle is — Old Balornock, Barmulloch — don't run an engine that has not run yet. Switch nothing on, phone 0333 366 0103, then count on a thorough flush plus a drain, done just where your vehicle stands around Barmulloch. When your engine has been run, pull in safely straight away, then turn the car off. Stage one remains unchanged, even though the work is bigger.
Below: the cases our engineers see, wherever in Glasgow City. Pick yours.
AdBlue in a diesel on a Barmulloch forecourt
Only at this point, bottle still in your hand, you realise that the cap you opened was the wrong one, there at the petrol pump. It could be the JET, or perhaps the Asda, or another station around Barmulloch.
What it means: this is the ideal place to find out. Still in the tank, and no fuel drawn onwards: that's where the AdBlue is.
Next: avoid the urge to start it just to free up the petrol pump. Get the attendants to help pushing it into a bay, hold on to the bottle, then phone us right there. Stuck by the petrol pump? Explosion-proof equipment keeps a live forecourt safe, so we can drain the vehicle where it is.
AdBlue in the diesel tank on a Barmulloch drive?
Days had gone by with the dash light on. A bottle from the garage, tipped in at the drive — and it was just by the recycling that the cap caught a second look. It happens on driveways just off Bishopmill Place as regularly as anywhere.
In short: if the car has not moved since, it is nearly equal to finding out at the forecourt. As it is reluctant to mix, AdBlue settles low in the tank and waits. A night standing alters none of that.
Next: prevent any early-morning drive by keeping your keys indoors, then ring us. Your driveway is where it gets drained, be it around Barmulloch or Balornock. Even at night, our pumps are quiet enough for a driveway.
Set off with AdBlue in a diesel around Barmulloch?
Filled up, drove away, and before long the motor was turning unevenly, blowing smoke, down on power, or flashing up the dash. Ryemount Road, say, or the route to Glasgow — a run of under 3 miles.
What it means: the fuel system has sucked the AdBlue in. Past the fuel filter, through the lines, and — the more the mileage — deeper into the high-pressure pump and every injector. Each mile and each restart takes it further.
Next: pick a sensible spot, pull in, then turn your engine off. Barmulloch sits under a mile from the M80; on it, pull off at the first junction instead of pushing on for the services. Restarting it to check gets nothing — AdBlue never clears on its own. Tell us hear the distance driven when you call.
AdBlue in the wrong tank: hire, lease and company vehicles
Seven days ago, the car was unknown to you. On your own car, AdBlue is missing or somewhere else. On this one, its inlet is right next to the diesel inlet — news to you. Throughout Glasgow City, no one is safe from it.
What it means: the same as the scenarios above, depending on whether it's run, with one more step. Any work on the car frequently needs the owner's go-ahead under rental or company agreements.
Settling it before we turn up is faster, so phone the rental company or your fleet manager, and then us. If you are stuck in the car park at Barnhill, or by Barmulloch Community Development Company, while you wait for an answer, leave the car off.
Not sure it was AdBlue in the diesel tank, Barmulloch?
Truthfully, the best answer may be that you think it did. Too light, that bottle; a trace of ammonia round the filler; no clear memory of which cap. Look familiar? Perhaps it happened in a hurry at the school gates at the local primary school, or on a friend's drive in Provanmill.
Put simply: spillage near the filler does the engine no harm. The diesel tank with AdBlue in it is a different matter. You cannot tell which by turning the ignition, and doing so will suck in any AdBlue that is in the tank.
What to do: treat it as if it went in. Don't start the vehicle. Checking a tank that proves clean is better than emptying one after it has been run — so ring then describe to us what you saw.
The common ground in every Barmulloch AdBlue drain
No matter the case, a single start applies. Three things come once our technicians reach your car — at a forecourt, a drive, a street beside Barmulloch Community Centre and Library or the car park at Wallace Well Farm: the liquid, the amount, and if the motor has been started. The price is given on the call, before a van leaves, and the answers shape the work.
Then the tank is cleared and your system cleaned thoroughly, which counts more with AdBlue than with petrol: AdBlue crystallises and is corrosive to some of the metals in a fuel system, so it doesn't rinse out on its own. Next comes the fuel filter — flushed, or swapped where needed — followed by fresh diesel, and a test of your vehicle. Where your engine has not been started, allow roughly half an hour on site, in most cases.
The last step is starting the engine. Before we go, it is checked to confirm it runs properly on fresh diesel. Long-term damage is very unusual when it's noticed quickly, and the whole job is done where the car is. Paying comes on the day, never in advance. For the insurer, there is a VAT invoice and a report from the engineer. Check your insurance before we arrive: misfuelling cover comes built into many policies.
About Barmulloch itself
Barmulloch is a suburban area in Glasgow City, situated approximately 2.1 miles from Glasgow city centre. Barmulloch lies inland, with an elevation of around 86 metres, and is characterised by predominantly flat-type housing. Barmulloch is close to nearby places such as Balornock, Robroyston, and Petershill, and has a population of around 4906 residents.
AdBlue drains across Glasgow City, Barmulloch included
Robroyston and Petershill have the identical vans as Barmulloch, a residential suburb, along with other towns throughout G postcodes. Giving us your G21 3 postcode finds you quickest of all.
Whether your car is on a lay-by on the way to Robroyston Park Local Nature Reserve or in a car park in the middle of Barmulloch, it does not need to move. Draining happens right there. Ring and check instead of guessing when you are close to St Catherine Labouré RC Church, on a boundary, or somewhere awkward to pin down.
Your scenario, in one line
Unstarted? Keep the car off then ring. Run by now: stop, switch down, ring 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel handles the rest, in Barmulloch or wherever in Glasgow City.