Brigham: How Does AdBlue End Up in a Diesel Tank, and How Do You Prevent It?
Keep the motor and ignition off then call 0333 366 0103 first — the rest can wait when AdBlue is already in your diesel tank. Caught before the engine runs, it is usually a drain and a thorough flush, done where the vehicle is around Brigham. Here before the event? In that case the rest covers how it comes about and what to prevent it happening at all.
Two fillers, two tanks: AdBlue in a diesel car
Plenty of modern diesels in Keswick, like those in Brigham, run on two liquids; the engine takes only the diesel. Kept in a tank of its own, AdBlue is sprayed into your exhaust stream to clean it.
Separate tanks, different fillers. Other cars keep the AdBlue filler in the boot or under the bonnet; plenty of others place the two side by side behind one flap. Topping up the diesel side at the petrol pump happens all the time. Someone who has to stop and work out where it goes usually tops up the AdBlue side, from a bottle, and much less regularly. That gap is where the error lives.
Brigham: how AdBlue in your diesel tank occurs
Carelessness rarely causes it. What does is three things coming up together.
On a drive off Latrigg Close before work, or in the car park outside Twa Dogs Inn heading home: that is where the hurried top-up takes place. What is the reason for the rush? As AdBlue gets low the vehicle tells you, and once it is empty, limp mode follows.
New-to-you cars are next, as well. Rentals, new vehicles and company motors place their fillers in new places, and habit goes for the cap it used on the old one.
And the bottle fits. A bottle with a spout goes into a diesel filler as easily as an AdBlue one, so nothing stops the tip after it has started. It's a few seconds, be it in Chestnut Hill or bang in the centre of Brigham.
Which filler is for AdBlue, and which for diesel?
Whether a Brigham forecourt or a drive over in Great Crosthwaite, take a couple of seconds on these before any goes in.
- Where it sits can mislead; the cap doesn't. AdBlue caps tend to be blue or bear the name "AdBlue" — diesel caps usually do not.
- Look at the size: the smaller filler neck is, on plenty of vehicles, the AdBlue one.
- Look inside your fuel flap: plenty of motors carry a label there showing which fuel goes where.
- In the boot or under the bonnet: that's where the filler is if it is not by your diesel cap, and the handbook tells you which.
- The person who drove the vehicle 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
The day the light comes on, wherever in Cumbria, follow this routine.
- Not in a rush on the side of Penrith Road, not on a slope, not with the engine running: park and switch off properly.
- Find the AdBlue filler and read the cap. Say "AdBlue" out loud as you unscrew it. It sounds silly and it works.
- The two behind one flap? So make sure the lid on your diesel filler is still closed before raising the bottle.
- Pour slowly, using the bottle's own spout. Stop when it's full or when the bottle is empty.
- Close the cap, then check once more — making sure your diesel cap remained closed the whole time. Only then, start the car.
Spot at stage two or three that it has already gone into the diesel side? Then stop right there. Stage five is out.
Already put AdBlue in your diesel tank in Brigham?
What follows is a short order of things, beginning with no starting your engine. The fuel pump starts on plenty of diesels the moment your ignition goes on — so leave it off. AdBlue does not mix with diesel — it sinks to the bottom of your tank, where the fuel is sucked from — so do not top up with diesel to dilute it.
At a forecourt — Shell, another forecourt nearby or any other — the staff will normally help push the car away, if you ask. At home in Brigham? So the car stays where it is.
Where the motor has been run already, stop somewhere safe and turn it off. The next junction means where to leave when you're on the M6, under 15 miles from Brigham. Tell us about how far it went: a run towards Carlisle, under 25 miles away, is a bigger job than a short hop across Brigham.
Our arrival around Brigham, and what takes place next
By St Herbert's CofE (VA) Primary and Nursery School, close to Keswick Country House Hotel or on your own drive: wherever the car has stopped, our technicians come to it. Our technicians ask what went in, about how much, and whether it's run, since the replies settle the work and our price. The price comes over the phone, before any van leaves.
Then that tank is cleared and the system rinsed thoroughly. Much more than with petrol, it counts here: crystals form, certain metals are attacked, and none of that washes out on its own, however long it sits. The fuel filter is cleaned, or replaced where it needs to be; clean diesel goes in; and the vehicle is tested. Before leaving, our engineers start the car and confirm that it is running properly.
Unstarted cars usually need a half-hour job after arrival. The equipment is fine on a busy forecourt, and hushed enough for a driveway late at night. You pay on the day, with nothing upfront, and get a VAT invoice and an engineer report for your insurer. Wrong-fuel cover is included in plenty of insurance policies — and so use the wait to check yours.
About Brigham and where it is
Brigham is a suburban area situated on the riverside in Cumbria, with a mix of semi-detached housing and other residential properties. Brigham sits at an elevation of 97 metres, near the outskirts of Carlisle, and is surrounded by nearby places such as Chestnut Hill and Briar Rigg. Brigham is located approximately 21 miles from Carlisle and 247 miles from London, making it a relatively rural suburb in the North West region. Brigham has a population of around 1553 people, living in a variety of housing types, predominantly semi-detached homes.
AdBlue drains across Cumbria, Brigham included
Throughout CA postcodes, the vans covering Brigham — a residential suburb — work the nearby spots too, Briery and Briar Rigg included. Quote a postcode beginning CA12 4, and our van arrives fastest.
Moving the vehicle is not necessary. Anywhere it stands — near Samuel Ladyman Drinking Fountain, on a lay-by en route to Townsfield, at home — that's where it is drained. Guessing doesn't help at the back of Keswick Leisure Pool & Fitness Centre, close to a border, or anywhere awkward to pin down; phone and check.
For Brigham motorists, the short version
Always, the cap; then, the tip. Even so AdBlue in your diesel tank? Petrol in Diesel can drain it wherever it is, anywhere in Cumbria: keep the vehicle off then call 0333 366 0103.