AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Carrickfergus: What Now?
One fact counts above all once AdBlue is in a diesel tank, and it is whether your motor has been started afterwards. If it hasn't, keep it that way, whether the car is around Carrickfergus itself or out in Ballycarry. Usually this is emptying and thoroughly purging it on the spot around Carrickfergus — and so keep the ignition and motor off and call 0333 366 0103. If it has run, stop as soon as it is safe and switch off. It's a bigger job, yet stage one doesn't change.
Further down: the cases our engineers meet, wherever in County Antrim. Choose yours.
Carrickfergus forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
The cap you opened was the wrong one — and you just notice it while you're stood at the pump, bottle or nozzle in your hand. Whether the nearest petrol station, another forecourt nearby or somewhere else in Carrickfergus, the case is the same.
Meaning? Finding out on the forecourt is the best it gets. Just the tank has AdBlue; no part beyond it has drawn it in.
Next: resist the urge to fire it up only to free up the pump. Phone us from the forecourt after the car is in a space — the attendants will help push it — then save the receipt. The equipment is explosion-proof and fine on a live forecourt, and so a car that can't be pushed away is drained where it is at the petrol pump.
AdBlue in the diesel tank at home in Carrickfergus
On the dash, a warning had been lit for days. You bought a bottle, poured it in on the drive, and only when you put the empty bottle in the recycling did you look a second time at the cap. Just off Chalet Road is no different from anywhere.
Put simply: if your car hasn't been driven since, it's nearly equal to spotting it at the pump. AdBlue does not mix with diesel; it sinks to the bottom of that tank and waits there. Overnight doesn't change that.
What to do: leave the keys inside the house so no one moves the vehicle in the morning. Then call. Your drive is where it is drained, whether in Carrickfergus or Greenisland. The pumps are quiet enough to use outside a house after dark.
AdBlue in a diesel and already driving in Carrickfergus?
Lumpy running, smoke, lost power or a lit dashboard started a short way beyond the top-up. Maybe heading for Belfast, under 10 miles away, or just down North Crescent.
The point: your system has drawn AdBlue in by now. Past the filter, along the pipework, and — the more the mileage — deeper into the high-pressure pump and every injector. It travels deeper with every mile covered and each restart.
Pull in safely — that's the first step — then turn it off. Leave by the next junction — not the services beyond — if you're on the M77, over 50 miles from Carrickfergus. It will not have cleared, and so there is no sense restarting to find out. Let us hear the mileage driven when you ring.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
A week back, the car was unknown to you. The AdBlue filler sits right alongside the diesel one, which you didn't know, because your own motor either has no AdBlue or keeps it somewhere else. Anyone, anywhere around County Antrim, might do it.
Put simply: an extra stage on top of the cases above, which depend on whether it's run. The owner often needs to approve any work, under plenty of hire and fleet agreements.
Do this: rental firm or fleet manager first, us second, since sorting it early cuts time. Keep the car switched off as the reply comes, even if you are waiting outside the nearest station or close to the centre.
Carrickfergus: unsure if it was AdBlue in the diesel tank?
At times, "I think so" is the most you can truthfully say. A faint ammonia-like whiff lingers around your filler, the bottle feels too light, and which cap came off is a blur. A rushed top-up by the gates of the local primary school, or a call to a friend in Crawfordsburn: both fits.
In short: spillage round your filler does the motor no harm. Once it is inside the diesel tank, though, it does. You cannot tell which by turning the key, and doing so would pull in any AdBlue that is in the tank.
What to do: treat it as if it went in. Do not crank it. Checking a tank that proves free of AdBlue is better than emptying one after it's been run — so phone then describe to us what you noticed.
What every AdBlue drain in Carrickfergus has in common
The work begins the same way, whichever the situation. Our technicians come to the vehicle, whether it is at a forecourt, a drive, the car park at the pub in the village or a side street close to a street just off the centre, and ask three things: what got in, roughly how much, and whether the motor has been run. Your price is given over the phone, ahead of anyone setting off, and the answers set the job.
AdBlue forms crystals and is corrosive to certain metals used in fuel systems, so it does not wash out on its own; that is why the flush, after this drain, matters far more with AdBlue than with petrol. Clean diesel goes in once the filter has been cleaned or changed, and the car is then checked. The majority of unstarted cars are a half-hour job from the moment our engineers arrive.
Last, we fire it up. Before our technicians go, it's tested to confirm it runs properly on new diesel. The whole job is done where your car is, and when it is noticed quickly, long-term damage is very unusual. For your insurer: the engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment that day, no money upfront. Worth knowing: many insurers include misfuelling cover, and so a quick look at your documents as we travel pays.
About Carrickfergus, briefly
Carrickfergus is a coastal town in County Antrim, situated on the northern shore of Belfast Lough. Carrickfergus has a long maritime history, with its harbour and castle being key features of the town. Carrickfergus is located close to several nearby settlements, including Greenisland and Jordanstown, and is approximately 9 miles from Belfast. Carrickfergus is characterized by its terraced housing and relatively low elevation of around 8 metres above sea level.
Carrickfergus and County Antrim: AdBlue drains across the area
Over BT postcodes, the vans serving Carrickfergus — a coastal town — reach nearby places too, Jordanstown and Helens Bay among them. Telling us a BT38 7 postcode finds you fastest of all.
Stopped heading to the green space at the edge of the village, or right in the centre of Carrickfergus, your car remains put — there is no need to shift it at all. Where it sits, that's where it is emptied. Awkward to explain? By the far end of the built-up part or a border? Asking is better than guessing, so ring.
Your scenario, in one line
Motor not started: phone, and leave it alone. Already run: stop, switch off and call. Either way, Petrol in Diesel takes it from there around Carrickfergus and anywhere across County Antrim on 0333 366 0103.