What Now? AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Central
Has your motor turned over since the AdBlue went in? That one question settles almost everything else from here. Not run so far? Then keep it that way, wherever your car is — Central or Adamsdown. Leave the motor and your ignition off and call 0333 366 0103; it is usually a drain and a thorough flush, done where the vehicle is in Central. If it has run, stop as soon as it is safe and switch off. Step one remains unchanged, even if the work is bigger.
Compare your case to a situation from the list below, wherever across Cardiff you happen to be.
On a Central forecourt with AdBlue in a diesel
Picture it: standing by the petrol pump, gripping the bottle, you spot the cap you took off wasn't the right one. Be it Texaco, Esso or anywhere else around Central, the situation is identical.
What it means: this is the best place to find out. No pump has drawn it in, and so the AdBlue stays only inside the tank.
Clearing the petrol pump is no reason to start it — and so don't get back in. Three jobs: a push into a space with the attendants assisting, the bottle saved, and a ring to us from where you stand. Draining it there at the pump is possible when it cannot be shifted, because the equipment is explosion-proof.
AdBlue in the diesel tank on a Central drive?
For days the dashboard had been nagging you. Bought a container, poured it in outside the house, binned the empty — and at that point looked at the cap a second time, too late. Drives close to Guildhall Place see it as much as any other street.
In short: if the vehicle has not moved since, it's nearly equal to finding out at the forecourt. AdBlue does not mix with diesel; it sinks to the bottom of your tank and waits there. Overnight doesn't change that.
What to do: leave your keys inside the house so nobody moves the vehicle in the morning. Then call. In Cardiff or here around Central, the draining happens at your driveway. Our pumping kit works quiet enough that it won't wake the street at night.
AdBlue in a diesel and already driving in Central?
You filled up, set off, and a mile or two later your motor began to run unevenly, smoke, lose power or light up the dashboard. Golate, say, or the route towards Cardiff — a run of under a mile.
Meaning? The pump has sucked the AdBlue up. It's been through the fuel filter and your lines and, the further you went, into the high-pressure fuel pump and your injectors. Each mile and each restart takes it further.
Do this: stop somewhere safe, then switch the engine off. Central sits under 5 miles from the M4; there, come off at the next junction rather than pushing on for the services. Do not restart the vehicle to see if it has cleared; it will not have. About what distance did it go? Tell us as you phone.
AdBlue in the wrong tank: hire, lease and company vehicles
You have just had this car for days. Unbeknown to you, the AdBlue and diesel inlets are side by side here — not like your own vehicle, which has none or stores it in another spot. Anyone, anywhere across Cardiff, could make it.
Put simply: an extra step on top of the situations above, and those turn on whether it's run. Work on your vehicle often requires the owner's approval under rental or fleet agreements.
What to do: call the hire firm or your fleet manager first, then us. That's faster settled before we get there than after. Stranded near Sir Tasker Watkins Statue or at Cardiff Central until someone answers, the car remains turned off the whole time.
Unsure about AdBlue in your diesel tank in Central?
"I think so" is often as honest as it gets. The bottle is lighter than it should be, there's a faint smell of ammonia around your filler, and you cannot remember which cap you took off. The gates of the local primary school in a hurry, say, or someone's drive over in Butetown.
In short: spillage round your filler does the motor no harm. In your diesel tank, by contrast, AdBlue damages it. Any AdBlue in that tank will be sucked in by starting the vehicle, and the start would not settle which it is in any case.
Next: act as though it got in, and keep your engine off. Call us and explain what you saw; we would rather check a tank that turns out free of AdBlue than drain one that has already been run.
Central: what every AdBlue drain has in common
No matter the situation, a single start is used. Wherever your car stands — Queens Vaults's car park, a street by Cardiff Civil Justice Centre, a driveway, a filling station — the van arrives and we ask for the liquid, the amount, and if your motor has been run. Answers shape the work; the quote follows on the call while nobody has left yet.
AdBlue forms crystals and eats at some metals used in fuel systems, so it won't wash out on its own; that is why the flush, after the drain, counts much more with AdBlue than with petrol. Your filter is flushed, or replaced where it needs to be; fresh diesel goes in; and your car is tested. If your engine hasn't run, the majority of jobs take about half an hour once we're there.
The final step is firing it up. With fresh diesel in, it runs while we make sure it's running correctly, and then we go. If it's spotted early, the car very seldom has lasting damage, and the whole job takes place where it is. Payment comes on the day, never upfront. For the insurer, you get a VAT invoice and a written report from the engineer. Dig out your insurance while we're en route: misfuelling cover is included in many policies.
About Central, briefly
Central is a suburban area located on the coast in Cardiff, with an elevation of 16 metres above sea level. Central sits adjacent to the city centre, approximately 0.2 miles from Cardiff, and is surrounded by nearby places such as Cathays Park and Riverside. Central is characterised by predominantly flat-type housing, accommodating a population of around 6140 residents. Central is also relatively close to the Welsh capital's amenities and attractions, while being 131.3 miles from London.
AdBlue drains around Central and across Cardiff
Being a residential suburb, Central has the same vans as the surrounding places — Riverside, Cathays Park — right across CF postcodes. Giving us a CF10 1 postcode finds you fastest of all.
No moving is needed, whether stopped centrally in Central or on a layby heading to St. John’s Gardens, and so keep it put. Our van drains it where it stands. If you're somewhere hard to explain, close to Kelvin 'Floyd' Evans or close to a border, ring and ask instead of guessing.
Your scenario, in one line
Unstarted? Keep it off and ring. Run by now: stop, switch down, phone 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel handles the rest, within Central or anywhere in Cardiff.