AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Corsham: What Now?
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: whether the engine has run since it was put in. If it hasn't, keep it that way, whether the vehicle is in Corsham itself or out in Greenhill. Leave the engine and your ignition off and phone 0333 366 0103; it's usually a drain and a thorough flush, done where your car is in Corsham. Already started? Pull over once you safely can, then turn it off. The job is bigger, but the first step is the same.
Anywhere across Wiltshire it took place, one of the situations below fits yours.
At the petrol pump around Corsham: AdBlue in a diesel
The cap you unscrewed was the wrong one — and you just notice it while you're standing at the petrol pump, bottle or nozzle in your hand. Somewhere around Corsham, then — Texaco, Sainsbury's, or somewhere else close by.
In short: no better place to be to discover it. The AdBlue is in the tank and nowhere else. Nothing has drawn it in.
Next: resist the temptation to fire it up only to free up the pump. Phone us from the forecourt after the vehicle sits in a space — the staff will lend a hand to push it — and keep the bottle. The equipment is explosion-proof and safe on a live forecourt, and so a vehicle that can't be pushed clear is cleared where it is at the pump.
At home around Corsham with AdBlue in your diesel tank
The warning light had been on for days. Only at the recycling bin, the empty bottle in hand, did you look back at the cap you'd opened at the drive. Houses just off High Street are hit as much as anywhere else.
What it means: if you haven't driven since, this is nearly as good as the forecourt. AdBlue does not mix with diesel; it sinks to the bottom of the tank and waits there. Overnight doesn't change that.
Keep the keys in the house overnight — or a person might take it off at breakfast — then call us. Your drive is where it is drained, whether around Corsham or Pickwick. Even at night, our pumps are quiet enough for a residential street.
On the road in Corsham with AdBlue in a diesel
A short way beyond topping up, your engine began playing up: rough running, smoke, less power, lights on the dash. Somewhere along Church Street or on the road towards Bath — under 10 miles away.
The point: the system has pulled AdBlue in by now. The high-pressure pump and each injector see it too on a bigger trip, after the filter and lines have it. More miles, more restarts: deeper it goes.
Your move: pull up somewhere safe, then switch the engine off. Leave by the first junction — not the services further along — if you're on the M4, under 10 miles from Corsham. It will not have cleared, and so there is no sense starting it again to check. Call, saying what distance the car was driven.
AdBlue in the wrong tank of a hire, lease or company car
A week back, the car was new to you. The AdBlue filler is right alongside the diesel one, which you didn't know, since your own motor either has no AdBlue or keeps it somewhere else. Wherever you are across Wiltshire, any motorist could be caught.
What it means: the same as the situations above, depending on whether it has run, with one more step. Plenty of hire and company contracts want the owner to approve work on your car.
Next: phone the rental company or your fleet manager first, then us — settling it before our arrival is faster. If you're stuck in the car park outside Chippenham, or by Corsham Town Hall, whilst you wait for an answer, leave the car off.
AdBlue in the diesel tank? Not sure, in Corsham
At times the honest answer is "I think so". Too light, the bottle; a hint of ammonia round your filler; a hazy memory of which cap. Sound familiar? The gates of The Corsham Regis Primary Academy in a rush, say, or a friend's driveway over in Hudswell.
The upshot: the motor is not harmed by some AdBlue spilled around the outside. The diesel tank with AdBlue in it is a different story. Turning on your car will not tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in your tank it would draw it in.
Do this: behave as though it did, and don't start your engine. Inspecting a tank that turns out clean is better than draining one once it has been run — so ring and tell us what you noticed.
Every AdBlue drain around Corsham shares these stages
Whatever the situation, one start applies. Our engineers come to the vehicle, whether it's on a forecourt, a drive, the car park at Flemish Weaver or a side street close to St Bartholomew, and ask three things: what went in, roughly how much, and whether the motor has run. On the phone, before dispatch, you are told the price, and those answers shape the work too.
A thorough flush follows this drain. With petrol it is standard; with AdBlue it's crucial, since crystals form and some metals are attacked, and none of that rinses out unaided. Finally come your filter, flushed or renewed if necessary; clean diesel; and a test of the vehicle. Never started? In that case roughly half an hour on site is most jobs.
Lastly, our technicians start the engine. Our technicians confirm it runs properly on clean diesel before we go. The entire job is done where the vehicle is, and if it's noticed soon, permanent damage is very unusual. For your insurer: an engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment that day, nothing in advance. Plenty of policies include misfuelling, so check yours as we head over.
About Corsham, for a moment
Corsham is a town in north Wiltshire, situated inland at an elevation of around 95 metres, approximately 8 miles from the city of Bath. Corsham has a mix of housing types, but semi-detached homes are particularly prevalent, and the town is surrounded by smaller communities such as Pickwick, Westrop, and Easton. Corsham is also within commuting distance of London, being around 89 miles to the west of the capital. Corsham has a population of around 9494 people, according to recent estimates.
AdBlue drains across Wiltshire, Corsham included
Over SN postcodes, the vans serving Corsham — a town — reach surrounding towns as well, Westrop and Easton among them. Giving us a SN13 0 postcode pins you quickest of all.
Stopped heading to South Avenue Wood, or bang in the centre of Corsham, your vehicle remains where it is — there is no need to move it at all. Where it stands, that is where it gets emptied. If you are somewhere hard to describe, close to Corsham Baptist Church or close to a boundary, ring and ask instead of assuming.
Your scenario, summed up
Where it hasn't started, ring and keep it off. Run already: stop, switch down, ring 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel handles the rest, in Corsham or wherever across Wiltshire.