AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Culloden, and What to Do Next
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank depends on one thing more than any other: whether the engine has been run since it was put in. If it hasn't, keep it that way, whether the car is around Culloden itself or out in Milton. Leave the motor and your ignition off then ring 0333 366 0103; it is generally a drain and a thorough flush, done where the car is around Culloden. Stop the moment it is safe and turn off, if it has already run. A bigger job, yes, yet the same opening move.
Further down: the cases our engineers see, wherever in Highland. Pick yours.
AdBlue in a diesel on a Culloden forecourt
The cap you unscrewed was the wrong one — and you only notice it as you are stood at the pump, bottle or nozzle in your hand. Be it Tesco, Highland Fuels or anywhere else in Culloden, the situation is the same.
The upshot: of every spot to find out, the forecourt is the best. Still in that tank, with nothing pulled onwards: that's where the AdBlue is.
Do this: stay out of the driver's seat, even if the queue needs clearing. Phone us from the forecourt once the car sits in a space — the staff will lend a hand to roll it — then save the receipt. Stuck by the pump? Explosion-proof equipment makes a live forecourt sensible, so we can drain the vehicle in place.
AdBlue in the diesel tank on a Culloden drive?
For days the dash had been nagging you. Picked up a container, tipped it in outside the house, binned the empty — and at that point checked the cap a second time, too late. Drives close to Barn Church Road see it as much as any other street.
The point: no miles since makes this almost as good to finding it at the pump. Being unable to mix, AdBlue drops low in your tank and stays. One night parked alters nothing.
Next: prevent an early drive by putting the keys in the house, then phone us. Your drive is where it gets emptied, whether around Culloden or Cradlehall. Even at night, our pumps are quiet enough for a driveway.
Culloden: set off with AdBlue in a diesel?
Filled up, drove away, and soon the motor was turning unevenly, smoking, down on power, or flashing up the dash. It might have been heading for Inverness, under 5 miles away, or simply along Blackwell Court.
Meaning? The fuel pump has sucked the AdBlue in. Distance sets how deep it goes: filter and lines first, then the injection pump and each injector. It goes further with every extra mile covered and each restart.
Do this: stop somewhere safe, then switch the engine off. Exit by the first junction — not the services further along — if you are on the M90, over 50 miles from Culloden. Do not restart the vehicle to see if it has cleared; it will not have. Let us hear the mileage driven as you ring.
Hire, lease or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank
It's a motor you have had for a week. The AdBlue filler is right next to the diesel one, which you didn't know, because your own motor either has no AdBlue or keeps it somewhere else. Throughout Highland, no one is immune.
Put simply: an extra step on top of the cases above, which turn on whether it's run. Many hire and company contracts want the owner to approve work on the car.
Your move: hire firm or your fleet manager first, us next, because sorting it early cuts time. Waiting for an answer at the car park outside Inverness, or near Battle of Culloden Burial Memorial? Leave the engine off meanwhile.
Not sure it was AdBlue in the diesel tank, Culloden?
Now and then, "I think so" is the most you can honestly say. Too light, the bottle; a trace of ammonia round your filler; a hazy recollection of the cap. Sound familiar? A hurried top-up by the gates of the local primary school, or a visit to a friend in Woodside of Culloden: either fits.
The point: your engine isn't harmed by some AdBlue spilled around the filler. In your diesel tank, by contrast, AdBlue harms it. Starting the car will not tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in your tank it will draw it in.
Next: assume it got in, and keep the engine off. Inspecting a tank that turns out free of AdBlue is better than draining one after it's been run — so ring then tell us what you saw.
What each AdBlue drain in Culloden has in common
Each situation has the same opening to the job. Three things come when our technicians reach your car — on a forecourt, a drive, a street beside The Barn Church or the car park outside the pub in the village: the fluid, the quantity, and if it has run. Replies shape the job; the quote follows by phone while no one has set off yet.
Then that tank is drained and the system rinsed thoroughly, which matters 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. Then comes the filter — flushed, or swapped when needed — then fresh diesel, and a test of your vehicle. The majority of unrun cars are a half-hour job from the moment we arrive.
Our technicians start it at the end. Before our technicians go, it is checked to be sure it runs correctly on fresh diesel. Our technicians do the entire job where the car is, and lasting damage is very unusual when it has been caught quickly. For your insurer: an engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment that day, nothing in advance. It is worth knowing: many insurers include misfuelling cover, and so a check of your policy as you wait is worthwhile.
About Culloden itself
Culloden is a suburban area located on the outskirts of Inverness, situated near the Moray Firth coast in the Scottish Highlands. Culloden sits at an elevation of around 40 metres, with views of the surrounding countryside and the nearby Kessock Bridge. Culloden is characterized by its predominantly detached housing stock, with nearby neighbourhoods including Cradlehall and Smithton. Culloden is also close to other local places such as Balloch, and is within easy reach of Inverness city centre.
AdBlue drains round Culloden and across Highland
Balloch and Smithton get the identical vans as Culloden, a residential suburb, plus other towns over IV postcodes. Giving us a IV2 7 postcode pins you fastest of all.
Centre of Culloden or a lay-by near Culloden Wood: wherever it is, the vehicle never needs to move an inch for this drain. Draining is done right there. Phone and ask instead of guessing when you're close to The Gruffalo, near a border, or anywhere tricky to explain.
Your scenario, in one line
Still unrun? Leave it that way then ring. Run already: stop, switch down, ring 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel takes over the remainder, within Culloden or wherever in Highland.