AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Drumsurn, 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 run since it went in. If it has not, keep it that way, whether the car is around Drumsurn itself or out in Gortnahey. Switch nothing on, ring 0333 366 0103, then expect a thorough flush plus a drain, carried out right where the vehicle sits around Drumsurn. If it's run, stop as soon as it is safe and switch off. Stage one stays the same, even though the job grows.
Below: the situations our technicians see, wherever around County Londonderry. Pick yours.
Drumsurn forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
Just at this point, nozzle still in your hand, you realise that the cap you opened was the wrong one, there at the pump. Possibly you're at the the nearest petrol station, perhaps at the another forecourt nearby, maybe somewhere else around Drumsurn.
Put simply: there is no better place exists to spot it. Still in that tank, with no fuel pulled onwards: that's where the AdBlue is.
Your move: keep out of the car, however much the queue wants freeing. Ask the staff to help you roll your car into a parking bay, keep your receipt or the bottle, then call us from the forecourt. The equipment is explosion-proof and safe on a live forecourt, so a car that cannot be pushed clear gets drained right at the pump.
AdBlue in the diesel tank at home around Drumsurn
For days the dashboard had been warning you. Only at the recycling bin, the empty container in hand, did you glance back at the cap you'd used on the driveway. Homes just off Rock Street get caught out as often as everywhere else.
The point: zero miles since makes it almost equal to finding it at the petrol pump. Being unable to blend, AdBlue drops low inside that tank and stays. One night standing alters nothing.
Next: prevent any early drive by keeping your keys indoors, then phone us. Your drive is where it gets drained, whether in Drumsurn or Burnfoot. Late-night empties outside a house are no problem: the pumps are low-noise.
Drumsurn: drove off with AdBlue in a diesel?
Filled up, pulled away, and before long your engine was turning roughly, blowing smoke, down on power, or flashing up your dash. Maybe heading to Derry, under 25 miles away, or simply along An Cnoc.
Put simply: the AdBlue has been sucked through the fuel system. The high-pressure pump and each injector see it too on a bigger run, after the filter and pipework have had it. Each mile and each restart takes it further.
Next: pick a safe spot, pull in, then switch your engine off. Drumsurn sits over 50 miles from the M77; there, come off at the first junction instead of pushing on to the services. Don't restart it to see if it has cleared; it will not have. Tell us know the distance driven as you call.
AdBlue in the wrong tank of a hire, lease or company car
You've just had this vehicle a week. The AdBlue filler is right next to the diesel filler, which you did not know, since your own car either has no AdBlue or keeps it somewhere else. Wherever you happen to be across County Londonderry, every driver could be caught.
Put simply: one extra stage on top of the cases above, and those turn on whether it's run. The owner often needs to sign off any work, under many rental and fleet agreements.
Next: phone the rental company or your fleet manager first, then us — sorting it before our arrival is faster. If you are stuck in the car park at the nearest station, or by the centre, while you wait for an answer, leave the vehicle off.
Drumsurn: unsure if it was AdBlue in the diesel tank?
Truthfully, the best answer might be that you think it did. Too light, the bottle; a hint of ammonia round the filler; a hazy memory of which cap. Sound familiar? Maybe it happened in a hurry at the school gates at the local primary school, or on a friend's drive in Dungiven.
Meaning? Spills outside the inlet never touch your motor at all. Once it is inside the diesel tank, though, that changes. If there is AdBlue in the tank, turning on the vehicle would pull it in, and it wouldn't tell you which either.
Next: act as though it got in, and keep your engine off. Call us and describe what you saw; we would rather check a tank that turns out free of AdBlue than drain one that has already been run.
Each AdBlue drain in Drumsurn shares these steps
The work begins the same way, whichever your case. Forecourt, drive, the pub in the village's car park or a street beside a street just off the centre — the van reaches your car, and three questions follow: what fluid, which amount, and whether it ran. Answers shape the job; the price follows on the call while nobody has left yet.
A thorough flush comes after the drain. With petrol it is standard; with AdBlue it is essential, because crystals build up and certain metals corrode, and none of that rinses out unaided. Your filter is cleaned, or replaced where it needs to be; fresh diesel goes in; and the car is tested. Where the motor has not been started, allow roughly half an hour once we arrive, for most jobs.
Firing it up comes last. With fresh diesel in, it runs while our technicians check it is running properly, and then we leave. Long-term damage is very unusual when it's caught soon, and the whole job is done where your car is. Payment is that day, never upfront. For your insurer, you get a VAT invoice plus a report from the engineer. Check your insurance before we arrive: misfuelling cover is included in many policies.
About Drumsurn and where it is
Drumsurn is a small locality in County Londonderry, situated inland at an elevation of 95 metres, approximately 16.8 miles from Derry. Drumsurn is characterised by its predominantly detached housing stock and is surrounded by nearby places such as Burnfoot, Largy, and Ardgarvan. Drumsurn has a population of around 553 people and is located in a rural area of Northern Ireland.
Drumsurn and County Londonderry: AdBlue drains across the area
Being a small village, Drumsurn has the same vans as the nearby towns — Ardgarvan, Largy — all the way across BT postcodes. Quickest of all: a BT49 0 postcode to show your location.
Whether your car is on a lay-by on the way to the green space at the edge of the village or in a car park in the middle of Drumsurn, it doesn't need to move. Where it sits, that is where it is emptied. If you're somewhere hard to explain, near the far end of the built-up part or close to a border, ring and ask rather than assuming.
Your situation, in one line
Not run yet: keep the vehicle off and ring. Started already? Stop, turn off, ring. Petrol in Diesel takes over the remainder whichever case, across Drumsurn and County Londonderry, on 0333 366 0103.