AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Hall Cross, and What to Do Next
Has the motor turned over since the AdBlue got in? This single question settles nearly everything about what comes next. Over in Warton or right in Hall Cross, an unrun engine must stay that way. Usually this is draining and thoroughly cleaning it right there around Hall Cross — and so leave the ignition and engine off and ring 0333 366 0103. Already run? Stop when safe, then turn it off. It is a larger job, yet stage one doesn't change.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever in Lancashire it happened.
At the petrol pump around Hall Cross: AdBlue in a diesel
Imagine it: stood by the petrol pump, holding the bottle, you spot the filler you opened wasn't the correct one. Perhaps you are at the Shell, maybe at the Texaco, possibly somewhere else around Hall Cross.
What it means: this is the ideal location to find out. The AdBlue is inside that tank and nowhere else. Nothing has pulled it in.
Next: resist the temptation to start it just to move away from the petrol pump. Ask the attendants to help you push the car into a parking bay, keep the receipt or the bottle, then phone us from the forecourt. If it can't be shifted, it can be drained at the petrol pump: the equipment is explosion-proof and safe on a working forecourt.
At home in Hall Cross with AdBlue in the diesel tank
The warning light had been on for days. You bought a bottle, poured it in on the driveway, and only when you put the empty bottle in the recycling did you look once more at the cap. Homes just off Kirkham Road are hit as often as anywhere else.
The point: zero miles since makes this nearly as good to finding it at the petrol pump. AdBlue does not mix with diesel; it sinks to the bottom of your tank and waits there. Overnight doesn't change that.
Your move: keys in the house, so no one takes the car off at breakfast. After that, ring. Your driveway is where it is drained, whether in Hall Cross or Freckleton. Even at night, our pumps stay quiet enough for a driveway.
On the road around Hall Cross with AdBlue in a diesel
A mile or two beyond filling up, the engine started playing up: rough running, smoke, less power, warnings on your dash. Somewhere on Hillock Lane or heading towards Preston — under 10 miles away.
Put simply: the AdBlue has been pulled into your fuel system. Distance sets how deep it goes: filter and pipework to begin with, then the injection pump and each injector. More miles, more restarts: deeper it travels.
Stop safely — that's the first job — then turn it off. Exit by the next junction — not the services beyond — if you're on the M55, under 3 miles from Hall Cross. Restarting it to check gets nothing — AdBlue doesn't clear on its own. Roughly what distance had it go? Tell us as you call.
AdBlue in the wrong tank: hire, lease and company motors
You've had this vehicle barely a week. Unbeknown to you, the AdBlue and diesel inlets sit next to each other here — unlike your own vehicle, which has none or keeps it in another spot. Anyone, anywhere across Lancashire, could make it.
Meaning? Whatever applies above counts too — run or unrun — and one further step. Plenty of hire and company agreements want the owner to approve work on the car.
What to do: ring the hire firm or your fleet manager first, then us. That's quicker settled before our engineers arrive than after. If you are stuck in the car park outside Kirkham & Wesham, or by Methodist Chapel, while you wait for an answer, leave your car off.
AdBlue in your diesel tank? Not sure, around Hall Cross
Sometimes the fair answer is "I think so". A faint ammonia-like smell lingers around your filler, the bottle seems too light, and which cap came off is a blur. Maybe it happened in a hurry at the school gates at Strike Lane Primary School, or on a friend's drive in Kellamergh.
Put simply: spillage near the filler does the motor no harm. In the diesel tank, however, AdBlue harms it. You cannot tell which by turning the ignition, and doing so will pull in any AdBlue that is in the tank.
What to do: treat it as if it was put in. Don't crank it. Inspecting a tank that proves free of AdBlue beats emptying one after it's been run — so ring and tell us what you noticed.
Each AdBlue drain around Hall Cross shares these stages
Whichever situation you are in, the job starts the same way. Three questions are asked when our engineers arrive — on a forecourt, a drive, a street beside Freckleton Village Hall or the car park outside The Plough: the liquid, the amount, and if it has run. The price is given over the phone, ahead of anyone setting off, and the replies shape the work.
A thorough flush follows this drain. With petrol it's standard; with AdBlue it's crucial, since deposits form and some metals are attacked, and none of it rinses out unaided. Next is the filter — flushed, or replaced where necessary — followed by clean diesel, and a test of your vehicle. If your engine has not run, the majority of jobs take about half an hour once we are there.
Starting it comes at the end. Our engineers confirm it runs correctly on clean diesel before leaving. Lasting damage is very rare if it is spotted early, and the whole job is done where the vehicle is. For your insurer: an engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment on the day, no money in advance. Worth knowing: many insurers include misfuelling cover, and so a quick look at your documents while you wait pays.
About Hall Cross and where it is
Hall Cross is a small hamlet on the coast of Lancashire, situated near the cities of Preston and the surrounding villages of Freckleton and Kirkham. Hall Cross has a relatively low elevation of 28 metres and is located approximately 7 miles from Preston, with semi-detached housing being the predominant type of accommodation. Hall Cross is part of a larger network of communities in the area, including Dowbridge, and is around 194 miles from London.
AdBlue drains in Hall Cross, and across Lancashire too
Being a rural hamlet, Hall Cross has the same vans as the surrounding towns — Dowbridge, Kirkham — all the way through PR postcodes. The whereabouts comes quickest from a postcode that starts PR4 1.
Whether your car is on a lay-by on the way to Freckleton War Memorial or in a car park in the middle of Hall Cross, it does not need to move. Our engineers drain the car where it stands. Awkward to pin down? Close to Freckleton War Memorial or a border? Checking is better than assuming, so phone.
In one line: your scenario
Motor never started: ring, and leave it switched off. Run already: stop, power down, phone 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel handles the rest, within Hall Cross or anywhere in Lancashire.