Preventing AdBlue in a Diesel Tank in Hamilton Wynd: Why It Happens
AdBlue already in the diesel tank? In that case set this page down a moment, leave your ignition and engine off, and phone 0333 366 0103. In Hamilton Wynd, catching it before your motor turns normally leaves draining and a full flush on the spot. Nothing happened yet? Below, the page covers the why it happens and the how to avoid it altogether.
AdBlue in a diesel car: two tanks, two fillers
Diesel goes to the motor — yet many newer diesels seen about Hamilton Wynd and Trinity carry a second fluid too. Stored in a tank of its own, AdBlue is fed into the exhaust gas and cleans it.
Separate tanks, separate fillers. Under one flap, next to each other: that's the arrangement on a lot of vehicles. On others, AdBlue's filler is beneath the bonnet or in your boot instead. Topping up your diesel side at the petrol pump goes on all the time. Rarely filled, AdBlue usually goes in from a bottle, tipped by someone who must stop and think what cap to use. Mistakes happen in that gap between them.
Hamilton Wynd: how AdBlue in your diesel tank occurs
Three things tend to line up, and carelessness is seldom one of them.
On a driveway off Lindsay Street before work, or in the car park at Dreadnought on the way home: that's where the rushed top-up takes place. What is the reason for the rush? As AdBlue runs low your car warns you, and once it is empty, limp mode follows.
Next, the hand reaches for the cap it knew on the old motor — because a hire car, a new motor or a company car puts the fillers where your last one didn't.
A spouted bottle meets no obstacle at a diesel filler no more than at an AdBlue one. And so the tip, once begun, carries on. It takes seconds, be it in Leith or right in the heart of Hamilton Wynd.
Which filler is for AdBlue, and which for diesel?
A few seconds is all the checks take — so check them before you tip anything, on a drive in South Leith or a forecourt in Hamilton Wynd.
- Read the cap instead of going by position: AdBlue ones are often blue or marked "AdBlue", and diesel ones normally aren't.
- The size. On many cars the AdBlue filler neck is the smaller of the two.
- Look inside the fuel flap: many vehicles have a label there saying which fuel goes where.
- Can't find it next to the diesel filler? In that case look beneath the bonnet or in your boot — the handbook says where.
- Ask the person who drove it last — before you leave, not when the light comes on — when you collect a hire or company car from somewhere like the car park at Edinburgh Waverley.
How to top up without AdBlue in the diesel tank
When the light goes on, wherever in City of Edinburgh, follow this routine.
- Turn off once parked — flat ground, motor off, and never in a rush beside North Hillhousefield at the roadside.
- Daft as it sounds, speaking "AdBlue" out loud as you unscrew the cap works — after you've located your filler and read it.
- If both sit under one flap, check your diesel cap is still closed before you lift the bottle — and leave the vehicle on.
- Finish when your tank fills or the bottle runs dry; until then, pour slowly through the own spout.
- Close the cap and check a second time. Make sure your diesel cap was never opened. Only then start the car.
Stop there if you find, at step two or three, that you've already poured into the diesel side. Step five is out.
AdBlue in the diesel tank already, around Hamilton Wynd?
Do not start the motor: that's where the short order of things starts. Keep the ignition off as well, since on many diesels switching it on alone runs your fuel pump. AdBlue doesn't mix with diesel — it sinks to the bottom of that tank, where the fuel is pulled from — so don't top up with diesel to dilute it.
Ask the staff to help roll the car clear of the petrol pump if you are at a forecourt — the BP, the Asda or somewhere else. Your own driveway around Hamilton Wynd is where it stays.
Already started? Pull over once it is safe, then turn off. Leave the M8 — under 10 miles out of Hamilton Wynd — at the first exit. Roughly how far did it go? Hopping across Hamilton Wynd is less a job than a run of under 3 miles towards Edinburgh, so say.
Hamilton Wynd: what occurs when our engineers arrive
The van reaches the car anywhere it has come to rest — your own driveway, near North Leith Parish Church, or by the local primary school. The answers decide this work and the price, and so we ask what got in, about how much, and whether it has run. On the call itself, you hear the price — before dispatch.
Draining that tank comes next, then a thorough flush of your system. Much more than with petrol, it counts with AdBlue: the crystals form, some metals corrode, and none of it washes out on its own, however long it is left. Your filter is cleaned, or replaced where it needs to be; clean diesel goes in; and the car is tested. Your engine is fired up next and tested to be sure it runs properly, all before we leave.
With pumps fine on a working forecourt and quiet enough to use outside a house at night, most jobs where the engine has not run need about half an hour once our engineers arrive. No money upfront; you settle up on the day. Afterwards, the VAT invoice and the report from the engineer go to you for your insurer. While we travel, take a look at your policy; many include cover for misfuelling.
About Hamilton Wynd and where it is
Hamilton Wynd is a coastal locality in the City of Edinburgh, situated near the shores of the Firth of Forth. Hamilton Wynd lies close to the historic port of Leith and the former fishing village of Newhaven, with the city centre of Edinburgh just over a mile away. Hamilton Wynd is characterized by its predominantly flat-type housing, reflecting the urban development of the area. Hamilton Wynd has a population of around 6562 people, making it a relatively densely populated part of the city.
AdBlue drains round Hamilton Wynd, and City of Edinburgh beyond
As a coastal area, Hamilton Wynd has the same vans as surrounding places — North Leith, Newhaven — right across EH postcodes and the surrounding area beyond. Quickest of all: quote a EH6 4 postcode for our van.
The car does not need to shift. We drain it where it is — a side street close to Fort Community Wing, a lay-by on the way to North Junction Street Park, a drive. Guessing won't help at the back of Leith Baptist Church, on a border, or anywhere hard to pin down; phone and check.
Hamilton Wynd motorists: the short version
Pour nothing until you have read the cap. Still AdBlue in the diesel tank? Petrol in Diesel can empty it where it is, anywhere around City of Edinburgh: switch it off then phone 0333 366 0103.