AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Hamstreet, and What to Do Next
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: whether your engine has been run since it was put in. If it has not, keep it that way, whether the car is in Hamstreet itself or out in Ruckinge. Normally that means emptying and thoroughly flushing it on the spot around Hamstreet — so leave the key and engine off then call 0333 366 0103. Where the engine has run, pull in somewhere safe first, then turn the vehicle off. It's a larger job, yet step one doesn't change.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever around Kent it happened.
AdBlue in a diesel on a Hamstreet forecourt
Only now, nozzle yet in hand, you realise that the cap you opened was the wrong one, there at the petrol pump. Somewhere in Hamstreet, then — Tesco, Shell, or somewhere else close by.
Meaning? Spotting it on the forecourt is the best it can be. The AdBlue is inside that tank and nowhere else. Nothing has drawn it in.
Freeing the petrol pump is no excuse to start it — and so do not get back in. Ask the attendants to help you push your car into a parking bay, keep the receipt or the bottle, and phone us from the forecourt. Emptying it there at the petrol pump is possible if it cannot be moved, since the equipment is explosion-proof.
AdBlue in the diesel tank on a Hamstreet drive?
Days had gone by with the warning light on. Only at the recycling bin, the empty container in hand, did you glance back at the cap you had used at the driveway. Homes just off Ashford Road are hit as much as everywhere else.
Meaning? Provided your car hasn't moved since, it is second to the pump case. As it is unable to blend, AdBlue settles low inside the tank and stays. A night parked changes none of that.
Your move: the keys indoors, so no one takes the car off at breakfast. After that, phone. Orlestone or Hamstreet: whichever your driveway sits, that's where it is drained. Our equipment runs quietly enough not to disturb the street at night.
Drove off with AdBlue in a diesel around Hamstreet?
Rough running, smoke, falling power or a glowing dashboard arrived a mile or two after the fill. Maybe driving to Canterbury, under 25 miles away, or just down The Street.
The point: the system has drawn AdBlue through already. Past your filter, through the pipework, and — the further the mileage — on into the high-pressure pump and every injector. Each mile and each restart takes it further.
Your move: stop anywhere sensible, then switch the motor off. Service stations farther along can wait: on the M20, under 10 miles out of Hamstreet, take the next junction. It won't have cleared, so there's no sense restarting to find out. Ring us and say how far you drove.
Hire, lease or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank
It is a motor you have had for a week. The AdBlue filler is right next to the diesel filler, which you did not know, because your own vehicle either has no AdBlue or keeps it somewhere else. It can happen to anyone, anywhere across Kent.
The upshot: exactly as above, divided by if it ran, only with an added stage. The owner often has to approve the work, under many rental and fleet contracts.
What to do: ring the hire firm or your fleet manager first, then us. That's faster settled before our technicians arrive than after. Stranded by Church of the Good Shepherd or outside Ham Street till someone answers, the car remains switched off throughout.
AdBlue in the diesel tank? Not sure, in Hamstreet
At times, "I think so" is the most anyone can truthfully say. The bottle is lighter than it should be, there is a faint smell of ammonia round your filler, and you can't remember which cap you took off. A hurried stop by the gates of Hamstreet Primary Academy, or a call to a friend in Kenardington: both fits.
What it means: a little spilled round the filler does no harm to your motor. Inside the diesel tank, by contrast, AdBlue harms it. Any AdBlue in that tank will be pulled in by firing up the car, and the start would not settle which it is in any case.
What to do: treat it as if it went in. Do not crank it. Call us and explain what you saw; we would rather check a tank that turns out clean than drain one that has already been run.
Every AdBlue drain in Hamstreet shares these stages
Whatever the case, one start is used. Forecourt, driveway, Dukes Head's car park or a road beside Pillbox — the van reaches your car, and three questions follow: which fluid, what amount, and if it ran. Replies shape the work; the price follows by phone whilst nobody has set off yet.
Emptying that tank comes next, followed by a careful flush — more vital after urea than with petrol, because crystals and corrosion won't clear on their own, however long you wait. Finally are the fuel filter, flushed or replaced if necessary; fresh diesel; and a test of the vehicle. Where your motor has not run, allow roughly half an hour once we arrive, in most jobs.
Firing it up comes at the end. We confirm it runs correctly on new diesel before leaving. Lasting damage is very unusual if it's noticed quickly, and the entire job is done where the car is. Payment is on the day, never upfront. For the insurer, you get a VAT invoice and a written report from the engineer. Many policies cover misfuelling, so look at yours as we head over.
About Hamstreet
Hamstreet is a small village in Kent, situated on the banks of the River Rother at a low elevation of around 6 metres. Hamstreet lies near the villages of Orlestone and Warehorne, and is connected to the larger town of Canterbury, which is approximately 17 miles away. Hamstreet has a mix of housing types, but is predominantly composed of terraced homes, reflecting its history of development along the river. Hamstreet is located within the South East region, about 52 miles from London.
AdBlue drains across Kent, Hamstreet included
Hamstreet is a village, and the same teams that cover it work the towns around it too, Warehorne and The Leacon among them, across the TN postcode area. Quickest of all: a TN26 2 postcode to show your location.
No moving is required, be it stopped centrally in Hamstreet or in a layby heading to Hamstreet Football Field, and so keep it put. Draining is done on the spot. If you are somewhere hard to explain, near Hamstreet Village Sign or close to a border, ring and ask rather than guessing.
In one line: your scenario
Still unrun? Keep the car that way and phone. Run by now: pull over, power down, ring 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel takes over the remainder, within Hamstreet or wherever in Kent.