AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Harwich: What Now?
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank depends on one thing more than any other: if the engine has been run since it got in. Anywhere your car is — Dovercourt, Harwich — don't run a motor that has not run yet. Usually that is draining and properly cleaning it right there in Harwich — so keep the ignition and motor off and phone 0333 366 0103. Already started? Stop when safe, then switch it off. Stage one remains the same, even if the work is bigger.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever across Essex it happened.
At the pump around Harwich: AdBlue in a diesel
Just at this point, nozzle still in your hand, you realise that the cap you opened was the wrong one, there at the petrol pump. Whether Asda, Texaco or somewhere else in Harwich, the case is the same.
What it means: this is the ideal place to find out. Still inside that tank, and nothing pulled through: that's where the AdBlue is.
Do this: keep out of the car, even if the pump needs clearing. Phone us from the forecourt once the vehicle is in a bay — the attendants will help push it — and save the bottle. Emptying it there at the petrol pump is possible if it can't be shifted, because the equipment is explosion-proof.
Harwich, at home: AdBlue in your diesel tank
On the dash, a reminder had been lit all week. A bottle from the shop, tipped in on the driveway — and it was just at the recycling that the cap caught a second look. Right off Market Street is no different from any other place.
The point: zero driving since makes it nearly as good to finding it at the petrol pump. Being reluctant to mix, AdBlue drops to the base inside the tank and waits. A night standing alters none of that.
Next: keys indoors, so nobody takes the vehicle anywhere at breakfast. After that, phone. Outer Part of Town Westward or Harwich: whichever your driveway is, that is where it gets cleared. Even at night, the pumps stay quiet enough for a residential street.
Set off with AdBlue in a diesel in Harwich?
Filled up, pulled away, and soon your motor was running unevenly, blowing smoke, losing power, or flashing up the dash. Maybe heading for Colchester, under 25 miles away, or just down West Street.
What it means: the system has sucked the AdBlue in. The injection pump and each injector see it too on a longer trip, once the filter and lines have it. Each restart, like every mile, pushes it on.
Pull in somewhere safe — that's the first step — then turn it off. Harwich sits under 50 miles from the M11; there, pull off at the first junction rather than pushing on for the services. Restarting it to test achieves nothing — AdBlue doesn't clear itself. About what distance had it go? Say so as you phone.
Hire, lease or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank
It is a motor you have had for a week. Your own car either has no AdBlue or puts it somewhere different, and so nothing told you the AdBlue inlet was right beside the diesel. Anyone, wherever around Essex, could do it.
What it means: the same as the situations above, depending on whether it has run, with one more step. Work on the vehicle frequently requires the owner's go-ahead under hire or fleet terms.
Settling it before we turn up is faster, so phone the rental company or your fleet manager, then us. Leave the car off while the reply comes, whether you are waiting at Harwich Town or near Guildhall.
Harwich: unsure if it was AdBlue in your diesel tank?
"I think so" is often as honest answer there is. A faint ammonia-like smell hangs around the filler, the bottle feels too light, and the cap you took off is hard to recall. Maybe at a friend's drive in Shotley Gate, or rushing by Harwich Community Primary School and Nursery at the school run.
The upshot: the motor isn't hurt by some AdBlue splashed on the filler. If it's inside your diesel tank, though, that changes. Turning on the vehicle cannot tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in the tank it will pull it in.
Next: assume it went in, and leave your engine off. Checking a tank that proves free of AdBlue beats emptying one once it has been run — so phone then tell us what you saw.
The common ground in every Harwich AdBlue drain
The work opens the same way, whichever the case. Forecourt, drive, The Stingray's car park or a road by Electric Palace — our van comes to the car, and three answers come next: what fluid, which amount, and whether it ran. Those answers settle the work, and you hear our quote by phone, before anyone heads out.
AdBlue crystallises and eats at certain metals used in fuel systems, so it does not wash out on its own; that is why a full flush, after the drain, counts far more with AdBlue than with petrol. Then comes the fuel filter — flushed, or swapped when needed — followed by fresh diesel, and a test of the car. If your motor has not run, the majority of jobs take about half an hour once we are there.
Lastly, our technicians start the car. With new diesel in, it runs while our engineers make sure it's running smoothly, and then we head off. If it is noticed early, the vehicle very rarely has permanent damage, and the entire job happens where it is. Nothing is paid upfront, payment is made on the day, and you receive what your insurer asks for: an engineer report and a VAT invoice. Many insurance policies include misfuelling cover, and so it is worth checking yours while we're on the way.
About Harwich
Harwich is a small coastal town in Essex, situated on the eastern coast of England, with a low elevation of around 4 metres above sea level. Harwich lies approximately 67 miles from London and 17 miles from the city of Colchester, making it a significant settlement in the region. Harwich has a mix of housing types, but terraced housing is predominant, and the town is surrounded by areas such as the Outer Part of Town Westward and the Outer Part of Town Eastward. Harwich is home to around 5049 residents, according to approximate population figures.
AdBlue drains around Harwich, and across Essex too
Outer Part of Town Eastward and Bath Side have the same vans as Harwich, a coastal town, plus further towns throughout CO postcodes. Telling us your CO12 3 postcode pins you fastest of all.
No towing is needed, whether stopped centrally in Harwich or on a lay-by en route to Flood Memorial Garden, and so keep it where it is. Our technicians drain the car where it sits. If you're somewhere hard to explain, near Saint Nicholas Church or close to a border, ring and ask rather than assuming.
In one line: your scenario
If it has not started, phone and keep it that way. Already run: stop, switch off and call. Either way, Petrol in Diesel takes it from there in Harwich and anywhere across Essex on 0333 366 0103.