AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Killen, and What to Do Next
One thing matters above all once AdBlue is in a diesel tank, and that is if the motor has run since. Wherever your car is — Spamount, Killen — never run an engine that has not run yet. Leave the motor and the ignition off and ring 0333 366 0103; it is normally a drain and a thorough flush, done where the vehicle is around Killen. Already started? Pull over when safe, then switch everything off. Step one stays unchanged, even if the job is bigger.
Below: the cases our technicians meet, anywhere in County Tyrone. Pick the one that fits.
Killen forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
The cap you unscrewed was the wrong one — and you just spot it as you are stood at the petrol pump, bottle or nozzle in hand. Perhaps you're at the the nearest petrol station, possibly at the another forecourt nearby, maybe somewhere else in Killen.
What it means: this is the ideal location to find out. Just your tank has AdBlue; no component past it has taken any in.
Freeing the petrol pump is no excuse to run it — so don't get back in. Have the attendants to help rolling it to a bay, hold on to the bottle, then ring us from there. Emptying it there at the petrol pump is fine if it cannot be moved, because the equipment is explosion-proof.
Killen, at home: AdBlue in your diesel tank
On your dash, a warning had been lit all week. You bought a bottle, poured it in on the drive, and only when you put the empty bottle in the recycling did you look once more at the cap. Houses just off Crown Street get hit as much as everywhere else.
Meaning? Provided the car hasn't been driven since, it's second to the pump case. Diesel and AdBlue keep apart: the AdBlue settles to the floor of the tank and stays there, however long it waits.
What to do: leave your keys inside the house so no one moves the car in the morning. Then ring. Garvetagh or Killen: whichever your driveway sits, that is where it is cleared. Even at night, our pumps stay quiet enough for a driveway.
Drove off with AdBlue in a diesel in Killen?
Lumpy running, smoke, lost power or a glowing dashboard started a mile or two after the top-up. Maybe heading to Derry, under 50 miles away, or just down Rock Street.
Meaning? Your fuel pump has taken the AdBlue up. Mileage decides how far it goes: filter and lines first, then the high-pressure pump and each injector. More miles, more restarts: further it travels.
Stop safely — that is the first job — then turn it off. Leave by the first junction — not the services beyond — if you're on the M77, over 50 miles from Killen. It will not have cleared, so there's no point starting it again to find out. Call us and say how far you drove.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
You've only had this vehicle for days. The AdBlue filler is right alongside the diesel filler, which you did not know, because your own motor either has no AdBlue or keeps it somewhere else. It can happen to anyone, anywhere across County Tyrone.
In short: an extra step on top of the cases above, and those depend on if it has run. Many rental and company agreements need the owner's sign-off for repairs.
Next: phone the hire company or the fleet manager first, and then us — settling it before we arrive is quicker. Stuck near the centre or at the nearest station till the firm replies, the car remains turned off throughout.
Killen: unsure if it was AdBlue in your diesel tank?
Occasionally the fair answer is "I think so". A slight ammonia-like smell hangs around your filler, the bottle feels too light, and which cap came off is hard to recall. Maybe at a friend's driveway in Erganagh, or in a rush by the local primary school on the school run.
The upshot: your motor isn't hurt by some AdBlue splashed around the filler. Once it is inside the diesel tank, though, that changes. Starting your car cannot tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in the tank it would draw it in.
Your move: act as if it did, and don't start your motor. Inspecting a tank that turns out free of AdBlue is better than emptying one after it's been run — so phone and describe to us what you saw.
Each AdBlue drain around Killen shares these stages
No matter the situation, a single opening is used. Our engineers come to the vehicle, whether it's on a forecourt, a driveway, the car park outside the pub in the village or a side street near a street just off the centre, and ask three things: what was put in, about how much, and whether the motor has been run. Replies shape the job; the price comes by phone whilst nobody has set off yet.
A thorough flush comes after the drain. With petrol it's routine; with AdBlue it's essential, since crystals form and some metals corrode, and neither rinses away unaided. The fuel filter is flushed, or replaced where it needs to be; clean diesel goes in; and your car is tested. Never started? Then about half an hour on site is most jobs.
Last, our technicians start the engine. Our test that it runs smoothly on new diesel comes before our technicians go. Permanent damage is very rare if it is noticed soon, and the whole job is done where the car is. For your insurer: an engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment on the day, nothing upfront. Worth remembering: lots of insurers offer misfuelling cover, and so a check of your policy as you wait pays.
About Killen, for a moment
Killen is a small locality in County Tyrone, situated inland at an elevation of 98 metres, and is located approximately 25.5 miles from Derry. Killen sits near the villages of Garvetagh, Killeter, and Castlederg, and is characterized by its predominantly detached housing stock. Killen is a relatively small community, with a population of around 553 people, and is part of the wider rural landscape of Northern Ireland.
AdBlue drains about Killen and across County Tyrone
Killeter and Castlederg get the identical vans as Killen, a small village, along with other towns over BT postcodes. Giving us your BT81 7 postcode finds you fastest of all.
No moving is required, whether stopped in the centre of Killen or in a lay-by heading to the green space at the edge of the village, so leave it put. Where it stands, that's where it gets cleared. If you are somewhere hard to describe, near the far end of the built-up part or close to a boundary, ring and ask rather than guessing.
The one-line version
Where it hasn't run, ring then keep it that way. Already run: stop, switch off then ring. Either way, Petrol in Diesel takes it from there around Killen and anywhere in County Tyrone on 0333 366 0103.