AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Knockroon, and What to Do Next
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank depends on one thing more than any other: if your motor has been run since it was put in. Over in Auchinleck or right in Knockroon, an unstarted engine must remain unrun. Leave the motor and your ignition off then call 0333 366 0103; it's generally a drain and a thorough flush, done where your car is in Knockroon. If it's run, stop as soon as it is safe and switch off. The job is bigger, but the first stage is the same.
Wherever around East Ayrshire it happened, one of the cases below matches yours.
On a Knockroon forecourt with AdBlue in a diesel
Just at this point, nozzle still in your hand, it dawns on you that the cap you took off was the wrong one, there at the petrol pump. Be it JET, another forecourt nearby or somewhere else around Knockroon, the situation is the same.
What it means: this is the best place to find out. Only that tank holds AdBlue; not one part past it has drawn any in.
What to do: don't get back in and crank it to clear the pump. A few things: a push into a space with the staff helping, the receipt kept, and a ring to us from the forecourt. Can't move the car by the petrol pump? Explosion-proof equipment makes a live forecourt safe, so we can drain the vehicle where it is.
AdBlue in your diesel tank at home in Knockroon
The warning light had been on for days. Only by the recycling, the empty container in your hand, did you glance back at the cap you'd used on the driveway. Right off The Kirk's Alarm is no less likely from anywhere.
What it means: if you have not driven since, this is almost as good as the forecourt. AdBlue doesn't mix with diesel; it sinks to the bottom of that tank and waits there. Overnight does not change that.
Put your keys in the house overnight — otherwise a person might take it away at breakfast — and call us. We drain the car on your drive, whether that is in Knockroon or out in The Rigg. Night-time clears outside a house are no problem: the pumps are low-noise.
On the road around Knockroon with AdBlue in a diesel
You filled up, set off, and a mile or two later the engine began to run roughly, smoke, lose power or light up the dashboard. Perhaps it was on Darsie Brae, possibly on the way out towards Glasgow, under 50 miles away.
The point: the system has pulled AdBlue in by now. Past the filter, along the lines, and — the further the mileage — on into the injection pump and each injector. Each mile and each restart takes it further.
Next: pick a safe place, stop, and switch your engine off. Knockroon lies under 15 miles from the M77; on it, pull off at the first junction instead of pushing on for the services. No test restarts: clearing itself isn't something AdBlue does. Ring us and say how far you drove.
AdBlue in the wrong tank of a hire, lease or company car
You've had the car hardly a week. Unbeknown to you, the two fillers sit side by side here — not like your own vehicle, which has no AdBlue or keeps it elsewhere. Across East Ayrshire, no one is immune.
What it means: the same as the situations above, depending on whether it has run, with one more step. Many rental and company agreements require the owner's approval before repairs.
What to do: ring the hire firm or your fleet manager first, then us. That's faster settled before our technicians arrive than after. Leave it switched off as the answer comes, whether you are parked at Auchinleck or close to Terringzean Castle.
Not sure it was AdBlue in the diesel tank, Knockroon?
"I think so" is often as honest answer there is. The bottle is lighter than it should be, there is a faint smell of ammonia about your filler, and you cannot remember which cap you took off. Maybe it happened in a hurry at the school gates at the local primary school, or on a friend's drive in Back Rogerton.
What it means: a little spilled around your filler does no harm to the motor. Inside your diesel tank, by contrast, AdBlue harms it. You can't tell which by turning the ignition, and doing so would suck in any AdBlue that is in your tank.
What to do: treat it as if it got in. Don't fire it up. Ring us and explain what you saw; we'd rather check a tank that turns out clean than drain one that has already been run.
Knockroon: what every AdBlue drain has in common
Whichever situation you are in, the job starts the same way. Forecourt, drive, Boswell Arms's car park or a road by Visions Leisure Centre — the van reaches your car, and three questions come next: what liquid, what quantity, and if it ran. The price comes over the phone, before a van leaves, and the answers set the work.
A thorough flush follows the drain. With petrol it is routine; with AdBlue it's crucial, since crystals form and certain metals are attacked, and neither rinses away unaided. Clean diesel goes in after the fuel filter has been flushed or replaced, and the car is then checked. Where your engine has not been started, expect about half an hour on site, for most jobs.
Last, our technicians fire it up. Before our engineers go, it is tested to confirm it runs correctly on new diesel. If it is spotted early, the car very rarely has permanent damage, and the whole job happens where it is. For your insurer: an engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment on the day, nothing in advance. Plenty of insurance policies include misfuelling, so check yours while the van travels.
About Knockroon and where it is
Knockroon is a suburban area situated on the riverside in East Ayrshire, with a mix of detached housing and a relatively small population of around 1337 residents. Knockroon sits at an elevation of 149 metres, near the communities of The Rigg, Holmhead, and Cumnock. Knockroon is located approximately 28 miles from Glasgow, making it a commuter base for the city. Knockroon's riverside setting provides a scenic backdrop to the area.
AdBlue drains across East Ayrshire, Knockroon included
Holmhead and Cumnock have the identical teams as Knockroon, a residential suburb, along with further places throughout KA postcodes. Fastest of all: a KA18 1 postcode for your location.
No towing is required, whether stopped centrally in Knockroon or on a lay-by en route to Knockroon Wood, and so keep it where it is. The drain is done on the spot. Awkward to pin down? By Barony Church or a county line? Checking beats assuming, so ring.
The one-line version
Motor not started: ring, and leave it switched off. Run by now? Stop, switch off, phone. Petrol in Diesel handles the remainder whatever case, in Knockroon and East Ayrshire, on 0333 366 0103.