AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Middle Dimson, and What to Do Next
Everything hinges on a single detail: whether the motor has been run since the AdBlue was added — far more than anything else. Anywhere your vehicle is — North Dimson, Middle Dimson — don't start a motor that hasn't been started yet. Keep nothing on, ring 0333 366 0103, and count on a thorough flush after a drain, done right where your vehicle sits around Middle Dimson. Pull over the moment it is safe and switch off, if it has been run. It is a larger job, yet step one does not change.
Below: the cases our engineers see, wherever in Cornwall. Choose yours.
At the petrol pump in Middle Dimson: AdBlue in a diesel
Just at this point, bottle still in your hand, it dawns on you that the cap you opened was the wrong one, there at the petrol pump. It might be the Asda, or the Gulf, or another forecourt in Middle Dimson.
Meaning? Spotting it on the forecourt is the best it gets. No pump has pulled it through, and so the AdBlue stays just in that tank.
Do this: stay out of the car, however much the pump needs freeing. A few jobs: a push into a space with the attendants helping, the receipt kept, and a ring to us from where you stand. The equipment is explosion-proof and fine on a live forecourt, and so a car that cannot be pushed clear gets emptied where it is at the petrol pump.
Middle Dimson, at home: AdBlue in the diesel tank
For days the dashboard had been warning you. Picked up a container, poured it in at home, recycled the empty — and at that point checked the cap a second time, after the fact. Drives close to Chapel Street see it as much as any other street.
What it means: if you have not driven since, this is nearly as good as the forecourt. Diesel and AdBlue stay apart: the AdBlue drops to the base of your tank and remains there, however long the night.
Next: prevent any early drive by putting the keys in the house, then ring us. Lower Dimson or Middle Dimson: whichever your driveway sits, that's where it gets drained. Even at night, our pumps stay quiet enough for a residential street.
AdBlue in a diesel and already driving around Middle Dimson?
Lumpy running, smoke, falling power or a lit dashboard arrived a mile or two after the fill. Possibly it was on Bedford Close, possibly on the way out towards Plymouth, under 15 miles away.
Meaning? The fuel pump has taken the AdBlue in. It has been through the fuel filter and the fuel lines and, the further you went, into the high-pressure fuel pump and your injectors. More driving, more starts: deeper it goes.
What to do: pull over where it is safe then switch off. Service stations further along can wait: from the M5, under 50 miles out of Middle Dimson, use the next junction. Restarting it to test achieves nothing — AdBlue doesn't clear on its own. About how far had it gone? Say so as you call.
Hire, lease or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank
You have had the vehicle hardly a week. Unbeknown to you, the two inlets sit next to each other here — not like your own vehicle, which has no AdBlue or stores it elsewhere. Any driver, anywhere across Cornwall, might make the same.
Meaning? Whatever case above counts too — run or unrun — plus one further step. Plenty of rental and fleet contracts need the owner's approval before repairs.
Next: ring the hire company or the fleet manager first, and then us — sorting it before we arrive is quicker. Leave the vehicle switched off as the reply arrives, even if you are parked outside Gunnislake or close to Gunnislake Crusade Fellowship Centre.
Unsure about AdBlue in your diesel tank around Middle Dimson?
"I think so" is often the most honest answer there is. The bottle is lighter than it should be, there's a faint smell of ammonia around your filler, and you can't remember which cap you took off. The gates of Copper Valley Junior Academy in a rush, say, or someone's driveway out in Gunnislake.
In short: a spill round your filler leaves your engine no harm. AdBlue inside your diesel tank does. If there is AdBlue in the tank, turning on the vehicle will draw it in, and it wouldn't tell you which either.
Assume it went in, and don't turn your engine. Phone and give what you saw: we would rather find a clean tank than empty one once the motor has been run.
Each AdBlue drain in Middle Dimson shares these steps
Each case has the same opening to the job. Anywhere your car is — The Cornish Inn's car park, a street beside Wheal Talk, a driveway, a filling station — the van gets there and we ask for the fluid, the amount, plus whether the motor has turned over. Those answers decide the work, and you get the quote on the phone, before anybody sets off.
Draining the tank comes next, then a careful flush — more important after urea than after petrol, since crystals and corrosion will not clear by themselves, no matter how long it sits. Last are the fuel filter, cleaned or renewed as needed; clean diesel; and a check of your car. Not started? Then about half an hour on site is most jobs.
Lastly, we fire it up. Before our engineers go, it's checked to confirm it runs correctly on clean diesel. If it is spotted quickly, the car very rarely has long-term damage, and the entire job takes place where it is. You pay on the day, with nothing upfront, and get a VAT invoice and an engineer report for your insurer. It is worth knowing: lots of insurers offer misfuelling cover, and so a quick look at your documents as you wait is worthwhile.
About Middle Dimson and where it is
Middle Dimson is a suburban area situated on the riverside in Cornwall, with a mix of detached housing and a population of around 1571 residents. Middle Dimson sits at an elevation of 102 metres, close to the nearby settlements of Lower Dimson, Dimson, and Higher Dimson. Middle Dimson is located near the city of Plymouth, which is approximately 11 miles away, and is part of the wider South West region of England. Middle Dimson enjoys a relatively rural setting, despite being within commuting distance of major urban centres.
AdBlue drains around Middle Dimson, and across Cornwall too
Over PL postcodes, the vans serving Middle Dimson — a residential suburb — reach surrounding places as well, Dimson and Higher Dimson included. A postcode starting PL18 9 is the quickest way to tell us where you are.
Parked heading to Millennium Garden, or right in the centre of Middle Dimson, your vehicle remains where it is — there's no need to move it at all. Draining is done on the spot. Phone and ask instead of guessing if you're by William the Miner, near a border, or anywhere awkward to pin down.
In one line: your situation
Not run yet: keep the vehicle off then call. Run already: pull over, switch down, ring 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel takes over the rest, in Middle Dimson or anywhere in Cornwall.