AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Old Town: 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. Wherever the vehicle is — Stranton, Old Town — never start an engine that hasn't run yet. Leave your engine and your ignition off and call 0333 366 0103; it is generally a drain and a thorough flush, done where your car is around Old Town. Pull over the minute it is safe and switch off, if it has been run. The job is bigger, yet the first stage is the same.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever in Durham it happened.
At the pump in Old Town: AdBlue in a diesel
Only now, nozzle still in hand, it dawns on you that the cap you opened was the wrong one, there at the petrol pump. It might be the Morrisons, or the Asda, or another station in Old Town.
Meaning? Finding out on the forecourt is the best it can be. Nothing has drawn it in, and so the AdBlue stays only in that tank.
Next: avoid the temptation to start it just to free up the pump. Get the staff to lend a hand rolling it to a space, hold on to the receipt, then ring us right there. If it can't be shifted, it can be drained at the petrol pump: the equipment is explosion-proof and safe on a working forecourt.
At home around Old Town with AdBlue in the diesel tank
On your dash, a reminder had shown for days. 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. Just off Chandlers Close is not different from any other place.
What it means: if you haven't driven since, this is almost as good as the forecourt. Diesel and AdBlue stay apart: the AdBlue drops to the base of your tank and remains put, however long the night.
Next: prevent any early move by keeping the keys in the house, then phone us. Out in Hartlepool or right here around Old Town, the drain is done on your driveway. Even at night, our pumps are quiet enough for a driveway.
AdBlue in a diesel and already driving around Old Town?
You filled up, set off, and a mile or two later your engine began to run roughly, smoke, lose power or light up the dashboard. Sidings Close, say, or the way towards Durham — a run of under 25 miles.
Meaning? The pump has sucked the AdBlue up. It has been through the filter and the fuel lines and, the further you went, into your high-pressure pump and the fuel injectors. Each mile and each restart takes it further.
Next: find a safe place, pull in, then turn the engine off. On the A1(M), under 15 miles from Old Town, that means the next exit, not the services further on. No test restarts: clearing is not something AdBlue will do. Tell us know the mileage driven as you ring.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
It's a motor you have had for a week. On your own vehicle, AdBlue is absent or somewhere else. On this one, the inlet is right next to your diesel inlet — a surprise to you. Anyone, wherever around Durham, might do it.
In short: an extra stage on top of the cases above, which depend on if it's run. Plenty of hire and company agreements want the owner to approve work on the car.
Do this: hire firm or fleet manager to begin with, us second, because sorting it beforehand saves time. If you're stranded in the car park at Hartlepool, or by Hartlepool Walking and Cycling Hub, while you wait for an answer, leave your car off.
Old Town: unsure if it was AdBlue in your diesel tank?
Sometimes the honest answer is "I think so". The bottle is lighter than it should be, there's a faint smell of ammonia round your filler, and you cannot remember which cap you took off. Maybe on a friend's driveway in Longhill, or rushing outside St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Hartlepool at the school run.
Meaning? Spills outside the inlet never reach the motor at all. If it's inside the diesel tank, though, that changes. Starting your car won't tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in your tank it will pull it in.
Do this: act as if it did, and never start the engine. Inspecting a tank that proves free of AdBlue is better than emptying one once it's been run — so ring and tell us what you noticed.
Old Town: what every AdBlue drain has in common
The job opens identically, whichever the case. Filling station, driveway, The Royal's car park or a road by Burbank Community Centre — our van reaches your vehicle, and three answers follow: which fluid, what quantity, and if it has run. Those answers settle this work, and you hear the quote by phone, before anyone heads out.
A thorough flush comes after the drain. With petrol it is standard; with AdBlue it is essential, because crystals build up and certain metals corrode, and neither washes out unaided. Your filter is flushed, or replaced where it needs to be; clean diesel goes in; and your car is tested. If your engine has not run, the majority of jobs take about half an hour once we are there.
The final step is starting the engine. With clean diesel in, it runs while our engineers confirm it is running correctly, and then we go. The whole job is done where the car is, and if it's spotted quickly, long-term damage is very uncommon. You pay on the day, with nothing upfront, and get a VAT invoice and an engineer report for your insurer. Plenty of insurance policies include misfuelling, so look at yours while the van travels.
About Old Town
Old Town is a coastal suburban area in County Durham, situated near the city of Durham and the town of Hartlepool. Old Town has a low elevation of around 5 metres, reflecting its coastal setting. Old Town is characterized by predominantly flat-type housing, which is common in many coastal areas of the North East. Old Town is located approximately 16.5 miles from the city of Durham and about 224 miles from London.
AdBlue drains about Old Town and across Durham
Bellevue and Middleton get the identical teams as Old Town, a residential suburb, along with further places throughout TS postcodes. Your whereabouts is quickest from a postcode beginning TS24 0.
No moving is required, whether parked centrally in Old Town or in a layby heading to Stranton Green, so leave it where it is. Draining happens right there. If you're somewhere hard to explain, close to Vue or close to a border, ring and ask rather than guessing.
Your situation, in one line
Still unrun? Keep the car off then ring. Already run: stop, switch off and call. Either way, Petrol in Diesel takes it from there in Old Town and anywhere in Durham on 0333 366 0103.