What Now? AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Old Town
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank depends on one thing more than any other: whether your motor has been run since it got in. Out in Halton or right around Old Town, an unstarted motor should stay unrun. Keep nothing on, phone 0333 366 0103, then expect a thorough flush plus a drain, done just where the vehicle stands in Old Town. If it has run, stop as soon as it is safe then switch off. It is a larger job, yet step one does not change.
Further down: the situations we see, anywhere around East Sussex. Pick yours.
Old Town forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
You are at the petrol pump, the nozzle or the bottle still in your hand, and you have just noticed the cap you opened was the wrong one. Whether Texaco, Morrisons or somewhere else in Old Town, the situation is the same.
The point: of all places to notice, this is the best. Still in your tank, and nothing pulled through: that is where the AdBlue sits.
Freeing the petrol pump is no excuse to start it — so don't get back in. Three things: a shove into a bay with the attendants helping, the bottle saved, and a call to us from the forecourt. If it can't be moved, it can be cleared at the petrol pump: the equipment is explosion-proof and fine on a working forecourt.
Old Town, at home: AdBlue in your diesel tank
The warning light had been on for days. Bought a bottle, poured it in at home, binned the empty — and only then checked the cap a second time, after the fact. It happens on driveways just off Harold Road as often as anywhere.
What it means: if you have not driven since, this is nearly as good as the forecourt. As it is reluctant to blend, AdBlue drops to the base inside that tank and stays. One night parked alters none of that.
Next: the keys indoors, and so nobody takes the car off at breakfast. After that, phone. High Wickham or Old Town: whichever your driveway sits, that's where it is emptied. Even at night, our pumps stay quiet enough for a driveway.
AdBlue in a diesel and already driving around Old Town?
A mile or two beyond topping up, the engine began misbehaving: roughness, smoke, less power, lights on the dash. Possibly it was on The Bourne, perhaps on the way out towards Brighton and Hove, under 50 miles away.
The point: the system has pulled AdBlue in already. The injection pump and each injector get it as well on a longer run, once the fuel filter and lines have had it. Each restart, like each mile, pushes it deeper.
Do this: stop somewhere safe, then turn the engine off. Services further on are too far: on the M20, under 25 miles out of Old Town, use the next junction. Starting it again to test achieves nothing — AdBlue never clears itself. About how far did it gone? Say so as you phone.
AdBlue in the wrong tank: hire, lease and company cars
You've had this vehicle hardly a week. On your own car, AdBlue is absent or elsewhere. On this one, its inlet is right next to your diesel inlet — news to you. Wherever you are across East Sussex, every driver can slip up.
The point: just as above, split by whether it ran, only with one added step. Many hire and company contracts want the owner to approve work on the car.
Your move: rental firm or fleet manager first, us next, because sorting it beforehand saves time. Leave the vehicle off while the reply comes, whether you're waiting outside Ore or near Market Cross.
Unsure about AdBlue in the diesel tank around Old Town?
At times, "I think so" is all anyone can truthfully say. The bottle is lighter than it should be, there's a faint smell of ammonia around the filler, and you cannot remember which cap you took off. Perhaps it happened in a hurry at the school gates at Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, or on a friend's drive in Belmont.
The point: the engine is not harmed by a little AdBlue splashed around the outside. AdBlue inside your diesel tank does. Firing up the car will not tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in that tank it would suck it in.
What to do: treat it as if it went in. Do not fire it up. Call us and describe what you saw; we would rather check a tank that turns out clean than drain one that has already been run.
Every AdBlue drain around Old Town shares these steps
The work begins the same way, whatever your situation. Anywhere your car stands — The Stag Inn's car park, a road by All Saints Hall, a drive, a forecourt — the van gets there and asks about the fluid, the quantity, and if the motor has been run. Your price is given on the call, ahead of anyone setting off, and those answers set the job.
Draining the tank comes first, then a careful flush — more vital after urea than after petrol, since crystals and corrosion will not go by themselves, however long you wait. Next comes the filter — cleaned, or swapped where necessary — then fresh diesel, and a test of the car. Never started? Then about half an hour on site covers most jobs.
Starting it comes at the end. Our engineers confirm it runs properly on new diesel before leaving. If it's spotted early, the vehicle very rarely has long-term damage, and the entire job takes place where it is. For your insurer: an engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment on the day, no money in advance. Worth knowing: lots of insurers include misfuelling cover, and so a quick look at your documents as we travel pays.
About Old Town and where it is
Old Town is a suburban area in East Sussex, situated on the coast at an elevation of 21 metres. Old Town lies approximately 54.6 miles south of London and 32.3 miles east of Brighton and Hove, near neighbouring areas such as High Wickham and West Hill. Old Town is characterized by its predominantly terraced housing stock, reflecting the typical architectural style of many coastal towns in the South East. Old Town forms part of a larger conurbation that includes nearby Broomsgrove and other local communities.
AdBlue drains across East Sussex, Old Town included
Being a residential suburb, Old Town shares its vans with the nearby towns — Broomsgrove, West Hill — all the way through TN postcodes. A postcode starting TN34 3 is the quickest way to tell us where you are.
Parked en route to All Saints Wood, or right in the centre of Old Town, your vehicle remains put — there's no need to move it at all. Wherever it sits, that is where it is cleared. Guessing doesn't help beside The Stables Theatre, on a border or anywhere hard to pin down; ring and check.
Your situation, in one line
Still unrun? Leave the car that way then ring. Already run: stop, switch off then call. Either way, Petrol in Diesel takes it from there around Old Town and anywhere around East Sussex on 0333 366 0103.