AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Portbraddon: What Now?
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: if your engine has been run since it went in. Over in Capecastle or here in Portbraddon, an unstarted engine must remain that way. Leave the engine and your ignition off then phone 0333 366 0103; it is generally a drain and a thorough flush, done where the vehicle is around Portbraddon. If it's run, stop as soon as it is safe then switch off. It is a larger job, though stage one doesn't change.
Anywhere across County Antrim it happened, one of the situations below fits yours.
At the petrol pump in Portbraddon: AdBlue in a diesel
The cap you opened was the wrong one — and you just notice it while you are stood at the pump, bottle or nozzle in hand. Be it the nearest petrol station, another forecourt nearby or anywhere else in Portbraddon, the situation is the same.
Meaning? Finding out on the forecourt is as good as it gets. Just your tank holds AdBlue; not one part beyond it has taken any in.
Clearing the petrol pump is no reason to run it — so do not get back in. Three things: a shove into a space with the attendants assisting, the receipt kept, and a ring to us from the forecourt. The equipment is explosion-proof and safe on a busy forecourt, and so a vehicle that cannot be pushed clear is drained where it is at the pump.
AdBlue in the diesel tank at home in Portbraddon
The warning light had been on 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. Right off Bayview is no different from any other place.
Meaning? As long as your car hasn't been driven since, it's second to the pump case. Diesel and AdBlue stay separate: the AdBlue settles to the floor of that tank and stays put, however long it waits.
Your move: the keys indoors, and so nobody takes your car anywhere at breakfast. After that, ring. Our engineers drain the vehicle on your drive, whether that's around Portbraddon or out in Ballintoy. The pumps are quiet enough to use outside a house after dark.
Portbraddon: set off with AdBlue in a diesel?
Topped up, pulled away, and soon the motor was turning roughly, blowing smoke, losing power, or flashing up the dash. Frederick Crescent, perhaps, or the route towards Derry — a run of under 50 miles.
Put simply: the AdBlue has been pulled into the fuel system. Past the fuel filter, through the pipework, and — the more the distance — on into the injection pump and every injector. It travels deeper with each extra mile covered and every restart.
Your move: stop somewhere safe, then turn the engine off. Leave at the first junction — not the services further along — if you're on the M77, over 50 miles from Portbraddon. No trial starts: clearing is not something AdBlue will do. Ring us and say how far you drove.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
You have just had this car a week. Unknown to you, the two inlets are side by side here — unlike your own vehicle, which has none or keeps it in another spot. Wherever you are in County Antrim, every motorist can slip up.
What it means: the same as the situations above, depending on whether it's run, with one more step. Work on your vehicle often requires the owner's go-ahead under hire or fleet agreements.
Next: ring the rental company or your fleet manager first, and then us — settling it before our arrival is quicker. Stuck by the centre or at the nearest station until the firm answers, your vehicle remains turned off the whole time.
AdBlue in your diesel tank? Not sure, around Portbraddon
At times, "I think so" is the most anyone can truthfully say. What cap came off, you can't say; but the bottle feels less than expected, and ammonia lingers by the filler. A hurried top-up by the gates of the local primary school, or a call to a friend in Ballyvoy: either fit.
The upshot: your engine is not hurt by some AdBlue splashed around the filler. Inside your diesel tank, by contrast, AdBlue damages it. You can't tell which by turning the key, and doing so would draw in any AdBlue that is in the tank.
Do this: behave as though it got in, and never start your motor. Tell us what you noticed on the phone. A clear tank looked at counts as a better outcome than a run one drained.
The common ground in every Portbraddon AdBlue drain
Every case has the same start to the job. Our technicians come to the vehicle, whether it is on a forecourt, a driveway, the car park at the pub in the village or a side street close to a street just off the centre, and ask three things: what got in, about how much, and whether your motor has run. On the phone, before dispatch, you hear the price, and those replies shape the work too.
Then that tank is drained and the fuel system purged thoroughly, which counts more with AdBlue than with petrol: AdBlue crystallises and is corrosive to some of the metals in a fuel system, and so it does not rinse out on its own. The filter is flushed, or replaced where it needs to be; fresh diesel goes in; and the vehicle is tested. If the engine has not run, the majority of jobs take about half an hour once we are there.
Last, our technicians fire it up. Our test that it runs properly on fresh diesel comes before we leave. The whole job is done where the vehicle is, and when it's caught quickly, lasting damage is very unusual. Nothing is taken upfront, payment happens on the day, and you get what your insurer wants: an engineer report plus a VAT invoice. Many policies cover misfuelling, so look at yours as we head over.
About Portbraddon
Portbraddon is a small coastal locality in County Antrim, situated near the villages of Ballintoy and Ballycastle. Portbraddon sits at a low elevation of 16 metres, overlooking the sea in a region of rugged coastline. Portbraddon is characterized by its detached housing stock and quiet, rural atmosphere, with the city of Derry located some distance to the west.
AdBlue drains across County Antrim, Portbraddon included
Ballycastle and Dunseverick get the same vans as Portbraddon, a coastal area, along with other places throughout BT postcodes. A postcode starting BT54 6 is the quickest way to tell us where you are.
Whether your car is on a lay-by on the way to the green space at the edge of the village or in a car park in the middle of Portbraddon, it does not need to move. Wherever it sits, that's where it is emptied. Phone and check rather than guess when you're by the far end of the built-up part, on a border, or anywhere tricky to pin down.
In one line: your situation
If it hasn't run, phone and leave it off. Run by now: pull over, switch down, ring 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel handles the remainder, within Portbraddon or wherever across County Antrim.