AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Poundbury, and What to Do Next
All of that turns on a single fact: whether the engine has been run after the AdBlue went in — far more than anything else. Not run yet? Then leave it like that, wherever your vehicle sits — Poundbury or Charminster. Normally this means emptying and properly cleaning it right there around Poundbury — so keep the ignition and engine off then ring 0333 366 0103. If it's run, stop as soon as it is safe and switch off. Step one remains unchanged, even if the job grows.
Match your case to one of the list below, anywhere in Dorset you are.
Poundbury forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
The cap you unscrewed was the wrong one — and you only spot it as you are standing at the petrol pump, bottle or the nozzle in your hand. Anywhere around Poundbury, then — BP, Tesco, or somewhere else nearby.
The point: of all places to notice, the forecourt is the best. The AdBlue is in that tank and nowhere else. Nothing has drawn it in.
Clearing the pump is no reason to start it — and so don't get back in. Three jobs: a shove into a space with the staff assisting, the receipt kept, and a call to us from where you stand. Our equipment is explosion-proof and fine on a live forecourt, so a car that cannot be pushed clear gets drained where it is at the pump.
Poundbury, at home: AdBlue in the diesel tank
On your dash, a reminder had been lit for days. A bottle bought at the shop, tipped in at the drive — and it was just at the recycling that the cap caught your eye. Just off Elvastone Street is not less likely from anywhere.
Put simply: if your car has not moved since, it's almost as good as finding out at the pump. At the floor of that tank is where AdBlue stays, since it will not blend with diesel — and a night going by makes no difference.
What to do: leave your keys inside the house so no one moves the car in the morning. Then call. Your driveway is where it gets drained, whether around Poundbury or Dorchester. Even at night, the pumps are quiet enough for a residential street.
On the road around Poundbury with AdBlue in a diesel
Lumpy running, smoke, lost power or a lit dashboard started a mile or two after the top-up. It might have been heading for Wells, under 50 miles away, or simply down Trematon Street.
In short: the AdBlue has been sucked into the system. Through your filter, along the pipework, and — the more the distance — deeper into the high-pressure pump and every injector. Every restart, like every mile, pushes it on.
Stop safely — that is the next job — then turn it off. On the M5, under 50 miles from Poundbury, that means the next exit, not the services further on. Restarting it to test achieves nothing — AdBlue never clears on its own. About what distance had it go? Say so as you phone.
AdBlue in the wrong tank: hire, lease and company vehicles
You've had the car barely a week. On your own car, AdBlue is absent or somewhere else. On this one, its inlet is just next to your diesel cap — a surprise to you. Anywhere you are around Dorset, any motorist can be caught.
In short: an extra stage on top of the cases above, and those turn on whether it has run. The owner often needs to sign off any work, under plenty of rental and company agreements.
What to do: call the hire firm or your fleet manager first, then us. That's faster settled before we turn up than after. Leave the car off as the answer comes, whether you are parked outside Dorchester West or close to The Quiet Space.
Not sure it was AdBlue in your diesel tank, Poundbury?
At times, "I think so" is the most anyone can honestly say. Which cap was taken off, you can't recall; meanwhile the bottle weighs lighter than it ought to, and ammonia lingers by your filler. It might have been on a friend's drive in Winterborne Monkton, or in a rush outside Damers First School on the school run.
The point: your engine isn't hurt by a little AdBlue spilled around the outside. The diesel tank with AdBlue inside is a different matter. Any AdBlue in your tank will be drawn in by starting the car, and the start wouldn't settle which it is in any case.
Your move: act as if it did, and don't start your motor. 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.
Poundbury: what every AdBlue drain has in common
No matter the situation, one opening applies. Wherever your car is — The Duchess of Cornwall's car park, a street beside Queen Mother Statue, a drive, a forecourt — our van arrives and we ask for the fluid, the quantity, plus if your engine has been run. On the phone, ahead of dispatch, you are told the price, and those replies shape the job too.
Then that tank is cleared and the system cleaned thoroughly, which matters more with AdBlue than with petrol: AdBlue crystallises and is corrosive to some of the metals in a fuel system, so it doesn't rinse out on its own. Clean diesel is put in after your filter has been flushed or changed, and your car is then checked. If the motor hasn't run, most jobs take about half an hour once we're there.
The final step is firing it up. Before our engineers leave, it's checked to confirm it runs smoothly on new diesel. We do the entire job where the car is, and lasting damage is very uncommon when it has been noticed early. For your insurer: an engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment on the day, no money in advance. Dig out your insurance before we're en route: misfuelling cover is built into plenty of policies.
About Poundbury
Poundbury is a suburban area located in Dorset, England, situated approximately 100 metres above sea level. Poundbury sits inland, near the towns of Dorchester and Burton, and is part of the larger South West region. Poundbury is characterized by its predominantly flat housing stock, with many residents living in apartments. Poundbury is also relatively close to other nearby places, including Frome Whitfield and Wells, which is about 35 miles away.
AdBlue drains around Poundbury and across Dorset
Poundbury is a residential suburb, and the same teams that cover it work the towns near it too, Burton and Frome Whitfield among them, across the DT postcode area. Telling us your DT1 3 postcode finds you fastest of all.
Parked heading to The Quiet Space Garden, or bang in the centre of Poundbury, your vehicle stays where it is — there's no need to move it anywhere. Draining happens on the spot. If you're somewhere hard to explain, close to Dorchester Community Church or close to a boundary, ring and ask rather than assuming.
Your scenario, summed up
Engine not started: phone, and leave it switched off. Started by now? Pull over, turn off, phone. Petrol in Diesel handles the rest whatever case, in Poundbury and Dorset, on 0333 366 0103.