AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Puddaven: What Now?
Everything hinges on one detail: if your engine has been run since the AdBlue went in — far more than anything else. If it has not, keep it that way, whether the vehicle is in Puddaven itself or out in Swallowfields. Normally that is emptying and thoroughly purging it right there around Puddaven — and so keep your ignition and engine off and call 0333 366 0103. Already started? Pull over once you safely can, then turn everything off. It's a bigger job, yet stage one does not change.
Find the scenario below that matches yours, wherever around Devon it happened.
On a Puddaven forecourt with AdBlue in a diesel
You're at the pump, the nozzle or the bottle still in your hand, and you have just noticed the cap you opened was the wrong one. Be it Texaco, Morrisons or anywhere else around Puddaven, the case is identical.
Put simply: no better place exists to spot it. The AdBlue is inside your tank and nowhere else. Nothing has sucked it in.
Do this: stay out of the car, even if the queue wants freeing. A few things: a push into a space with the staff assisting, the receipt kept, and a call to us from where you stand. If it cannot be moved, it can be emptied at the pump: the equipment is explosion-proof and safe on a busy forecourt.
AdBlue in your diesel tank at home around Puddaven
Several days had passed with the dash light on. A bottle from the shop, emptied in at the driveway — and it was only by the bin that the cap got your eye. Drives close to Sawpit Lane see it as much as anywhere.
The upshot: zero miles since makes it almost equal to finding it at the pump. At the bottom of that tank is where AdBlue stays, because it will not blend with diesel — and a night passing makes no difference.
Next: the keys indoors, and so no one takes the vehicle off at breakfast. Then, phone. We drain it on your driveway, whether that is around Puddaven or out in Dartington. The pumping kit runs quiet enough not to disturb the neighbours at night.
Puddaven: set off with AdBlue in a diesel?
You filled up, set off, and a mile or two later your motor began to run roughly, smoke, lose power or light up the dashboard. Somewhere on Droridge Lane or heading to Plymouth — under 25 miles away.
Meaning? Your fuel pump has sucked the AdBlue up. Through the fuel filter, through the lines, and — the further the mileage — on into the injection pump and each injector. Each mile and each restart takes it further.
What to do: pull over where it's safe to do so then switch off. Services further on are too far: on the M5, under 25 miles out of Puddaven, take the next junction. No test starts: clearing itself isn't something AdBlue will do. About what distance had it go? Say so when you phone.
Hire, lease or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank
You have only had the car for days. The AdBlue filler is right next to the diesel filler, which you did not know, because your own motor either has no AdBlue or keeps it somewhere else. Across Devon, nobody is safe from it.
The point: exactly as above, split by if it ran, only with an added stage. The owner often has to approve any work, under many rental and company agreements.
What to do: call the hire firm or your fleet manager first, then us. That is faster settled before our engineers get there than after. Keep the vehicle off while the answer arrives, whether you are parked outside Totnes or close to Follaton Village Hall.
Not sure it was AdBlue in the diesel tank, Puddaven?
Now and then, "I think so" is the most you can truthfully say. Lighter, the bottle; a hint of ammonia round the filler; no clear memory of which cap. Look familiar? Maybe on a friend's driveway in Shinners Bridge, or rushing outside Dartington Church of England Academy at the school run.
The point: your motor isn't harmed by a little AdBlue splashed around the outside. AdBlue inside your diesel tank does. Any AdBlue in that tank will be drawn in by firing up the car, and the start would not settle which it is in any case.
Next: act as though it went in, and leave the engine off. Inspecting a tank that proves free of AdBlue is better than draining one after it's been run — so ring then describe to us what you saw.
What every AdBlue drain in Puddaven has in common
Every case has the same opening to the job. Wherever your vehicle stands — The Cott Inn's car park, a road beside Dartington Cider Press, a drive, a filling station — our van arrives and asks for the liquid, the amount, and if the engine has turned over. Your price is given over the phone, before a van leaves, and those replies shape the job.
Then your tank is cleared and the system rinsed thoroughly, which matters more with AdBlue than with petrol: AdBlue crystallises and is corrosive to some of the metals in a fuel system, and so it doesn't rinse out on its own. Last come your filter, flushed or replaced as needed; clean diesel; and a test of the vehicle. Never started? In that case roughly half an hour on site is most jobs.
We start the car at the end. Before our engineers head off, it's checked to confirm it runs properly on new diesel. The entire job is done where your car is, and when it is caught early, long-term damage is very uncommon. Paying comes that day, never in advance. For your insurer, there is a VAT invoice and a report from the engineer. Worth remembering: lots of insurers offer misfuelling cover, and so a quick look at your documents while we travel is worthwhile.
About Puddaven, for a moment
Puddaven is a locality situated on the riverside in Devon, with an elevation of 36 metres and a population of around 924 residents. Puddaven is characterized by its predominantly detached housing stock, reflecting its relatively rural setting. Puddaven lies near several other small places, including Dartington, Cott, and Longcause, and is within commuting distance of Plymouth, which is 19.5 miles away.
Puddaven and Devon: AdBlue drains across the area
Cott and Longcause have the same vans as Puddaven, a small village, plus further towns throughout TQ postcodes. Giving us your TQ9 6 postcode finds you fastest of all.
Whether the vehicle is on a lay-by on the way to Beacon Copse or in a car park in the middle of Puddaven, it does not need to move. Our technicians drain the vehicle where it is. Phone and check instead of guessing if you are by Sheep, on a boundary, or anywhere tricky to pin down.
In one line: your situation
Engine not started: ring, leaving it switched off. Run already: stop, switch down, phone 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel takes over the rest, in Puddaven or anywhere in Devon.