AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Putney Heath: What Now?
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank depends on one thing more than any other: whether the motor has been run since it got in. Wherever the car is — Wimbledon Park, Putney Heath — don't start an engine that hasn't been started yet. Call 0333 366 0103 with your ignition and motor both off. In Putney Heath, that is generally drained and flushed where it stands. If it's run, stop as soon as it is safe and switch off. A bigger job, then, but the same opening step.
Anywhere around Greater London it took place, one of the situations below fits yours.
Putney Heath forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
Picture it: stood by the pump, holding the nozzle, you realise the filler you opened was not the right one. Somewhere in Putney Heath, then — Shell, Sainsbury's, or anywhere else close by.
In short: there is no better spot to be to discover it. The AdBlue is in that tank and nowhere else. Nothing has pulled it in.
What to do: don't get back in and start the car to clear the petrol pump. Ask the attendants to help you roll the car into a parking space, keep your receipt or the bottle, and call us from the forecourt. Draining it there at the pump is possible if it cannot be shifted, because the equipment is explosion-proof.
AdBlue in the diesel tank on a Putney Heath drive?
Days had gone by with the dash light on. Picked up a bottle, poured it in at home, binned the empty — and at that point checked the cap again, too late. Just off Exeter House is not different from any other place.
The upshot: zero driving since leaves it nearly equal to finding it at the petrol pump. At the bottom of the tank is where AdBlue waits, since it won't mix with diesel — and a night going by makes nothing of the difference.
Keep your keys indoors overnight — otherwise a person might drive it away at breakfast — and call us. Your driveway is where it gets emptied, whether in Putney Heath or Roehampton. Even at night, the pumps stay quiet enough for a residential street.
AdBlue in a diesel and already driving around Putney Heath?
Lumpy running, smoke, lost power or a lit dashboard arrived a mile or two beyond the top-up. Maybe driving to Westminster, under 10 miles away, or just down Putney Heath.
Put simply: the AdBlue has been sucked into the fuel system. Distance decides how deep it gets: filter and lines first, then the high-pressure pump and each injector. Each restart, like each mile, carries it on.
Your move: pull up anywhere safe, then switch the motor off. Putney Heath lies under 5 miles from the M4; there, pull off at the first junction rather than pushing on for the services. Restarting it to test achieves nothing — AdBlue doesn't clear itself. Tell us know the mileage covered when you ring.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
You've had the car hardly a week. On your own car, AdBlue is missing or somewhere else. On this one, the cap is just next to your diesel cap — a surprise to you. Throughout Greater London, no one is immune.
In short: an extra stage on top of the situations above, which turn on whether it's run. Plenty of hire and company contracts want the owner to approve work on the vehicle.
Your move: hire firm or fleet manager to begin with, us second, because settling it early cuts time. Leave the vehicle switched off while the reply arrives, even if you are waiting outside Putney or near Amplitheatre.
Not sure it was AdBlue in the diesel tank, Putney Heath?
Now and then, "I think so" is the most you can truthfully say. A slight ammonia smell lingers near the filler, the bottle seems too light, and the cap you took off is a blur. It might have been on a friend's driveway in Putney Vale, or rushing by Granard Primary School on the school run.
Meaning? Spills around the inlet don't reach your engine at all. AdBlue inside the diesel tank does. Any AdBlue in that tank will be pulled in by turning on the vehicle, and the start wouldn't settle which it is in any case.
Next: act as though it got in, then keep the motor off. Tell us what you noticed on your phone. A clean tank looked at counts as a better outcome than a run one drained.
Every AdBlue drain around Putney Heath shares these steps
The job opens the same way, whatever your situation. Forecourt, driveway, The Telegraph's car park or a road beside Roehampton War Memorial — the van reaches your car, and three questions follow: which fluid, which amount, and if it ran. Over the phone, ahead of dispatch, you hear our price, and those replies shape the job too.
Draining the tank comes first, followed by a careful flush — more vital after urea than after petrol, since crystals and corrosion will not clear by themselves, no matter how long you wait. Finally come the fuel filter, cleaned or replaced if necessary; fresh diesel; and a check of the car. The majority of unstarted vehicles are a half-hour visit from the moment our technicians turn up.
Last, our technicians fire it up. We check it runs correctly on clean diesel before we leave. The entire job is done where the car is, and if it is noticed quickly, lasting damage is very unusual. You pay on the day, with nothing upfront, and get a VAT invoice and an engineer report for your insurer. Check your insurance before we arrive: misfuelling cover is included in plenty of policies.
About Putney Heath
Putney Heath is a suburban area in southwest London, situated approximately 5.8 miles from central London and close to the neighbouring areas of Roehampton, Putney, and Southfields. Putney Heath sits at an elevation of around 53 metres, with its predominant housing stock consisting of flats. Putney Heath is located near Westminster, which is about 5.6 miles away, and is home to a population of around 7647 residents.
AdBlue drains across Greater London, Putney Heath included
Putney and Southfields get the identical teams as Putney Heath, a residential suburb, plus further towns throughout SW postcodes. Giving us your SW15 3 postcode pins you quickest of all.
Central Putney Heath or a lay-by near Roehampton Playing Field: wherever it sits, the vehicle never needs to move at all for us. The van empties it in place. Tricky to pin down? By Hartley's Obelisk or a county line? Checking is better than assuming, so phone.
In one line: your situation
If it has not run, phone then keep it that way. Already run: stop, switch off then ring. Either way, Petrol in Diesel takes it from there around Putney Heath and anywhere in Greater London on 0333 366 0103.