AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Staple Hill, and What to Do Next
All of it turns on a single detail: if the motor has started after the AdBlue went in — far more than anything else. Anywhere the vehicle stands — Hillfields, Staple Hill — never run a motor that hasn't been started yet. Leave the motor and the ignition off and call 0333 366 0103; it's usually a drain and a thorough flush, done where your car is in Staple Hill. Where the motor has run, pull in somewhere safe straight away, then turn it off. The job is bigger, but the first stage is the same.
Compare your case to one of the ones below, anywhere across Gloucestershire you happen to be.
Staple Hill forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
Just now, bottle still in hand, you realise that the cap you took off was the wrong one, right at the pump. It might be the Esso, or the Morrisons, or another station around Staple Hill.
Meaning? Spotting it here is as good as it gets. Nothing has drawn it through, and so the AdBlue sits only in the tank.
Your move: keep out of the driver's seat, even if the pump needs freeing. Ask the attendants to help you push the car into a parking space, keep your receipt or the bottle, and call us from the forecourt. The equipment is explosion-proof and safe on a live forecourt, and so a vehicle that can't be pushed clear is emptied right at the petrol pump.
Staple Hill, at home: AdBlue in your diesel tank
For days the dashboard had been nagging you. A bottle from the shop, tipped in at the drive — and it was just by the bin that the cap got a second look. Right off Berkeley Road is not different from anywhere.
The upshot: no driving since makes this almost equal to spotting it at the petrol pump. At the floor of that tank is exactly where AdBlue waits, because it will not mix with diesel — and a night going by changes nothing of the difference.
What to do: leave the keys inside the house so no one moves the car in the morning. Then ring. In Soundwell or right here around Staple Hill, the drain happens on your driveway. Even at night, our pumps are quiet enough for a driveway.
Staple Hill: drove off with AdBlue in a diesel?
Lumpy running, smoke, lost power or a lit dashboard started a short way after the fill. It might have been heading for Bristol, under 5 miles away, or just down Haynes Lane.
What it means: the fuel system has sucked the AdBlue in. The injection pump and each injector see it too on a longer run, after the fuel filter and lines have it. More driving, more starts: further it travels.
Your move: stop anywhere sensible, then switch the motor off. Service stations further along are too far: on the M32, under 3 miles out of Staple Hill, use the first junction. Do not restart the car to see if it has cleared; it will not have. Phone us and say how far you went.
AdBlue in the wrong tank: hire, lease and company cars
You have only had this vehicle a week. The AdBlue filler is right next to the diesel filler, which you didn't know, since your own vehicle either has no AdBlue or keeps it somewhere else. It can happen to anyone, anywhere in Gloucestershire.
What it means: the same as the situations above, depending on whether it's run, with one more step. Plenty of hire and company contracts need the owner's approval for repairs.
Sorting it before we turn up is faster, and so ring the hire company or your fleet manager, and then us. Stranded near Staple Hill Methodist Church or outside Bristol Parkway till the firm answers, the car stays turned off throughout.
AdBlue in your diesel tank? Not sure, in Staple Hill
At times, "I think so" is all anyone can truthfully say. The bottle is lighter than it should be, there is a faint smell of ammonia about your filler, and you can't remember which cap you took off. Maybe on a friend's drive in Hopewell Hill, or rushing outside Staple Hill Primary School on the school run.
What it means: a little spilled about your filler does no damage to your motor. A diesel tank with AdBlue inside is a different matter. Turning on the vehicle cannot tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in the tank it will pull it in.
Take it that it was put in, and don't start the key. Ring and give what you saw: we would sooner confirm a clean tank than empty one once your motor has run.
Staple Hill: what every AdBlue drain has in common
Whichever scenario you are in, this job starts the same way. Three questions are asked once our engineers arrive — at a filling station, a driveway, a road by Page Community Association or the car park outside The Staple Hill Oak: the fluid, the amount, and if the motor has run. The price is given over the phone, before a van leaves, and those replies set the work.
Emptying that tank comes next, followed by a careful flush — more important with urea than after petrol, since crystals and corrosion will not go on their own, no matter how long it sits. The fuel filter is cleaned, or replaced where it needs to be; clean diesel goes in; and your car is tested. Where the motor has not run, allow about half an hour once we arrive, in most cases.
Finally, our technicians start the engine. We confirm it runs smoothly on clean diesel before we leave. Lasting damage is very unusual when it's caught early, and the whole job is done where your car is. For your insurer: an engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment on the day, no money upfront. Many insurance policies include misfuelling cover, and so it's worth checking yours while we're on the way.
About Staple Hill
Staple Hill is a suburban area in Gloucestershire, situated approximately 4.4 miles from Bristol and 102.4 miles from London. Staple Hill sits at an elevation of 88 metres, surrounded by nearby places such as Soundwell, Mangotsfield, and Upper Soundwell. Staple Hill has a population of around 10554 people and is characterised by predominantly terraced housing. Staple Hill forms part of the larger Bristol urban area, with its residents enjoying easy access to the city's amenities.
Staple Hill and Gloucestershire: AdBlue drains across the area
Mangotsfield and Upper Soundwell have the same vans as Staple Hill, a residential suburb, along with other places over BS postcodes. Giving us your BS16 5 postcode pins you quickest of all.
Stopped en route to Page Park, or bang in the heart of Staple Hill, your vehicle stays where it is — there is no need to move it at all. Where it sits, that is where it is cleared. Phone and ask rather than guess when you're by Bethesda Independent Methodist Church, on a boundary, or anywhere awkward to pin down.
In one line: your situation
Not run yet: keep it off then call. Already run: stop, switch off then ring. Either way, Petrol in Diesel takes it from there in Staple Hill and anywhere around Gloucestershire on 0333 366 0103.