AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in The Middles, and What to Do Next
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank depends on one thing more than any other: whether your engine has run since it went in. If it has not, keep it that way, whether the car is in The Middles itself or out in South Moor. Usually this means emptying and thoroughly flushing it right there in The Middles — so keep your ignition and engine off then call 0333 366 0103. If it has run, stop as soon as it is safe then switch off. Stage one remains the same, even if the job is bigger.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever in Durham it happened.
At the petrol pump around The Middles: AdBlue in a diesel
Just now, nozzle still in hand, it dawns on you that the cap you opened was the wrong one, there at the petrol pump. Possibly you are at the Texaco, maybe at the Esso, perhaps somewhere else around The Middles.
Meaning? Spotting it here is as good as it gets. Still inside that tank, and nothing drawn onwards: that is where the AdBlue sits.
Freeing the pump is no excuse to start it — so don't get back in. A few jobs: a shove into a bay with the attendants helping, the receipt saved, and a ring to us from where you stand. Our equipment is explosion-proof and fine on a live forecourt, so a vehicle that can't be pushed clear is emptied where it is at the pump.
AdBlue in your diesel tank on a The Middles drive?
On your dash, a warning had been lit for days. You bought a bottle, poured it in on the driveway, and only when you put the empty bottle in the recycling did you look once more at the cap. Drives near Hazel Terrace get it as much as any other street.
Meaning? As long as the car has not moved since, it is close to the pump case. AdBlue doesn't mix with diesel; it sinks to the bottom of that tank and waits there. Overnight doesn't change that.
Your move: keys indoors, so no one drives your vehicle anywhere first thing. Then, phone. Out in Craghead or here around The Middles, the drain happens on your drive. Late-night drains beside a house are fine: the pumps are quiet.
Drove off with AdBlue in a diesel around The Middles?
Filled up, drove away, and soon your motor was running roughly, blowing smoke, losing power, or flashing up your dash. Durham Road, perhaps, or the route towards Durham — a run of under 10 miles.
Meaning? The pump has taken the AdBlue in. Past the filter, through the lines, and — the more the distance — deeper into the high-pressure pump and every injector. Every restart, like every mile, pushes it on.
Next: find a sensible spot, pull in, and switch your motor off. Leave at the next junction — not the services further along — if you're on the A1(M), under 5 miles from The Middles. Starting it again to test achieves nothing — AdBlue never clears on its own. Phone, saying what distance your car went.
AdBlue in the wrong tank of a hire, lease or company car
It is a vehicle you have had for a week. Your own vehicle either does without AdBlue or keeps it somewhere different, and so no one told you the AdBlue inlet sits right beside your diesel. It can happen to anyone, anywhere in Durham.
Meaning? Whichever applies above counts too — run or not — plus one extra stage. Plenty of hire and fleet contracts require the owner's sign-off for work.
Next: phone the rental company or the fleet manager first, then us — settling it before our arrival is faster. Stranded near Craghead Village Hall or outside Chester-Le-Street until the firm answers, the vehicle remains switched off the whole time.
The Middles: unsure whether it was AdBlue in your diesel tank?
At times, "I think so" is the most you can truthfully say. The bottle is lighter than it should be, there's a faint smell of ammonia round the filler, and you can't remember which cap you took off. A hurried top-up by the gates of Bloemfontein Primary School, or a call to a friend in East Stanley: both fit.
The point: the engine is not harmed by some AdBlue splashed on the outside. AdBlue inside the diesel tank does. Turning on your car will not tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in the tank it would suck it in.
Assume it got in, and never start the key. Describe what you saw on the phone. A clean tank looked at is a better result than a run one emptied.
What every AdBlue drain in The Middles has in common
Each case has the same opening to the job. Three things come when our technicians arrive — on a filling station, a driveway, a street beside Miner Designed Seat or the car park outside Craghead Social Club (The Legion): the liquid, the amount, and if it has run. Answers set the work; the price follows by phone whilst nobody has set off yet.
AdBlue crystallises and is corrosive to some metals in fuel systems, and so it does not wash out unaided; that's why the flush, after this drain, matters far more with AdBlue than with petrol. The filter is cleaned, or replaced where it needs to be; fresh diesel goes in; and the vehicle is tested. If your motor hasn't run, most jobs take about half an hour once we're there.
Starting the car comes at the end. Our check that it runs smoothly on fresh diesel comes before we head off. We do the whole job where the vehicle is, and long-term damage is very uncommon if it has been caught quickly. Paying comes that day, never upfront. For the insurer, there is a VAT invoice and a written report from the engineer. Worth knowing: lots of insurers include misfuelling cover, so a quick look at your policy while we travel pays.
About The Middles and where it is
The Middles is a suburban area situated on the riverside in County Durham, with a mix of semi-detached housing and a population of around 2659 residents. The Middles sits at an elevation of 156 metres, approximately 6.7 miles from the city of Durham, and is located near other local places such as Craghead and South Stanley. The Middles is part of the wider North East region, with London being around 240 miles to the south. The Middles has a relatively small and settled community, with the River Wear flowing nearby.
The Middles and Durham: AdBlue drains across the area
Throughout DH postcodes, the vans covering The Middles — a residential suburb — work surrounding places as well, South Stanley and Quaking Houses included. Giving us your DH9 6 postcode finds you quickest of all.
Parked heading to Craghead Millennium Green, or bang in the centre of The Middles, your car stays put — there is no need to move it at all. The van empties it where it stands. Phone and check rather than guess if you are close to Craghead Miners Lamp, on a border, or anywhere tricky to pin down.
In one line: your scenario
Where it has not started, phone then keep it that way. Run already? Pull over, turn off, ring. Petrol in Diesel takes over the remainder whatever case, across The Middles and Durham, on 0333 366 0103.