What Now? AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Uffculme
Everything hinges on a single detail: if the motor has been run after the AdBlue was added — more than anything else. Over in Craddock or here around Uffculme, an unrun engine must remain that way. Call 0333 366 0103 with the key and motor still off. Across Uffculme, such a case is generally drained and flushed on the spot. If it has run, stop as soon as it is safe then switch off. A bigger job, yes, but the same opening step.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever across Devon it happened.
Uffculme forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
The cap you opened was the wrong one — and you only spot it as you are stood at the pump, bottle or nozzle in your hand. Be it BP, Regent or anywhere else in Uffculme, the case is the same.
What it means: this is the ideal spot to find out. No pump has pulled it through, so the AdBlue sits just in that tank.
Do this: stay out of the car, even if the pump needs clearing. Ring us from the forecourt after your car is in a bay — the staff will help roll it — and save the bottle. Our equipment is explosion-proof and safe on a live forecourt, so a car that cannot be pushed away gets emptied right at the petrol pump.
Uffculme, at home: AdBlue in your diesel tank
On your dash, a warning had been lit all week. Only by the recycling, the empty container in hand, did you look back at the cap you had used at the drive. It takes place on drives just off High Street as often as anywhere.
In short: if the vehicle hasn't moved since, it's almost equal to spotting it at the forecourt. Being unable to mix, AdBlue settles to the base in the tank and stays. A night standing changes nothing.
Your move: keys in the house, and so no one takes the car anywhere at breakfast. After that, ring. Your drive is where it gets emptied, be it in Uffculme or Yondercott. The equipment works quiet enough that it won't wake the neighbours at night.
AdBlue in a diesel and already driving in Uffculme?
Lumpy running, smoke, lost power or a glowing dashboard started a short way after the top-up. Anywhere on The Square or heading to Exeter — under 25 miles away.
What it means: the system has pulled the AdBlue in. The high-pressure pump and each injector get it as well on a bigger run, after the fuel filter and pipework have had it. It travels deeper with every mile driven and every restart.
Next: find a safe spot, stop, and turn your engine off. Uffculme lies under 3 miles from the M5; on it, come off at the first junction rather than pushing on for the services. Do not restart the car to see if it has cleared; it will not have. Let us know the distance driven as you ring.
Hire, lease or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank
It is a car you have had for a week. Your own vehicle either has no AdBlue or puts it elsewhere, so no one told you the AdBlue cap sits just beside the diesel. It can happen to anyone, anywhere in Devon.
What it means: the same as the scenarios above, depending on whether it has run, with one more stage. Many hire and company agreements want the owner to approve work on the car.
Next: phone the rental company or the fleet manager first, and then us — settling it before our arrival is faster. Keep the car off as the answer arrives, even if you are waiting at Tiverton Parkway or close to Square Corner.
Not sure it was AdBlue in the diesel tank, Uffculme?
"I think so" is sometimes the most honest answer there is. Which cap was taken off, you cannot recall; but the bottle feels lighter than it ought to, and a whiff of ammonia lingers by the filler. It might have been on a friend's driveway in Whitmoor, or in a rush by Uffculme Primary School on the school run.
What it means: a little spilled around the filler does no damage to your engine. In your diesel tank, however, AdBlue harms it. Any AdBlue in that tank would be pulled in by firing up the vehicle, and the start wouldn't settle which it is in any case.
Your move: act as though it got in, and never start your engine. Call us and explain what you saw; we would rather check a tank that turns out clean than drain one that has already been run.
Uffculme: what each AdBlue drain has in common
Every situation gets the same opening to the job. Filling station, driveway, Ostler Inn's car park or a road by St Mary the Virgin — the van comes to the vehicle, and three questions follow: which liquid, which amount, and whether it has run. Your price is given over the phone, ahead of anyone setting off, and those answers set the job.
A thorough flush comes after this drain. With petrol it's routine; with AdBlue it is essential, because deposits build up and certain metals corrode, and neither rinses out unaided. Fresh diesel goes in after your filter is flushed or changed, and your car is finally tested. The majority of unrun vehicles are a half-hour visit after the moment our engineers turn up.
Last, our technicians start the engine. With clean diesel in, it runs while our engineers confirm it is running correctly, and then we head off. If it is spotted soon, the vehicle very seldom has lasting damage, and the whole job happens where it is. You pay on the day, with nothing upfront, and get a VAT invoice and an engineer report for your insurer. It is worth remembering: lots of insurers offer misfuelling cover, so a quick look at your documents while you wait is worthwhile.
About Uffculme and where it is
Uffculme is a village in Devon, situated on the banks of the River Culm at an elevation of 97 metres. Uffculme has a mix of housing types, but terraced houses are predominant, and it is located near other small settlements like Yondercott and Smithincott. Uffculme is close to the city of Exeter, which is approximately 15.5 miles away, and is part of the wider South West region of England.
AdBlue drains about Uffculme and across Devon
Over EX postcodes, the vans covering Uffculme — a village — reach surrounding places too, Smithincott and Appledore included. Giving us your EX15 3 postcode pins you fastest of all.
Whether the vehicle is on a lay-by on the way to Long Shrubbery or in a car park in the middle of Uffculme, it does not need to shift. The drain is done right there. If you are somewhere hard to explain, close to Uffculme Baptist Church or close to a boundary, ring and ask instead of guessing.
The one-line version
Still unrun? Leave it off then ring. Whatever case fits, Petrol in Diesel handles from there on 0333 366 0103, across Devon and within Uffculme — after you stop, switch off then phone, if it's run.