What Now? AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Washbrook
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: if the motor has run since it went in. If it has not, keep it that way, whether the car is in Washbrook itself or out in Belstead. Usually this is draining and properly cleaning it on the spot in Washbrook — and so leave the key and motor off and phone 0333 366 0103. If it's run, stop as soon as it is safe then switch off. Stage one remains unchanged, even though the work grows.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever across Suffolk it happened.
At the petrol pump around Washbrook: AdBlue in a diesel
You are 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. Possibly you are at the Washbrook Service Station, maybe at the Tesco Extra Fuel 24h, maybe somewhere else in Washbrook.
Put simply: no better spot exists to spot it. Nothing has drawn it through, and so the AdBlue sits only inside the tank.
Next: avoid the urge to start it just to free up the petrol pump. Have the staff to help pushing it to a space, save the receipt, then ring us right there. Stuck by the petrol pump? Our explosion-proof equipment makes a busy forecourt safe, and so we can drain it where it is.
Washbrook, at home: AdBlue in your diesel tank
Days had gone by with the warning light on. Only by the recycling, the empty bottle in hand, did you look back at the cap you had opened at the driveway. It occurs on driveways just off Back Lane as often as anywhere.
What it means: if you have not driven since, this is almost as good as the forecourt. AdBlue does not mix with diesel; it sinks to the bottom of your tank and waits there. Overnight doesn't change that.
Put the keys indoors tonight — or a person might take it away first thing — then call us. Your drive is where it is emptied, whether in Washbrook or Copdock. Night-time drains outside a house are fine: the pumps are low-noise.
On the road in Washbrook with AdBlue in a diesel
You filled up, set off, and a mile or two later the motor began to run roughly, smoke, lose power or light up the dashboard. Anywhere along The Street or else on the road to Colchester — under 15 miles away.
What it means: the system has sucked the AdBlue in. Mileage decides how far it goes: filter and lines to begin with, then the injection pump and every injector. Every restart, like each mile, pushes it on.
Pull in safely — that is the next step — then switch it off. On the M11, under 50 miles from Washbrook, that means the next junction, not the services further on. No test starts: clearing itself isn't something AdBlue will do. About what distance did it go? Tell us when you call.
AdBlue in the wrong tank of a hire, lease or company car
Seven days back, the car was new to you. Unknown to you, the two fillers are side by side here — not like your own vehicle, which has no AdBlue or stores it elsewhere. It can happen to anyone, anywhere around Suffolk.
What it means: the same as the scenarios above, depending on whether it's run, with one more step. Plenty of hire and company agreements want the owner to approve work on the vehicle.
Next: ring the rental company or the fleet manager first, then us — settling it before our arrival is faster. Keep it off while the answer comes, even if you are parked at Ipswich or near Copdock & Washbrook Village Sign.
Not sure it was AdBlue in the diesel tank, Washbrook?
Honestly, the only answer might be that you think so. The bottle is lighter than it should be, there is a faint smell of ammonia around your filler, and you cannot remember which cap you took off. The gates of Copdock Primary School in a rush, say, or someone's drive out in Bucks Horn Place.
What it means: a little spilled around the filler does no harm to your motor. AdBlue inside the diesel tank does. Starting the car will not tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in your tank it will suck it in.
What to do: treat it as if it got in. Don't start the car. Tell us what you saw on your phone. A clear tank looked at counts as a happier result than an already-run one emptied.
What each AdBlue drain in Washbrook has in common
Whatever the situation, one opening is used. Three things are asked once we reach your car — at a filling station, a driveway, a street beside The Church Hall or the car park at Brook Inn: the fluid, the quantity, and if the motor has run. Those answers decide this work, and you hear our price on the phone, before anybody sets off.
Draining that tank comes first, followed by a full flush — more vital with urea than with petrol, because crystals and corrosion will not clear on their own, no matter how long you wait. Next is the fuel filter — flushed, or replaced where needed — followed by fresh diesel, and a test of the vehicle. Most unstarted vehicles are a half-hour visit after the moment our engineers arrive.
Finally, our technicians start the engine. Our check that it runs properly on fresh diesel comes before we head off. Our technicians do the entire job where the vehicle is, and lasting damage is very unusual if it has been caught soon. For your insurer: an engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment that day, nothing in advance. Many insurance policies include misfuelling cover, and so it is worth checking yours while we're on the way.
About Washbrook, briefly
Washbrook is a village in Suffolk, situated on the banks of a river at an elevation of around 23 metres. Washbrook lies near the villages of Copdock and Washbrook Street, and is close to the larger town of Colchester. Washbrook has a population of approximately 841 people, predominantly living in detached houses. Washbrook is located about 63.5 miles from London, making it a rural community with some commuter links.
AdBlue drains around Washbrook, and across Suffolk too
As a village, Washbrook has the same vans as the nearby places — Mace Green, Washbrook Street — all the way across IP postcodes. Quickest of all: a IP8 3 postcode for your location.
Stopped en route to Brook Park, or bang in the heart of Washbrook, the vehicle remains put — there's no need to move it anywhere. Our van empties it where it stands. Ring and check rather than guess if you're close to St Peter, on a boundary, or anywhere tricky to explain.
The one-line version
Engine not started: ring, leaving it alone. Run by now: stop, power down, ring 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel handles the remainder, in Washbrook or anywhere in Suffolk.