AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Woodside, and What to Do Next
Has your motor turned over since the AdBlue got in? That single question decides nearly everything else from here. Over in Abbots Langley or right around Woodside, an unstarted motor should stay unrun. Normally this means emptying and properly rinsing it right there around Woodside — and so leave the key and engine off and call 0333 366 0103. Already run? Stop once safe, then switch everything off. Step one stays the same, even though the job is bigger.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever in Hertfordshire it happened.
Woodside forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
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. It might be the Esso, or perhaps the Shell, or a different station in Woodside.
What it means: this is the best spot to find out. Only the tank holds AdBlue; not one component past it has drawn any in.
What to do: do not get back in and crank it to clear the pump. Get the staff to lend a hand rolling it into a bay, hold on to the bottle, then ring us from there. Can't move the vehicle by the pump? Explosion-proof equipment keeps a busy forecourt sensible, and so we can drain it in place.
At home in Woodside with AdBlue in your diesel tank
The warning light had been on for days. Picked up a container, poured it in at home, recycled the empty — and only then looked at the cap again, too late. Driveways near Sheepcot Lane get it as much as anywhere.
The point: no driving since leaves this nearly equal to finding it at the pump. Diesel and AdBlue keep separate: the AdBlue drops to the floor of the tank and stays there, however long it waits.
What to do: leave your keys inside the house so no one moves the vehicle in the morning. Then ring. In Kingswood or right here in Woodside, the drain is done at your driveway. The pumping kit runs quiet enough that it won't wake the street at night.
On the road in Woodside with AdBlue in a diesel
Filled up, pulled away, and soon your engine was running roughly, smoking, losing power, or lighting up your dash. Somewhere along Farmers Close or else heading towards St Albans — under 5 miles away.
What it means: your fuel system has sucked the AdBlue in. It has been through the filter and your lines and, the further you went, into your high-pressure pump and the injectors. Each restart, like each mile, carries it on.
What to do: pull over where it is safe then switch off. On the M1, under 3 miles from Woodside, that means the next exit, not the services further on. Restarting it to test achieves nothing — AdBlue never clears on its own. Roughly what distance did it gone? Say so when you call.
AdBlue in the wrong tank of a hire, lease or company car
It is a motor you have had for a week. On your own vehicle, AdBlue is absent or somewhere else. On this one, the cap is just next to your diesel cap — news to you. It can happen to anyone, anywhere around Hertfordshire.
The upshot: exactly as above, divided by whether it ran, but with an added stage. Plenty of hire and company contracts want the owner to approve work on your car.
Sorting it before we arrives is quicker, and so phone the rental company or your fleet manager, then us. Hanging on for an answer in the car park at Garston, or beside Church Of The Nazarene? Leave your engine off meanwhile.
Unsure about AdBlue in the diesel tank in Woodside?
At times the honest answer is "I think so". The bottle is lighter than it should be, there's a faint smell of ammonia round the filler, and you cannot remember which cap you took off. A hurried top-up by the gates of Alban Wood Primary School and Nursery, or a call to a friend in Waterdale: either fits.
Meaning? Drips outside the filler don't reach your engine at all. Once it's inside your diesel tank, though, that changes. If there is AdBlue in your tank, firing up your car will suck it in, and it would not tell you which either.
Next: act as though it got in, and keep the motor off. Ring us and explain what you saw; we would rather check a tank that turns out clean than drain one that has already been run.
Each AdBlue drain in Woodside shares these steps
The work begins identically, whichever your case. Our technicians come to your car, whether it's at a forecourt, a drive, the car park outside Hammer in Hand or a side street near Woodside Community Centre, and ask three things: what was put in, about how much, and if the motor has been run. Over the phone, ahead of anything else, you hear the price, and those replies decide the work too.
Then your tank is cleared and your system flushed thoroughly, which matters more with AdBlue than with petrol: AdBlue crystallises and is corrosive to some of the metals in a fuel system, and so it does not rinse out on its own. The filter is flushed, or replaced where it needs to be; clean diesel goes in; and the vehicle is tested. Where your motor hasn't run, allow roughly half an hour on site, for most cases.
Starting it comes last. Our check that it runs correctly on fresh diesel comes before our technicians go. We do the entire job where the vehicle is, and permanent damage is very rare if it has been spotted early. For your insurer: the engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment on the day, nothing upfront. Plenty of policies cover misfuelling, and so look at yours while the van travels.
About Woodside and where it is
Woodside is a suburban area in Hertfordshire, situated approximately 17.5 miles northwest of London and 4.8 miles southeast of St Albans. Woodside sits at an elevation of around 92 metres, characterised by its predominantly semi-detached housing stock. Woodside is located near other residential areas such as Kingswood, Leavesden Green, and Garston, and has a population of around 8963 residents.
Woodside and Hertfordshire: AdBlue drains across the area
Leavesden Green and Garston get the same teams as Woodside, a residential suburb, along with other places over WD postcodes. Quickest of all: a WD25 7 postcode for your location.
Centre of Woodside or a lay-by towards Albans Wood: wherever it is, the vehicle doesn't need to move at all for this drain. Our technicians drain the vehicle where it sits. Awkward to pin down? By Vue or a border? Checking beats guessing, and so ring.
Your scenario, in one line
Not run yet: keep it off then call. Run already: pull over, switch down, phone 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel handles the rest, in Woodside or anywhere across Hertfordshire.