What happens if you put a little bit of DEF in your diesel tank?
What happens if DEF is put into the fuel tank? Typically, if DEF is introduced to the fuel tank, the truck will run poorly or even fail to start. Repairs to the fuel system can be costly. Components that have been contaminated with DEF will show crystallization after drying for a few hours as seen in Photo 1.
If DEF enters the fuel system and spread throughout the engine it will ruin the diesel engine eventually. The fuel system lines are not compatible with DEF and slowly corrode and over time.
As AdBlue is not compatible with any engine materials it can very quickly corrode all components and pipework within the engine. If this happens the entire fuel system will need to be replaced. You must contact a professional to drain the tank immediately and dispose of all contaminated fluid.
If your DEF drops below 2.5%, the light will be a solid amber. If you decide to ignore it, at the point where you run out of DEF, the light will glow solid red. It gets worse. If you ignore the solid red, your vehicle speed will be reduced to a snail's pace – 5 miles per hour – until you top up the DEF tank.
If you put DEF in a diesel tank, it will only take minutes before you start noticing issues with your vehicle. The DEF will gum up the various components in the vehicle's fuel system, and ultimately the DEF will begin to crystallize to sensitive parts in your vehicle.
Early symptoms include hard starting, rough idle and smoking exhaust, and a DEF-contaminated engine may not start at all. The contamination can cause lines to rust, injectors to stick open and fail, and pump failure is also very likely. The recommend repair is to replace the entire fuel system, from tank to injectors.
Diesel Exhaust Fluid quality can be affected by: Crystallization: Crystallization can occur in a couple of ways – over-dosing and hard water top ups. Over-dosing occurs when too much DEF is added to the system – the DEF may not fully hydrolyze which can lead to crystalized deposits in the exhaust or injector nozzle.
A hose can be attached to drain the DEF to prevent it from any spills. As DEF is highly corrosive, the SS version DEF Drain Valve is designed to withstand these properties, using all SS 304 components and a Viton O-ring to seal.
If the DEF tank contains less than 5% of its capacity, the equipment engine power will de-rate. Enough power will be available, however, to travel a short distance, so that you can add more fluid to the tank. The DEF tank needs to be filled once for every 3 to 4 times that you refuel with diesel fuel.
Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) is a solution of urea and water that's injected into the exhaust stream of diesel vehicles to turn NOx gases (harmful emissions) into nitrogen and water. This system is called a Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) implemented by vehicle manufacturers to meet EPA emissions standards in 2010.
How does a DEF tank contaminate?
This contamination usually happens when the DEF is purchased at the pump. It is corrosive and when added to the diesel tank it corrodes many parts of the fuel system. Bad contamination usually means you would need to replace the fuel filters, high-pressure fuel pump and the injectors, at minimum.