Adblue shelf life

[Moped]

We normally top up adblue in our Fiat Ducatto based motorhome within a few miles of the warning light coming on.

Now I understand the reserve is around 5ltr in a 15ltr tank. So there is always some old adblue swilling around.

Initially it took 10ltr to fill up tank. Then last year 9ltr. This last fill up took 7.5ltr.

I am concerned that the old reserve adblue has degraded and affected the new adblue or in some way affected the warning light levels.

Our motorhome was also in storage for 3 months before being used again for our Spain trip. Unlike trucks and cars and commercial vans, motorhomes can have long periods of storage. Unlike diesel, adblue does have a shelf life.

So what are the thoughts of other adblue motorhome users?

Have you noticed changes to your adblue system and performance over time?

Does crystallisation of old adblue in the tank affect its capacity and eventually requiring maintenance of some sort?

 

[Robmac]

Apparently Adblue has a shelf life of a year but is probably still good up to 2 years according to son in laws mate who is a mechanic.

 

[Moped]

Apparently Adblue has a shelf life of a year but is probably still good up to 2 years according to son in laws mate who is a mechanic.

So because we always top up when there is around 5ltr left in the adblue tank there must be some adblue in there in the mix that is now almost 4 years old.

Unless of course the fresh adblue feeds a separate 5ltr smaller tank so that the 5ltr reserve always gets used first.

The reason I ask though is that over the years the fill up quantity has declined which suggests to me something is afoot.

 

[Robmac]

So because we always top up when there is around 5ltr left in the adblue tank there must be some adblue in there in the mix that is now almost 4 years old.

Unless of course the fresh adblue feeds a separate 5ltr smaller tank so that the 5ltr reserve always gets used first.

The reason I ask though is that over the years the fill up quantity has declined which suggests to me something is afoot.

I'm afraid I wouldn't know how the reserve tank works for Adblue as I don't own a vehicle that uses it - is the reserve a separate tank or part of the main tank in which case it wouldn't matter?

I will ask my son in law when he gets back.

 

[Robmac]

A quick Google search would seem to suggest that the 'reserve' works just like a Diesel tank reserve, ie you are alerted when it drops to a certain level.

In which case the remaining fluid is diluted with fresh every time you fill it.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

If it does have a shortish life it being parked 90% of the time I wouldn't fill it up at all, if you know for sure there is 5 ltrs when the light comes on, and you know when you last filled and the mileage and how much you put in you can work out when it's really low and just keep enough in so it's always safe to drive and carry a 5 ltr container.

 

[mark61]

Not noticed any change in mine and it's 8 years old now, but then again it doesn't go into storage.

I've always understood, ad blue easily dissolves ad blu crystals, no idea if my understanding is correct though.

There are also ad blue additives to prevent crystals forming, so may well be my understanding is wrong.

I've never used one though. Another thing to read up on I suppose.

https://www.forteuk.co.uk/product/exhaust-crystal-preventer-cv/

 

[Moped]

If it does have a shortish life it being parked 90% of the time I wouldn't fill it up at all, if you know for sure there is 5 ltrs when the light comes on, and you know when you last filled and the mileage and how much you put in you can work out when it's really low and just keep enough in so it's always safe to drive and carry a 5 ltr container.

Good answer!

I find filling from a container a PITA though as it always spills everywhere even with those that have screw on filler pipes.. The Ducatto filler point is in an awkward position. I always try and find and use a service station filler pump as this offers a clean fill.

But still a good answer!

What are the implications though if the adblue runs out completely. I know the van will grind to a halt. Is there a red light warning that you are about to run out and need to pull over pronto?

And what about restarting after running out? Is this problematic.

 

[mark61]

Good answer!

I find filling from a container a PITA though as it always spills everywhere even with those that have screw on filler pipes.. The Ducatto filler point is in an awkward position. I always try and find and use a service station filler pump as this offers a clean fill.

But still a good answer!

What are the implications though if the adblue runs out completely. I know the van will grind to a halt. Is there a red light warning that you are about to run out and need to pull over pronto?

And what about restarting after running out? Is this problematic.

Check in the manual what happens if you run tank dry, it's different for different makes models.

One of the vans I had it won't allow you to start after a very short period of no ad blue, other van just goes into limp mode.

 

[RichardHelen262]

As it gets older adblue will start to crystallise you can buy adatives that prevent this, well worth adding to vehicles that don’t do a lot of miles, and do a lot of standing about

 

[Robmac]

Good answer!

I find filling from a container a PITA though as it always spills everywhere even with those that have screw on filler pipes.. The Ducatto filler point is in an awkward position. I always try and find and use a service station filler pump as this offers a clean fill.

But still a good answer!

What are the implications though if the adblue runs out completely. I know the van will grind to a halt. Is there a red light warning that you are about to run out and need to pull over pronto?

And what about restarting after running out? Is this problematic.

If you are worried about it I would simply drain the tank and refill it with fresh.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

Good answer!

I find filling from a container a PITA though as it always spills everywhere even with those that have screw on filler pipes.. The Ducatto filler point is in an awkward position. I always try and find and use a service station filler pump as this offers a clean fill.

But still a good answer!

What are the implications though if the adblue runs out completely. I know the van will grind to a halt. Is there a red light warning that you are about to run out and need to pull over pronto?

And what about restarting after running out? Is this problematic.

Mine is an 07 van so no answer for you, I think this is a dealer question rather than guesses on Google etc.

Way back two stroke bikes had a similar issue with the oil for the crankshaft.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

If you are worried about it I would simply drain the tank and refill it with fresh.

Can they be drained, if so a good idea and put a BIG sign on the steering wheel

 

[Robmac]

Can they be drained, if so a good idea and put a BIG sign on the steering wheel

I would have thought so Kev but I would imagine the difficulty varies from vehicle to vehicle.

 

[yeoblade]

///

The reason I ask though is that over the years the fill up quantity has declined which suggests to me something is afoot.

I think usage is dependent of manner of driving too, so maybe nothings afoot.

---

 

[Robmac]

Can they be drained, if so a good idea and put a BIG sign on the steering wheel

Is the Ducato the same engine as the Peugot Boxer?

If so, the drain plug is shown at 4:04 in the following video;

 

[Moped]

I think usage is dependent of manner of driving too, so maybe nothings afoot.

---

I only fill up when the warning light comes on. This is down to the level of fluid in the adblue tank. I was surprised when the last fill only accepted 7.5 ltr post warning light in a 15ltr tank including the (alledgedly?) 5ltr reserve. In the early days 10ltr was normal.

Hence the question.

I will get the Wynns adblue additive which claims to decrystalize any crystal build up and see if that improves things. It may also improve adblue consumption so may pay for itself in time.

 

[colinm]

The evidence so far seems to be that refilling is not a problem, just the same as refilling your fuel tank.

 

[Fisherman]

I only fill up when the warning light comes on. This is down to the level of fluid in the adblue tank. I was surprised when the last fill only accepted 7.5 ltr post warning light in a 15ltr tank including the (alledgedly?) 5ltr reserve. In the early days 10ltr was normal.

Hence the question.

I will get the Wynns adblue additive which claims to decrystalize any crystal build up and see if that improves things. It may also improve adblue consumption so may pay for itself in time.

what’s the shelf life of the additive.
I see it on eBay a 500 ml bottle for £15

Wynns Crystal Clean & Protect Diesel Additive AdBlue Cleaning Treatment 500ml | eBay

Avoid costly repairs on AdBlue® components by preventing crystallization and keeping the SCR system clean. It prevents the formation of Crystal deposits, avoids costly repairs to the AdBlue® system and improves SCR operation.

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[Drover]

Once you open the bottle of adblue you should use it all . It then has no shelf life.
Filling from a pump gets complicated..
I would say to drain and flush your tank.
After 3 months in storage and a temp around 30c it is out of date.
Petrol also has a 3 month use by date when the temperatures get towards 30c