Stuff people have put in a DEF Tank

[mwilson]

Up until last week I had seen the following fluids poured into a Big Truck DEF tank....

(1) DEF Fluid (Good) (Big Thumbs Up!!)

(2) Diesel Fuel (Not Good!) (Big Thumbs Down!!)

(3) Windshield Washer Fluid (Not Good!) (Both Thumbs Down!!) (Caught that driver when he came back in the store 10 minutes after getting one 6 gallon case of W/S Wash for a second 6 gallon case of W/S Wash, usually a couple gallons will fill a Cascadia Washer Tank...)

And now there is a fourth one after the long stint of cold weather....

(4) Power Service "911" (Really Not Good!!!) (Run like Hell!!!)

Fleet called us, told us that "911" was dumped into the DEF Tank...we told them to shut it down RIGHT NOW. Not really sure if atomized "911" is a good thing to be sprayed into a hot DOC/SCR Module, just sayin'.......

Never a dull moment here...

 

[jgillott]

I have been told many times by the Mercedes dealer that I purchased my Sprinter from that they would prefer that the owners come to the dealership for DEF refills. That is 2 fold. First, they charge something like $60/gal for DEF. But secondly, they have a long line of stories like yours of things that have ended up in the DEF tank.

The tank is under the hood on the Sprinter clearly labeled DEF. I could possibly see someone adding window washer fluid or even antifreeze by accident. But, you would think that nobody would lift the hood and pump diesel in to an tank under the hood. Well, according to them, it has happened.

 

[6V92TA]

I work in a fleet, we fuel and service our own equipment.. and when we first started running DEF equipped vehicles in 2011 the lack of familiarity with the stuff caused a monumental goof-up with the first vehicle the first time we had to replace a barrel of DEf.. the maintenance guy that swaps barrels on our fuel island was told to get the white barrel from the shed and use it to replace the empty barrel of DEF.. it was a white barrel of aluminum wheel cleaner instead of a white barrel of Fleetgard DEF. LOL..

 

[6V92TA]

I know a guy who pumped diesel fuel into his Harley. people screw up all the time, some unwittingly and some are just ignorant

 

[TRAMPLINEMAN]

I use 911 as an igniter in my fire pit. It is extremely flammable and burns really hot. So no, spraying it into a hot DOC/SCR would not be good.

 

[The patriot]

Lol.
This makes the tide pod challenge look normal.

 

[Newsa]

Once with a jug of Def in my hand o took the cap off the diesel filler, then I felt REALLY stupid. And put the cap back on and did it right.

Man, I will never call anyone stupid again. I was just really tired!

 

[cerberusiam]

Then there was the guy with the 06 that swears his truck has an SCR system because for 10 years he has been filling that container by the radiator with DEF.

 

[jgillott]

Then there was the guy with the 06 that swears his truck has an SCR system because for 10 years he has been filling that container by the radiator with DEF.

You can't be serious

 

[mwilson]

You can't be serious

Oh yes, he is serious....

 

[AussieRam]

We are seeing more service stations with DEF available through a separate browser. Great idea, fill up at the same time as the diesel, only $1 a litre (about $3.50 a gallon converted to $US). First time I tried to refill the pump wouldn't work. The attendant came and checked that I did mean to fill with DEF, they had people filling up their diesel and gas tanks with it !!!

 

[cerberusiam]

Lol.
This makes the tide pod challenge look normal.

Was that the 911 in the DEF tank or in the fire pit?

Speaking of the tide pod challenge brings to mind another sage observation. The millennial' s continue to be a pain in the backside, but, from their point of view the Boomers and GenX cannot keep the government open while the Gen Z is busy eating laundry pods. I guess the point of view really is relative.

 

[Wayne M.]

Co worker came from a truck heavy GM dealership, and you know the GMC HD’s fill under the hood, so you can imagine the stories he’s had. I can understand the logic with the underhood location, with the warm environment and all, but it’s really not a good idea.
At the job, they invested in a dispensing system for the 54 garages, but it hasn’t been reliable, so since we don’t really monitor the fueling ops, they went and set up he barrels like it’s coolant and started bucketing. And using anything that’ll hold liquid. I’ll let your imagination take over, but I have to admit the Volvo/Mack SCR system is pretty robust, and has a replaceable filter. It’s probably the best system I’ve seen so far.

 

[Osteoblast]

De-ionized water works all day long, and is LOTS cheaper.

 

[Newsa]

De-ionized water works all day long, and is LOTS cheaper.

Except your NOx sensor will be throwing codes all day long

 

[DonFitzwater]

You can't be serious

Quite serious.....he was seeing his empty washer fluid tank warning and thought it was DEF. I posted a picture of the wiper fluid icon in the thread and he disappeared. Poor guy

 

[Osteoblast]

Except your NOx sensor will be throwing codes all day long

Nope, not on my Ecodiesel

 

[jgillott]

Quite serious.....he was seeing his empty washer fluid tank warning and thought it was DEF. I posted a picture of the wiper fluid icon in the thread and he disappeared. Poor guy

Wow. That's really sad if you think about it. Yea, we often get in to pretty intense exchanges over little things. But, we forget that there is an entire segment of population that have absolutely no idea of the basic operation of these vehicles.

 

[Jim W]

Wow. That's really sad if you think about it. Yea, we often get in to pretty intense exchanges over little things. But, we forget that there is an entire segment of population that have absolutely no idea of the basic operation of these vehicles.

X2; and it is getting worse every year. If they can't locate the information on their phones they have no idea on how to fix anything. Just look at the commercial for some insurance co. Where the kid is calling his dad about a flat tire and asking his friend if this is a lug wrench?

 

[Wayne M.]

X2; and it is getting worse every year. If they can't locate the information on their phones they have no idea on how to fix anything. Just look at the commercial for some insurance co. Where the kid is calling his dad about a flat tire and asking his friend if this is a lug wrench?

So true. So sad. But in the slightest defense, I had no idea what this did in the new shop truck.