[meedz24]

I went into the dealer today to buy a 2L bottle of ADBLUE - Seems that from my research most of you buy the 2L bottle and cut the top to use as a funnel for future fills.

That being said, the parts guy convinced me that it was a bad idea. He states that when you use the funnel you're introducing air into the mixture while pouring it in, which in the long run will form crystallization in the tank and clog the system. He says he's seen this numerous times because people are using the funnel system instead of the airtight adapter.

In the last year they introduced a new adapter for the 10L jugs of ADBLUE - its roughly a 2-3ft hose with connectors on both ends to go into the jug and tank. With the 2L bottle priced at $20 and the 10L jug priced at $25, I would be stupid not to get the 10L.

Now the question - is he right about the air mixture? Thinking about it now, there will always be air in the mixture (the hose itself that it's flowing through is initially filled with air, furthermore, the bottle itself has air in it - it's not airtight.

Interestingly he also told me that I don't need ADBLUE, and that all DEF fluid is exactly the same (didn't think the dealer would ever tell me that lol).

What do you think?

 

[tamorgen]

I went into the dealer today to buy a 2L bottle of ADBLUE - Seems that from my research most of you buy the 2L bottle and cut the top to use as a funnel for future fills.

That being said, the parts guy convinced me that it was a bad idea. He states that when you use the funnel you're introducing air into the mixture while pouring it in, which in the long run will form crystallization in the tank and clog the system. He says he's seen this numerous times because people are using the funnel system instead of the airtight adapter.

In the last year they introduced a new adapter for the 10L jugs of ADBLUE - its roughly a 2-3ft hose with connectors on both ends to go into the jug and tank. With the 2L bottle priced at $20 and the 10L jug priced at $25, I would be stupid not to get the 10L.

Now the question - is he right about the air mixture? Thinking about it now, there will always be air in the mixture (the hose itself that it's flowing through is initially filled with air, furthermore, the bottle itself has air in it - it's not airtight.

Interestingly he also told me that I don't need ADBLUE, and that all DEF fluid is exactly the same (didn't think the dealer would ever tell me that lol).

What do you think?

He's correct that DEF and AdBlue are the exact same thing. AdBlue is just the brand. I just bought 5 gallons (2 x 2.5 G jugs) at Walmart for $15. I can't imagine that the air would cause an issue, as you said, the funnel has air in it. The only way I could see it is if you pour quickly into the funnel and the mixture froths somehow. Other than that, OTR truckers use it all the time in their big rig diesels without the special VW system and have no problems. I'd want to see more articles confirming that VW has a problem with air in the mixture.

 

[MJHandy]

I'll also call BS on this. Sounds like they want to only buy from them, rather than another brand. I just buy the big jugs that have a flex hose.

Which reminds me, i should get some today too.

 

[rfuss928]

I buy the 10L jugs at the VW dealer - list price $12.99 IIRC. Not only is it the lowest price I have ever seen for DEF but it lets me show that I have only used VW AdBlue in the system in case I ever have issues with the AdBlue system as other have posted. 6 years and 100k miles on two TDI Tregs with no issues so I'm not real concerned. It just seems the way to go for me.

The "air" concern is BS. I've watched the VW service techs use a funnel and big jug several times and I've had to clean up the crystals that form in the spare tire well from their spills. That's why I take care of it myself now. It's as easy as refilling the windshield washer fluid.

 

[vanfx]

Just because a Tech uses a funnel does not mean it is right, they are paid Flat Rate and want to book 20 hours in an 8 hour shift.
I work on a fleet of Mercedes Sprinters and constantly have issues regarding the DEF. On the Sprinters it will give you a limited amount of starts to re fill the DEF. We pump our fluid from a 45 gallon barrel. Recently all of our vehicles are full, but showing the warning of 5 starts left. I have taken the tanks apart and they are full of crystals which is making the float stick. At $2500 plus for the repair per vehicle with our fleet we are moving towards Mercedes only DEF and smaller bottles. In a few months we will know if this fixes the ongoing problem. I have a 15 TDI Treg and have not had to add fluid yet, but I will buy the dealers fill tool and their fluid.

 

[4ePikanini]

as the tank gets empty it must introduce air to take up the void. When you are driving around it will slosh.

Just fill and go.

 

[tamorgen]

as the tank gets empty it must introduce air to take up the void. When you are driving around it will slosh.

Just fill and go.

I hadn't thought of that, very good point. I also had asked my dealer when buying the 1.89L bottle to convert to a funnel, and they pretty much said the same thing, that it doesn't matter if it's OEM or not. As long as its 34% Urea, then you're good to go.