DEF treatment - any results yet?

[Stuntman Mike]

How long does a tank last? Imagine running out in the Darian straight.

Around 10.000 miles.

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[Dougstdig]

How long does a tank last? Imagine running out in the Darian straight.

Honestly, I can’t remember. My driving is so sporadic. A lot of it will depend on idle time city mixture highway driving time. I usually wait until my tank is half full and then I just fill it with a jug. An old trick my daddy told me that would reduce, condensation in the tank. The last time I filled it up with one jug it was just below a quarter and it filled me just beyond 3/4 and that’s been at least a month ago. I’m waiting for it to get back down to a half so I can fill it back up without having extra in a tank that I’d have to store.

 

[PuddleJumper]

Around 10.000 miles.

ahh that makes sense. your bound to find DEF somewhere with that range.

 

[mrmo]

It’s not a rare item. You can pick it up all over the place. You’re very likely to get well over 5,000 miles on a full DPF tank. So just like changing your oil before a long trip…do any service that needs to be done.

5000 miles? that aint what im getting, especially if towing anything. I towed a 12' enclosed utility w medium load from Fla to Tn and it used nearly a tanks worth

 

[Dougstdig]

5000 miles? that aint what im getting, especially if towing anything. I towed a 12' enclosed utility w mediu. load from Fla to Tn and it used nearly a tanks worth

A lot of it depends on how you’re using the engine. I would expect you would consume more with towing, climbing, steep grades, driving into the wind, high idle times and aggressive use of the skinny peddle.

 

[biodiesel]

Like what do u do if your on a long trip across multiple countries and you run out out of DEF. Does the truck just not run?

The DEF tank on my 2015 EcoDiesel has an 8-gallon capacity, which is nice for long distance towing. I live in the mountain west where it can be very rural and remote. I don't do much towing with the Gladiator, but I do a lot of towing with the 2015 and 2020 Ram EcoDiesels. The 2020 has the smaller 5-gallon DEF tank. If I'm going to be towing on a long 2,000+ mile trip, then I carry an extra 2.5-gallon jug of Platinum with me.

A few years ago, I was coming from California back to New Mexico towing the travel trailer. I had the DEF warning light (and chime) come on when I was in the middle of Utah. I pulled over and added a 2.5-gallon jug, which was enough to get me back home.

You can find DEF literally everywhere (Walmart, fuel stations, Home Depot, grocery stores, etc. Since I prefer Platinum, I've found it just as easy to carry it with me and not have to worry about looking for it while on the road.

 

[fourfa]

Not towing, just road trips and wheeling (with a heavy and draggy Canopy Camper) I get around 1000 mpg of DEF. All of us are capable of planning around it at 1000 mpg.

Towing is worse obviously and it makes sense to carry some spare when towing.

How to plan for driving the Darien Gap is a red herring, you're not going to do that and neither is anyone here, and DEF is the least of your worries if you do. Let's be real.

 

[Free2roam]

Platinum Def is just def with a fancy name. I used to work in the facility that made Def. It all came from a railcar was mixed out of the same tank blended the same way. They made it for O'Reilly's, AutoZone, Walmart, and a slew of other places. Same as windshield washer fluid. Same shit different bottle. No change in formula except maybe color. To top it off the place was a shit show. Horrible place to work. Sorry for the bad news.

 

[Gecko4]

Platinum Def is just def with a fancy name. I used to work in the facility that made Def. It all came from a railcar was mixed out of the same tank blended the same way. They made it for O'Reilly's, AutoZone, Walmart, and a slew of other places. Same as windshield washer fluid. Same shit different bottle. No change in formula except maybe color. To top it off the place was a shit show. Horrible place to work. Sorry for the bad news.

Yup, you are correct. The formula is simple deionized water and urea. The ratio has to be spot on for the ISO certification. Platinum, Adblu, etc…all the same. Freshness is the only wildcard.

 

[DylanM]

In case anybody's interested or has doubts about what's in BlueDEF Platinum, just read section 3 of the SDS: https://content.interlinebrands.com/product/document/44/314609665_SDS_E.pdf

 

[Rusty PW]

I've been getting between 2,400 to 2,500 miles per 2.5 gallons of DEF. I fill up when I get to the half way point. I've used everything from $6.00 a 2.5 gal jug at Rural King to $22.00 Platinum.

 

[biodiesel]

Platinum Def is just def with a fancy name.

Please don't post false information. Platinum has a surfactant added which drastically reduces deposit formation during lower temperature operation. This has been proven over and over again. I posted the explanation in the SAE paper earlier in this thread.

 

[biodiesel]

Yup, you are correct. The formula is simple deionized water and urea. The ratio has to be spot on for the ISO certification. Platinum, Adblu, etc…all the same. Freshness is the only wildcard.

Again, false information.

 

[biodiesel]

In case anybody's interested or has doubts about what's in BlueDEF Platinum, just read section 3 of the SDS:

They are not required to list proprietary information.

 

[biodiesel]

If you look at the SAE study, you'll notice that Europe was already using additivated DEF long before it came to the United States. DIAXOL (Total), CleanR Max (Renault Trucks Oil), and Air 1 OptiSpray (Yara) were already being used. Platinum was the first to be marketed here in the U.S.A, but it was clearly not a new concept.

I talked to a guy that maintains a fleet of city buses. He said the buses were subjected to low temp operation so often that he was dealing with clogged DEF injectors fairly frequently, which was causing a lot of issues and downtime. When Platinum was introduced, those issues were significantly minimized.

If you do much low temp operation, you'll eventually have deposits buildup around the injector and SCR. It might take 60,000 miles (or more) before the EcoDiesel throws a code, but eventually, you will get the P20E9 (reductant pressure too high) code.

Some people pull the DEF injector once or twice per year and clean it. However, cleaning the injector is only half of the solution. The rest of the deposits are getting caught in the SCR. This will eventually restrict flow and rob power and fuel economy.

This is why so many people end up deleting their diesel-powered vehicles. However, the emissions systems will last a very long time if we keep them working properly. The highest mileage 2nd EcoDiesel (bone stock) I've seen had 433,323 miles on it and still in operation as of last month when I got an update. The owner/operator works for some type of a medical service in which he delivers medical supplies. He said that 97% of his miles are highway driving. If we drive our EcoDiesels in ideal situations, then we won't have as many problems.

But if you drive like I do, especially in a cold climate region, then you will want to use some type of DEF (or additive) that is designed to greatly reduce deposits. It will save you headaches, repairs, fuel economy, and downtime.

I learned my lesson when my truck triggered P20E9 and "Engine will not restart in 200 miles, Service DEF, See Dealer".

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