Blue DEF

NRALIFR wrote:

rhagfo wrote:

Lynnmor wrote:
DEF is DEF, buy whatever has the lowest price. I do have concerns with dirty nozzles at truck stops, but many use it with no problems. Walmart most likely has the best price on their own brand.

agesilaus wrote:
As noted DEF is DEF is DEF. It is all the same, save yourself some money and buy the $7 stuff from Walmart.

So you are both certified chemist that have tested all brands of DEF on all counts including purity.

The effects of less pure DEF likely will not appear right away, the same as using cheap engine oil will only build sludge which leads to issues down the road.
As often as I need to add DEF I will use a brand name.

I’m not a chemist, but I have a DEF refractometer and use it to check the DEF that I buy in jugs, and keep at home. Cheap DEF, expensive DEF, new DEF, old DEF, BlueDEF or Supertech DEF, if the refractometer says the urea is 32.5%, it will do it’s job in your exhaust system. DEF doesn’t get used in, burned by, consumed by, or run through the engine, so you don’t have to worry about any sludge buildup there.

Because DEF is a legally required pollution control fluid used in literally millions and millions of Diesel engines, the urea used to produce DEF is already extremely pure, pharmaceutical grade. The only other substance in DEF is deionized water.

Diesel Exhaust Fluid doesn’t degrade nearly as quickly as people assume. For example, at 86°F, DEF has a shelf life of a year. BUT REMEMBER: Don’t equate shelf life to spoiling like food, as DEF will not “go bad”. It will lose some effectiveness, and the SCR will dose at a higher rate, but it won’t “go bad.” If maintained at a constant temperature, DEF manages to stay for several months. For example, at 74°F Diesel Exhaust Fluid has the shelf life of 44 months.

My garage supply cabinets get zero sunlight, and rarely if ever exceed 85 degrees. I don’t stockpile it, but I’ve usually got a 2.5 gallon box or jug of it my garage. I make note of the date code on it when I buy it. It’s always used up in less than a year.

When my truck says the DEF tank is less than 1/2 full, I pour in 2.5 gallons when I get home, and buy a new jug the next time I’m able. If we’re on a long trip and it gets under 1/2 full, the next time I need to stop at a Walmart I buy a jug or box and dump it in. I have never used the bulk pumps because there’s never a convenient one when I need it. I’m not driving miles out of my way to buy such a low usage item in order to save what? About a dollar a gallon?

Finally, ONLY product that adheres to the ISO 22241 specification and is licensed with the API can be called Diesel Exhaust Fluid…all other products are simply Urea Solutions to various concentrations and cannot be called Diesel Exhaust Fluid.

:):)

first real good answer here, I can add a couple thing. DEF freezes at -10C or 14F which is why you have heaters in your def tank. so from personal experiance if you live in an area that sees freezing temps a lot never fill up from a truck stop in the winter, or fill untill it comes out of the filler. I know for my truck they say add one jug when it says 1/2 full this allows expansion room in the tank.
I made this mistake once and the result was a cracked housing allowing the def to leak into the heater coil area, the fix was a brand new heater assembly and 3 hours of my time. ford up here wanted 1600 bucks to do the job. also as stated a few times, buy the cheepest one, they are all mandated to be a spicifc purity and such and they are a POST treatment so the worst that I can see happening is they dont work quite as good if your doing a smog test but should still be good enough to do the job.

Steve