question about DEF fluid

[ford_truck_guy]

well , with this being my first vehicle with DEF fluid , I have a few questions form you seasoned vets . . .

We had a few (5) 2-1/2 gallon totes of blue DEF in our shop that I replaced with a 55 gallon drum.. With that I took those 5 home for use as needed.... from what my book says , I should get upwards of 3,000 miles out of a tank ?? what are you averaging ?? with my truck being primarily used for towing , it will be some time before I get any large numbers.. Dose it have a shelf life? Maybe I would be better off bringing those back and using them in our big trucks and filling up as needed ...???

[Bamaman11]

Note: There is a posting in another forum about a Ford owner that mistakenly put 3 1/2 to 4 cups of DEF in his diesel fuel by mistake. The DEF downloaded granules throughout his fuel system. Damage: $14K covered by insurance. They had pictures of the filters and fuel system, and it was the damnest thing. To do the repairs, the whole cab had to be lifted completely off the truck.

I know some other brands have the DEF filler neck in other places than Ford. But when you deal with diesels, you must pay very close attention anytime you're refueling or adding DEF to an engine.

[jus2shy]

ACZL wrote:

jus2shy wrote:
DEF usage is tied with fuel burn. Basically, you should be burning about 1.5 to 2.5 gallons of DEF for every 100 gallons of fuel you go through.

Do you mean 1,000 miles? Otherwise, that's a lot of DEF use. My semi goes thru approx 7 gal a week/2,000-2,500 miles.

No, I mean 100 gallons of diesel. You're burn rate of 7 gallons over 2,000 to 2,500 miles is about 1 gallon of DEF every 60 gallons of fuel burned assuming you get 6 mpg in your Semi. So that would be in the target area of 1.5 to 2.5 gallons of DEF every 100 gallons of fuel burned (duty cycles alters this). Some people are lucky and are in that 1 to 1.5 gallon range for every 100 gallons of diesel burned. On my RAM, I seem to burn just under 2 gallons of DEF for every 100 gallons of dieselI burn through.

[gmcsmoke]

yes 1-1.25% of fuel used

[ACZL]

jus2shy wrote:
DEF usage is tied with fuel burn. Basically, you should be burning about 1.5 to 2.5 gallons of DEF for every 100 gallons of fuel you go through.

Do you mean 1,000 miles? Otherwise, that's a lot of DEF use. My semi goes thru approx 7 gal a week/2,000-2,500 miles.

[jus2shy]

DEF usage is tied with fuel burn. Basically, you should be burning about 1.5 to 2.5 gallons of DEF for every 100 gallons of fuel you go through.

[ACZL]

FWIW and not a tow vehicle, our VW Passat TDI diesel goes roughly 10K on a fill up of DEF. Tanks holds 5 gallons.

[Rotzilla]

I went 2600 miles on 3/4 tank, 50% towing my 6k TH.
After refilling I have gone 3400 miles on 1/3 of a tank not hauling.
I am fairly certain I can obtain 9k on a full tank of DEF not towing.

[FishOnOne]

I've tried both the Ford DEF 2 gallon and 1 gallon container with the Ford spout and I tried the Blue DEF 2.5 gallon container with it's provided spout.

The Ford setup with their spout is hands down the best. The spout snaps into the DEF port and you simply tilt the container until the DEF no longer flows. It that simple and no spills to worry about like the Blue DEF setup.

Also I choose to stay away from the fuel pump DEF sources in fear of contamination.

I typically change my oil every 6k miles and add ~3 gallons of DEF. During the winter months the trucks actually uses a lot less DEF vs the summer months.

[Bombfixer]

Most truck stops have Def pumps at the refuel islands with the diesel. Towing my 17.5 k fixer, I get about 2000 miles per tank of def. I usually add def every other fuel stop. I have noticed that the more I use the exhaust brake, the more def I use. When leaving on a trip to somewhere I have never been, I keep a 2 1/2 gal jug in the truck bed in case I can't get any on the road. My TV is a 2014 Ram 3500 with the heavy duty diesel and aisin tranny running 4.10 gears

[ford_truck_guy]

got it... picking my nozzle and 2-1/2 gallon bottle today... I will use all the others in our big trucks not my p/u ... once I use this bottle , I will just refill it from our 55 gallon drum... Thanks all

[Lynnmor]

2-1/2

Like this

[ford_truck_guy]

Lynnmor wrote:
Another tidbit:
The Blue DEF jugs are a spill waiting to happen. Get and save the Ford Motorcraft jug and transfer DEF to it for filling the truck. The Ford jug has a seal that fits the port and it stops the flow when full. I heard that Ford may be discontinuing that design so I don't know if it is still available.

is that their 1 gallon or 2-1/2 gallon version ?

[Lynnmor]

Another tidbit:
The Blue DEF jugs are a spill waiting to happen. Get and save the Ford Motorcraft jug and transfer DEF to it for filling the truck. The Ford jug has a seal that fits the port and it stops the flow when full. I heard that Ford may be discontinuing that design so I don't know if it is still available.

[Retired_andLove]

Def definitely has a shelf life. It will crystallize at some point. It will plug the filter in the DEF tank. Don't ask me how I know.