Fuel drainer glossary
The working vocabulary of a fuel drain — the kit, the paperwork and the regulations — as a drainer would explain it at the roadside. If you have just put the wrong fuel in, skip the reading: leave the engine off and call 01295 380724.
Fuel drainer glossary, A to Z
- Drainer
A technician who empties contaminated fuel from a vehicle or tank on site, using a pump and a sealed container.
- Drain and flush
The standard misfuel fix: empty the tank, run clean fuel through the lines, refill and test-start.
- Sealed waste tank
The container on the drainer's van that holds drained fuel until it goes for licensed disposal.
- Filler-neck drain
Draining through the filler neck. Many modern cars have anti-siphon devices that stop this, so drainers often go through a fuel line instead.
- Fuel-line drain
Draining by opening a fuel line near the tank or filter, so a pump can move the fuel out.
- Drip tray
A shallow tray placed under the work to catch any fuel spilled during a drain.
- Controlled waste
Waste regulated under UK environmental law. Drained fuel and waste oil must go to a licensed facility.
- Duty of care
The legal duty on whoever produces waste to make sure it is stored, passed on and disposed of properly. It stays with you until a registered carrier takes the waste.
- Registered waste carrier
A business registered with the environmental regulator to transport waste. Fuel collectors must be registered.
- Waste transfer note
The record of waste passing from one party to another: what it is, how much, and who took it. Used for non-hazardous waste.
- Consignment note
The record used instead of a waste transfer note for hazardous waste in England and Wales. Waste fuels and oils are usually classed as hazardous, so ask which document your carrier will issue.
- Bowser
A mobile fuel tank on a trailer or vehicle, used on farms and sites; also what a collector pumps into.
- Bunded tank
A tank with a second skin or wall that contains any leak, required for many oil storage installations.
- Kerosene (28-second oil)
The heating oil most oil-heated homes use.
- Gas oil (35-second oil)
A heavier fuel for heating and machinery. Red diesel is gas oil marked with dye.
- Partner drainer
In Ireland, an independent local drainer that callers are connected to. They set and confirm their own price.
Background: Misfuelling on Wikipedia.
Sister data: Misfuel Doctor publishes the search-demand and price datasets (catalogue: DCAT). Each dataset lives on one site only.