Heat Effect on Diesel Exhaust Fluid

tdeperte · Jun 19, 2016

I live in the Phoenix area where the temperatures right now are above 86 degrees most of the time. I don't drive my truck a lot and average 6K miles a year. I am concerned about the DEF going bad. According to most literature DEF shelf life is 30 days when kept at 86 degrees or higher. It's 120 here today.

My first mistake was adding a whole 2 1/2 gal DEF jug in Feb. I should have just added a quart or so. From now on it's a quart or two at a time and the rest goes into the fridge.

Anyone here experiencing DEF going bad from heat?

SouthTexan · Jun 19, 2016

DEF should last about 1 year at 86F. At a constant 95F, it's shelf life is decreased to a little over 6 months which is still plenty of time for most people to travel the 5,000 - 6,000 miles to use up one tank.

I wouldn't buy the jugs though. Not only is the DEF at the pumps much cheaper, but it is also fresher being stored under ground away from the heat. There is no telling where or how long the jugs were stored before they were put on the shelf.

Ratket · Jun 19, 2016

^ Just get a "gas can " designate it for deff only and fill it at the pump if u are worried about keeping extra deff around.

tjfdesmo · Jun 19, 2016

tdeperte, does the Shell in Wittmann even have DEF at the pump? I know Woody's here in Wickenburg doesn't. I'll have to see if the Quick Mart/Union station has it.

JRG18 · Jun 19, 2016

The higher the level of fluid in the tank, the longer it will take to affect the temp of the fluid in there. Adding small increments will do the opposite of what you were thinking. It was really hot here today. I got under there and the tank felt very cool to the touch. At harbor freight they have some low priced temp guns you could try to see what the actual temp is of the tank too.

tdeperte · Jun 20, 2016

tjfdesmo said:
tdeperte, does the Shell in Wittmann even have DEF at the pump? I know Woody's here in Wickenburg doesn't. I'll have to see if the Quick Mart/Union station has it.

Good question, I don't know if the Shell in Wittmann has it. I use so little DEF that it is just easier to buy a jug at the store. I know how to decipher the date code on the Blue DEF so I'm not concerned with buying old DEF. Got a jug in Flagstaff last week, it was manufactured in April.

tdeperte · Jun 20, 2016

SouthTexan said:
DEF should last 1 year at temps between 10F and 90F. At a constant 95F, it's shelf life is decreased to a little over 6 months which is still plenty of time for most people to travel the 5,000 - 6,000 miles to use up one tank.

I wouldn't buy the jugs though. Not only is the DEF at the pumps much cheaper, but it is also fresher being stored under ground away from the heat. There is no telling where or how long the jugs were stored before they were put on the shelf.

Good point. Thanks

tdeperte · Jun 20, 2016

JRG18 said:
The higher the level of fluid in the tank, the longer it will take to affect the temp of the fluid in there. Adding small increments will do the opposite of what you were thinking. It was really hot here today. I got under there and the tank felt very cool to the touch. At harbor freight they have some low priced temp guns you could try to see what the actual temp is of the tank too.

My thinking was by adding small increments and storing the rest in a cool location I will increase the life of the fluid substantially. This is due to the fluid not being exposed to the heat for long periods of time.

Csanders1992 · Jun 20, 2016

tdeperte said:
My thinking was by adding small increments and storing the rest in a cool location I will increase the life of the fluid substantially. This is due to the fluid not being exposed to the heat for long periods of time.

He's saying since you'll be keeping your def tank lower than the stuff in the tank will go bad quicker than if it were full

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

U&A · Jun 22, 2016

JRG18 said:
The higher the level of fluid in the tank, the longer it will take to affect the temp of the fluid in there. Adding small increments will do the opposite of what you were thinking. It was really hot here today. I got under there and the tank felt very cool to the touch. At harbor freight they have some low priced temp guns you could try to see what the actual temp is of the tank too.

this ^^

keep the tank completely full all the time. it will stay MUCH cooler and there is WAY less air exposure witch is worse for it than heat. same thing with you fuel tank and gas cans in the garage. keep them FULL.

air is an oxidizer. without it there is VERY LITTLE oxidation.

tdeperte · Jun 22, 2016

Found this at cumminsfiltration.com;

Q. What impact will exposure to high temperatures for an extended period
of time have on DEF?

A. While DEF exposure to constant, high storage temperature may have some impact on shelf life, this should not concern operators. Extensive testing in very hot climates has been conducted confirming that DEF stored at a constant temperature of 95 deg F had a shelf life of over 6 months.

Well that just makes me feel better.

tdeperte · Jun 22, 2016

Ratket said:
^ Just get a "gas can " designate it for deff only and fill it at the pump if u are worried about keeping extra deff around.

ISO 22241 standards require the use of only stainless steel and/or certain plastics, such as high density polyethylene (HDPE) or polypropylene, to store DEF in order to prevent contamination and SCR failure.

Danno · Jun 24, 2016

Theres a TSB in reference to DEF Fluid. If your worried by a refractor.

http://wk2jeeps.com/tsb/tsb_wk2_2500414.pdf

tdeperte · Jun 25, 2016

Danno said:
Theres a TSB in reference to DEF Fluid. If your worried by a refractor.

http://wk2jeeps.com/tsb/tsb_wk2_2500414.pdf

Appears to be the wrong TSB link.

CDN Ram · Jul 22, 2016

I have the same concerns everyone has dealing with DEF. How long will it last??? I had my truck into the dealership for an oil change 20 months ago and at the same time they filled my DEF tank to 100%. well thank you very much, now here in Canada we have lower average ambient temperature than the southern states do, but how long will this stuff last. It got to the point that after 20 months and still half a tank left I decided to drain the old DEF to ease my concerns. Very easy to drain took less than 5 minutes and removed 2 gallons of old DEF. replaced with new DEF, 3 months old according to the date on the bottle. I purchased 3 gallons and dumped in two of them and store the third in the basement storage room, it's cool and dark. Now I never had any problems after 20 months but I thought about it all the time and drained it for my sense of ease not because of any problems, but I don't fill the tank because I don't drive it enough to burn the old DEF. like someone said it's all about what you are comfortable with.

tdeperte · Jul 26, 2016

CDN Ram said:
I have the same concerns everyone has dealing with DEF. How long will it last??? I had my truck into the dealership for an oil change 20 months ago and at the same time they filled my DEF tank to 100%. well thank you very much, now here in Canada we have lower average ambient temperature than the southern states do, but how long will this stuff last. It got to the point that after 20 months and still half a tank left I decided to drain the old DEF to ease my concerns. Very easy to drain took less than 5 minutes and removed 2 gallons of old DEF. replaced with new DEF, 3 months old according to the date on the bottle. I purchased 3 gallons and dumped in two of them and store the third in the basement storage room, it's cool and dark. Now I never had any problems after 20 months but I thought about it all the time and drained it for my sense of ease not because of any problems, but I don't fill the tank because I don't drive it enough to burn the old DEF. like someone said it's all about what you are comfortable with.

That was probably a good idea. I think the shelf life of DEF if stored properly is 2 years, maybe a bit more. How did you drain your def tank?

CDN Ram · Jul 16, 2017

Sorry it took so long to reply, There is a quick disconnect under the truck where the feed hose enters the DEF tank. Squeeze the side of the quick disconnect and the fill hose pull out of the DEF tank. I purchased a drill operated pump and slid the hose into the tank where the opening I created was and in 5 minutes I pumped out the old DEF. reconnect the hose and refill the tank.

whsk · Jul 16, 2017

that is one of the reasons i bought a 6.4-no more DEF and expensive filters-granted the Cummins is better for towing but i have not been towing lately-might tow later but i will downsize to better fit the 6.4-each to his own!

Heat Effect on Diesel Exhaust Fluid

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