Detergent in a Gas Tank: What REALLY Happens?! (Explained)

Cleaning detergents might be suitable for our clothes. However, it can be a nightmare for our engines. The cleaning properties of detergents can be a good thing even for cleaning any car’s surface. Thus, you may wonder what a detergent can do if it gets inside a gas tank. So, you may ask:

If you put detergent in a gas tank, what really happens? If you put a detergent in a gas tank, this cleaning tool sticks to the oil. Once the engine starts running, it burns the oil and possibly the detergent mixed into it. The mixture can cause blue smoke, and the engine will run with lots of smoke until it shuts down.

Any detergent tends to attach itself to any nearby liquid. Thus, it can also stick with fuel and get burned in the process. For this reason, it can cause damage not only to the gas tank but also to the engine.

In this article, we’ll walk you through all the effects of detergent if it enters a gas tank. We’ll also tackle other related questions. This way, you can be aware of the risks and understand how to deal with such a case if it ever happens to you.

Without further ado, let’s get into it!

Table of Contents

What will happen if you put detergent in the gas tank?

If you put detergent in the gas tank, you put not only your gas tank but also your whole engine at risk of failing.

A detergent sticks to any liquid nearby, which means it will also attach itself to oil or fuel that comes in the gas tank. Once the engine starts running, it will also start burning the fuel.

If the fuel mixed with detergent gets burned, it will result in lots of smoke and start causing problems to the engine.

If left unchecked, it can damage the engine in a matter of minutes. For this reason, you should prevent detergent or anything from entering the gas tank.

If you are running your engine and think it has detergent in the tank, shut it down immediately and call for roadside assistance or a service professional.

Short term effects

As I said earlier, detergents can be a nightmare for every engine as they can cause damage within.

Detergents don’t do well with metal. It can cause corrosion, and it can cause smoking if it gets burned together with the fuel.

Thus, if you get some detergent in the gas tank, chances are your car will release a lot of smoke in a few minutes of the engine running.

Long term effects

The only long-term effects of detergent in a gas tank can occur if the user left it sitting there. However, detergents can damage the gas tank and your vehicle’s whole engine if you don’t have it removed as soon as possible.

In most cases, it can lead to your engine deteriorating, executing poor performance, and gradual failure.

For this reason, you shouldn’t let your gas tank have any detergent sitting on it for long periods. In fact, you shouldn’t even let any detergent go inside of it.

Can detergent in a gas tank damage an engine?

Yes, detergent in a gas tank can damage an engine, both in a short period and in the long run. But, in general, anything that isn’t fuel or engine oil can harm an engine.

For this reason, oil and fuel tanks have a filter to ensure that only fuel and oil come inside the running engine.

If other liquid substances can harm the engine, the solid ones can even cause worse problems.

A detergent sticks to any liquid nearby, which means it will also attach itself to oil or fuel that comes in the gas tank. Once the engine starts running, it will also start burning the fuel.

If the fuel mixed with detergent gets burned, it will result in lots of smoke and start causing problems to the engine.

If left unchecked, it can damage the engine in a matter of minutes. For this reason, you should prevent detergent or anything from entering the gas tank.

For this reason, you must take it as a rule of thumb to ensure that the fuel and oil pit is secure and that no detergent would enter aside from fuel and engine oil.

How much detergent in a gas tank will ruin it?

Even a tiny amount of detergent can ruin a gas tank if it gets mixed with the fuel and burned together inside the engine.

If someone did such a thing on purpose and filled the tank with detergent to the brim, it can cause smoking in the engine and destroy it in a matter of minutes.

Pouring detergent into a gas tank is no different from pouring anything into a gas tank that shouldn’t be there. These chemicals are bad for cars, but it doesn’t imply they always cause them to break down.

Can you tell if someone put detergent in your gas tank?

You can tell when someone put detergent in your gas tank. If it has detergent in it, your engine will start smoking, and it will eventually shut down.

The thing about detergent is that it mixes with any liquid that it touches. As a consequence, the engine that burns the fuel will also burn the detergent. Thus, if you have detergent in your fuel tank, your vehicle may smoke a lot from the engine.

If you suspect somebody has put detergent in your fuel tank, you must immediately turn off the vehicle and empty the tank. You’ll also need to get it repaired by an expert.

So, what should you do if you discover detergent in your gas tank? How would you get rid of it?

How to get the detergent out of a gas tank?

The best way to get the detergent out of a gas tank is by draining all the fuel and thoroughly cleaning the gas chamber.

While you can consider simply changing the fuel filter, it won’t be enough. The thing is that the detergent can penetrate the fuel chamber and remain inside, causing more damage as time passes.

You need to remove the entire gas tank and have it cleaned thoroughly by experts. The experts would likely remove the tank and wash it with hydrochloric acid. For this reason, it’s better to call someone rather than attempt to do it on your own.

This way, you can ensure that the engine would remain in good condition, and you won’t have any further issues caused by the detergent.

Summary

So, if you put detergent in a gas tank, what happens? If you put a detergent in a gas tank, this cleaning tool sticks to the oil. Once the engine starts running, it burns the oil and possibly the detergent mixed into it. The mixture can cause blue smoke, and the engine will run with lots of smoke until it shuts down.

In general, you should never forget that anything other than fuel and oil can damage your engine. For this reason, always prioritize having your engine examined as soon as you know that something gets inside the gas tank other than the fuel or engine oil.

Also Read:

Resources

Image credits – Canva