What Def are you using in your Diesel?

[JBoo2911]

I’m a first time diesel owner. Just got my 2023 Ram 5500 SLT Cab Chassis and after doing some research I am pretty sure I want to use Peak Blue Def Platinum for my Ram. What are your opinions on using Regular Vs Platinum if you have used both?
I’ve seen the def injector stays very clean using the more expensive Def.

 

[Jacob]

I just get the walmart brand, tractor supply, or whatever. No issues.

 

[unclelala]

In my area all I can find is "Air 1". its all recent date codes but its the only familiar brand around right now. The other def brands Ive never heard of are at lower prices and kind of scare me. There are 3 Walmarts close to me and they are out of stock constantly.

 

[H3LZSN1P3R]

The cheaper the better there is no difference in any brand worth the cost. I ran the cheapest i could find and when i removed my def injector it was perfectly clean

 

[AH64ID]

I prefer to get whatever comes out of the pump. I am able to get a full tank and the price is right.

DEF is DEF, no reason to get anything special.

 

[gimmie11s]

The cheapest you can find.

 

[CFE]

The cheaper the better there is no difference in any brand worth the cost. I ran the cheapest i could find and when i removed my def injector it was perfectly clean

I prefer to get whatever comes out of the pump. I am able to get a full tank and the price is right.

DEF is DEF, no reason to get anything special.

The cheapest you can find.

What they said - the cheapest I can find, whether it's a fuel station w/ DEF at the pump or the wal-mart/TSC brand.

 

[Brutal_HO]

Anything that's not been sitting out in the sun at a gas station.

IOW, I use walmart or the cheap blue def, or if OTR and need some, pump def.

That said, I record all fuel and def purchase and use and keep receipts.

 

[tchur1]

I prefer from the pump if I can find it but thats challenging to come by in my area.

Other than that I'll just buy whatever I can get my hands on that isn't old.

 

[Riddick]

Supertech or whatever is the cheapest.

 

[DontSlamMyRam]

Basic Blu def here. I just grab it at Costco. The pallets appear to turn often so I assume it's fresh. I read up on date codes but that info passed straight thru the grey matter back in '19. Costco is just convenient for me. I'd have to burn more in diesel driving to Walmart vs the $1.25 I'd save on a box o juice.

 

[flan]

Walmart supertech. Always available, always fresh, always cheap.

 

[red]

Another vote for the cheapest.

 

[Firebird]

Walmart brand, when they are out, usually Blue DEF

 

[DeadEnd]

Not new to diesels but new to DEF as well. Filled up for the first time the other day with the Platinum DEF I got as a gift for the truck. I did manage to spill some on my shoes so that was fun experience to see them when it dried lol. Not versed enough to say if its any "better" than the cheap stuff or just a good marketing gimmick. From what i've seen out there, nobody really knows and no data to back it up.

 

[jebruns]

Whatever you pick, just don't buy a lot of it and let it sit around. As many mentioned, date codes are important. And so are storage conditions. Heat will cause the DEF to go bad quicker:

 

[unclelala]

Ive posted this before, its a day of the year chart used by many companies as their date code system not all mind you but on the "Air 1" def I use. The only problem is in the last year or so its 50/50 if its actually stamped on the box or the jug at all. I keep the pdf on my phone for reference.

 

[unclelala]

At the time they sent me the previous chart they also sent me this as an example

 

[Truckman]

More important than the brand is making sure it is as fresh as possible and kept properly stored. I just bought some from Rural King on sale for less than $10, before that some was on sale at Freightliner. Previously I have been buying all of mine from the truck stop from bulk for the last 4 years before the latest round of price increases.

 

[joshuaeb09]

I run platinum in mine, but some of the other trucks/equipment in the extended friends/family "fleet" run a mix of platinum and whatever is cheapest/at the pump. What we've noticed down here in the hot months, is that the platinum seems to "keep" better on equipment and trucks like mine that might sit for a few weeks without being used. I have no critical testing to back that up other than I don't feel the need to drain a def tank that's had platinum sitting in it for a few months in the dead heat of summer after having drained one that had platinum in it compared to the break down we've seen in cheap def that's sat in a tank unused. In the trucks/equipment that get run daily, we haven't really seen any issues running whatever API spec DEF that's cheapest to run since it doesn't sit in the tank for long.

Marion also has a youtube video documenting some of his compiled data regarding standard peak vs platinum, while it's not fully apples to apples data, it is encouraging. I'd like to see more data comparing the same truck doing unloaded hwy and loaded hwy driving, but some data is better than no data.

If I was running my truck daily I wouldn't use the platinum, but since it mostly sits unless I've got some long hwy driving to do or something heavy to move, I have no problem with the higher cost. Hasn't given me any issues when I need to hop in and do 500-600 miles in a week before it sits again. I also dose every tank of fuel and try to keep a battery maintainer on it when it's sitting.