Hi guys got problem with EGR valve, EML keeps getting thrown up and has been doing so for last 6 months.
Luckily i have fault code reader so can reset it but reseting it is having to be done more and more frequent.
It initailly lasted couple thousand miles but has had to be done 3/4 times in last month or so and recently only lasted 60 miles.
my mechanic gave me a fuel flush and told me to give it the beans for a bit and that helped but given my commute in rush hour traffic its not always that easy but he says he can take it out and clean it for £30 quid is it worth doing and is it easy enough ,has anyone has had similar issue?

I had a similar progression, every 100 miles or so and then I got to the point where my EML would only stay out for about 15 miles (my warning was P0401 EGR flow insufficient).

I took a tip from this forum that using redex may help, and it has. After a couple of tank fulls, it stayed off for over 200 miles, and now hasn't come on for 3 months (2k miles +). I don't use redex at every fill, and it lasts a while because a bottle will treat 100 litres.

It's often at reduced prices in supermarkets and adds about 2p in cost per litre. With the occassional 'giving it the beans in 1st and 2nd', it has worked for me.

EGR's are a mence.
The idea is sound, to introduce exhaust gas (little or no oxygen in that) into the engine when the car runs lean (and hot) to stop the production of Nitrogen Oxides (these proliferate in higher temps).

So when you take your foot off the gas and over run the engine, the modern diesel will shut all fueling off if over 1500rpm or so and run effectively on air which produces a very hot combustion (and NOx)
Bung the exhaust back in at this point and the combustion temps are kept lower.

In practice they are crap.
After a good few miles, the soot from the exhaust meets the blowby oil vapour sucked into the air intake and blown along by the turbo to get burnt (another emission reg) and produces the most hateful gunk known to man.
This stuff is black as the ace of spades with enough "body" to it to gum up everything it touches.
The valve has little chance in these conditions, it's little operating motor will work it's socks off and the flow/position sensor gets masked.

Cleaning it out may work, the older vacuum operated valves on certain models responded well to this.
The motor operated ones (like on the Panda) tend to fail as the motor packs up, though it's worth trying as it may prevent this if you catch it in time.

Some people blank off the exhaust feed pipe to the valve, this tends to upset the flow/position sensor (as well as not stopping Nox production) and light the EML.
Though this sensor can often be fooled with a small hole in the blank, to allow just enough flow to regisiter, but block 90% of the soot.

Another way would be to clean out the oil from the intercooler/air intake and take the crank vent out to a catch tank and/or atmosphere.