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Our pilot went out on the furnace. I have tried several times to relight it, but no matter how long I hold down the button in Pilot position... the pilot goes out when I let go and it does not stay lit.
Why would it do that?
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Rank: Advanced Member
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Originally Posted by: chinahorse  Our pilot went out on the furnace. I have tried several times to relight it, but no matter how long I hold down the button in Pilot position... the pilot goes out when I let go and it does not stay lit.
Why would it do that? Re-Lighting a Pilot: IGNITION To actually light the pilot proceed as follows:
- If you have a pilot with a red Reset button, turn the gas valve from "Off," to "Pilot."
- If you have a pilot with no red button, turn the knob from "Off" to "Pilot."
- Place the lit match or ignited lighter tip at the pilot and depress and hold the button or depress the knob as appropriate. Depress the button or knob for about 30 seconds. This maintains gas flow to the pilot until the thermocouple gets hot enough to open the main gas valve.
- Once the pilot stays lit, slowly release the button or knob and turn the gas cock or knob from the "Pilot" position to the "On" position. This will ignite the burners and keep the flow of gas supplied as required for the burners as called for by the thermostat.
- If the burners fail to ignite then it may be because the thermocouple did not get hot enough to open the gas valve. Wait a few minutes and then repeat the above procedure. This time hold the red reset button or depress the knob for about 45-60 seconds.
- Once the main furnace burners ignite, adjust the thermostat to the desired setting.
When the Pilot Won't Stay Lit If you've followed the previous steps on lighting the pilot and it still does not light after, or will not stay lit, then you probably have a problem with the thermocouple or an adjustment needs to be made to the pilot.
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Rank: Member
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Thanks. I do know how to light a pilot as I have done it many times. It just won't stay lit after I release the button.
So I need to look at replacing the thermocoupler? Or how would I know if the pilot just needs to be adjusted?
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Rank: Advanced Member
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Rank: Member
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Thanks, I did look at page 8. What kind of meter do I need to perform these tests? Sorry... I'm not very familiar with a furnace.
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Rank: Advanced Member
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try replacing the thermocouple its located at the pilot light
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Normaly this problem is due to a bad thermocouple. A thermo couple is a flame proving device it is a safety so if this is the problem this safety will not allow the pilot to stay on. Asssure that you install this part directly in the path of the flame and it is available @ most hardware stores and the length doesnt matter generally comes in 36 inch size. If this doesnt work the problem may be in your gas valve. Good luck
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Rank: Member
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Thanks for everyone's responses. I just wanted to follow up and say that I replaced the thermocouple and that fixed it.
In hindsight, I wish I had known that a thermocouple if both simple to replace AND only $8 -- I would have done this in the beginning whether I was sure it was the problem or not, instead of buying a digital multimeter and worrying about how to fix it. Not that a multimeter isn't good to have around, but I could have saved myself $25.
Thanks again! I don't know what I'd do without this forum.
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Rank: Advanced Member
Groups: Senior Expert
Joined: 9/1/2008(UTC)
Posts: 440
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Originally Posted by: arivera1982 Normaly this problem is due to a bad thermocouple. A thermo couple is a flame proving device it is a safety so if this is the problem this safety will not allow the pilot to stay on. Asssure that you install this part directly in the path of the flame and it is available @ most hardware stores and the length doesnt matter generally comes in 36 inch size. If this doesnt work the problem may be in your gas valve. Good luck Amen to that.
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