When you buy a new water heater, you’ll never take a hot shower for granted once more. One of the first areas you should look for problems if your hot shower turns into freezing rain is your hot water heater. If your home has a gas water heater, you should make sure your pilot light didn’t go out. You might be able to relight the pilot using a lighter or an ignition button, depending on how old your heater is.
Getting Your Water Heater Ready for a Relight
The majority of homeowners can easily relight a pilot light on their own, but it’s crucial to take safety precautions when working with a gas-powered hot water heater. Relighting a pilot light requires caution since the gas used to power your hot water heater is volatile and may be harmful.
You should immediately turn off the gas valve, open windows and refrain from turning on any lights if you ever smell gas. Leave your home and request assistance from the fire department or local gas company.
What Causes a Pilot Light to Go Out?
A loose or damaged gas valve, heat exchangers, venting, or thermocouples can all cause a pilot light to go out. Don’t hesitate to call a professional to check things out if you believe you have a significant problem. If there are heavy winds or low gas pressure, your pilot light may also go out.
Tools Needed
A flashlight and a long lighter
Steps to Relight a Hot Water Heater
Check the manufacturer’s manual for your water heater unit to see if there are any instructions for igniting the pilot. But if you can’t find the instructions any longer or they’re hard to read, you should be able to finish the task by using the methods below.
- Disconnect the gas
The first thing to do is to turn off the gas before lighting your pilot again. On your hot water heater, find the gas valve, and switch it to the ‘off’ position. The gas is highly combustible, so it is vital to wait for around 10 minutes to allow any gas in the area to clear.
- Make use of the Pilot Light
Normally, the pilot light is situated directly below the gas valve. Sometimes the light may be hidden behind a door or cover. While doing this, use a torch to make sure you can see everything properly.
- The gas valve should be set to “Pilot.”
Press down while setting the gas valve to “pilot”. As a result, the gas valve releases just enough gas to start the pilot light. Your hot water heater may occasionally have a separate pilot button.
- Light the Pilot
How you relight the pilot depends on how old your gas water heater is. Modern gas water heaters don’t need manual lighting; they can be powered by electricity. In place of a gas burner, these water heaters have an electric spark generator.
Press the pilot light ignition button on your water heater if it has one to start the pilot light. Once the pilot light is on, continue holding it for a full minute. Check to see if the flame is still burning after releasing go. You will need to manually light your water heater with a long lighter if it lacks such a button.
- Switch on the gas
Restart the gas once the pilot light has started to burn. You ought to be able to see a flame through the viewing window. Your pilot light is now on as a result. Although the gas control valve on your water heater might be different, relighting it should be very straightforward.
Sum up
Usually, you can relight a gas heater’s pilot light by gathering a few objects from around your home and taking the instructions outlined in this page. However, if you’re having problems, get assistance from a nearby water heater repair expert, especially if your hot water heater needs manual ignition.
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