Gas Hot Water Heater Pilot Light Keeps Going Out

The thermocouple s job is to shut a gas safety valve if the pilot light goes out.

Gas hot water heater pilot light keeps going out.

These types of heat appliances utilize pilot lights to light the main burner. That s important because gas is always being supplied to the pilot to keep the flame lit. The flame will go out if the tube is clogged with dirt or debris. This is why when your hot water heater pilot light keeps going out you should fix it right away.

The pilot going out is a common occurrence for those that have water heaters or older gas furnaces. The pilot light is the tiny gas flame that is responsible for providing power to your gas hot water heater. After about 30 seconds heat from the ignited pilot light flame activates a simple electrical switch called a thermocouple which ensures that the gas supply to the pilot stays open and your water heater keeps functioning. To avoid your water heater going out bend the thermocouple so it is closer to the pilot light.

This will cause the thermocouple to turn off the supply of gas and then your water heater won t light. If you have a natural or propane gas water heater chances are the pilot has gone out. This will prevent the pilot light from heating it. Thorough cleaning should do the trick.

Sometimes your gas water heater won t light due to a dirty pilot tube. 5 improper air flow or a strong draft blows the pilot out. The water heater pilot light is a small flame that ignites the gas burner on your water heater. Sometimes the tube might be partially clogged and supplying very little gas for combustion no wonder your pilot light keeps going out.

When the water heater pilot light goes out first try relighting it following the directions on the water heater label. If your pilot light re lights easily after going out overnight it s possible it was blown out by a draft. If the pilot light on your water heater keeps going out then you can expect no hot water for your household. The thermocouple is the small copper rod that the pilot light hits.

That can turn into a nuisance for both maintaining heat or hot water. The pilot tube supplies gas to the pilot light for combustion. After a while the gas could. A leak in the output duct of the furnace could cause air to blow into the area.

This can happen on excessively windy days or nights.