2tall4u
Washington
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Joined: 01/22/2006
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I can't seem to keep the pilot light lit on my Magic Chef oven. I follow all the directions but when I let the knob return to the original position the pilot goes out.
Looking for advice as to what's wrong, what part(s) should I change and how hard is it to DIY.
Thanks
2005 F350 SD Lariat w/ 6.0D
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DutchmenSport
Indiana
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Joined: 10/10/2006
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Do a search on the forums, "oven pilot" and you'll find lots of threads dealing with the same question.
Here's a start. Click here.
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bryanl
Reno, NV
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Joined: 12/25/2003
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The pilot light most likely goes out because the thermocouple isn't doing its thing. This can be because you didn't hold the over-ride that keeps the pilot light lit in long enough or because the thermocouple has malfunctioned.
See the wikipedia article section on heating appliance safety
A thermocouple is rather inexpensive, readily available and the biggest problem replacing it is getting to it. It has a holder near the pilot light and a tube that goes up to the gas valve where it screws on.
I often light the pilot with a propane match and use the propane match to help the pilot light heat up the thermocouple.
Also, on the oven, make sure you don't turn the control to 'off' rather than 'pilot' !
Bryan
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Drifter from Texas
RV Tech - Canyon Lake, Texas
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Once the pilot lights and you let go of the knob, the job of holding the pilot valve open belongs to the heat sensing tube above the pilot light. Technically, it's not a thermocouple so they call it a heat sensing tube (semantics, I guess - most people call it a thermocouple anyway). If it isn't holding the pilot valve open, it's defective. To replace it, you have to pull the oven from the wall but it isn't be hard and the part isn't expensive. It might be hard to locate, though. Still under warranty?
-On edit, I see I either type too slow, or I shouldn't watch TV and type at the same time. Bryan already said the same thing. I guess I'll just concur. lol
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past-MIdirector
Michigan
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The thermocouple has nothing to do with the pilot in an oven. The themocouple only job is to open the safety valve to supply gas to the burner when the themostat call for heat. May need to change or clean the pilot burner assy. Some bugs love propane. If the pilot burner dosen't help than the thermostat will have to be replaced. Unlike a home oven thermostat the RV has an pilot off position that can go bad and not let gas flow for the pilot burner.
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jdgreen42
Silsbee, TX 77656
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May be the thermocouple like others have noted--A problem I had with mine is that the pilot flame was so tiny that it was near impossible to light and then it wouldn't stay lit. The pilot orffice is factory set. I removed it and enlarged the hole a tiny bit ( careful--I said a tiny bit ) now it works great.
Don
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YC 1
Yuba City Calif./ Auburndale Florida
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Take the bottom tray out. Push in and lift. Take the wing nut off the heat dissipation tray so you can remove it. Now you can easily see the critter. Your pilot flame may have become misaligned with the thermocouple sensor. Get some help to hold the button in and light the pilot. See if the blue flame is over the end . If this does not solve the problem you probably need to replace the thermocouple.
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javaseuf
California's Gold Coast
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MI Director wrote:The thermocouple has nothing to do with the pilot in an oven. The themocouple only job is to open the safety valve to supply gas to the burner when the themostat call for heat. May need to change or clean the pilot burner assy. Some bugs love propane. If the pilot burner dosen't help than the thermostat will have to be replaced. Unlike a home oven thermostat the RV has an pilot off position that can go bad and not let gas flow for the pilot burner.
This used to be the case. My new 07' has a Suburban oven that does use a thermocouple to sense the standing pilot. It also still has the sensor for the safety valve.
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bryanl
Reno, NV
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There are two problems being discussed here and two different solutions.
One is a pilot light that stays lit only while the override is engaged. This is usually the thermocouple, thermopile, or 'heat sensing tube' (see the wikipedia link!) not doing its thing. I like the idea of checking for alignment first.
The other is one that won't light. I don't know what it is with spiders and propane but I had a small one crawl into my propane match and disrupt the gas flow so it wouldn't light. I've also had a couple of friends with water heaters that had dirty burners. So there is good advice on cleaning for that problem.
And, it looks like we have started something on the gas safety mechanism devices. That could be interesting. It used to be so simple as all gas things had pilot lights that had thermocouples. But now, with DSI and other advancements we can run down the battery as well as the propane tank! - but I think here the differences are in the very fine points as very few stoves use any electric intelligence for their operations.
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