Hi Andy,

Dennis has supplied some good info on these. I see the occasional
spider or even dead fly in ours, and since I don't use it through
the summer, there's nearly always a little 'critter' to clean out in
the Fall. A byproduct of burning LP is water vapor, and this tends
to cause corrosion buildup, as well.

I use our pilot broaches alot, but they're pretty expensive. Years ago,
before I found them, I used a single 'thread' of stranded copper wire.
Lamp cord worked well on smaller ones, hi temp range wire strands
(nickle-plated) on larger. More fragile than a broach, but a lot less $,
and with a little patience, does a passable job. There's also less chance
of ruining an orifice by broaching it out too big, bc the copper won't
remove metal like a broach.

These heaters use pretty straight-forward control systems, but one
problem is finding parts, especially for older heaters. Some of the
brand names seem to come and go so fast it's really tough to find exact
parts.

Mine here in the shop/office is a good example - it's an 'Alvima', and
since I've had it for nearly 20 years, I'm not planning on repairs if it
fails,
unless it's something simple.

Anyway, hope that helps a bit. As far as publications on other appliances,
you might be interested in my free monthly newsletter. I've been an
appliance tech for 31+ years and really enjoy sharing unusual tips &
tricks of the trade with anyone who's 'handy'. No obligation, no strings,
you're welcome to sign up (and every issue has an unsubscribe link).
Details are below.

God bless,

Dave Harnish
Dave's Repair Service
New Albany, PA

570-363-2404

I'm a 30-year pro appliance technician, and love sharing what
I've learned - in a FREE Monthly Appliance Tips Newsletter:
www.DavesRepair.com

Acts 4:12

"Andy Voelkel" wrote in message
...

I've got two wall heaters that need help. On one, it doesn't seem like any
gas is coming out of the pilot. On the other, it seems as if the output of
the heater has been gradually decreasing over the years.

I'm pretty handy - an electronics engineer by trade - and am interested in
trying to fix them myself, especially after dealing with a couple of local
heater guys who want to replace the whole units without really debugging
the problem. I don't mind spending the money so much, I just don't want to
screw up my walls and paint, etc. It also seems like a little intelligent
troubleshooting could actually save labor costs.

Any advice on how to debug my problems would be greatly appreciated. What
would be _super_ would be pointers to any websites or publications that
describe operation and design of these sorts of heaters (as well as other
home appliances, BTW).

Thanks in advance for any help!

- Andy
Andy Voelkel 310 399 2289