Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn could be used to switch on a warning light?

Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market place already for this sort of thing?

On 25/11/2013 17:06, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn could be used to switch on a warning light?

Best I can think of is thermochromic paint on metalwork so that when it
is hot there is a distinct colour. CT55 and CT70 are the only common
reversible ones and they are blue/white and black/red for hot/cold
respectively. It would be nicer if they were the other way around.

Shade card at
http://www.indestructible.co.uk/ther...omic-paint.htm

Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market place already for this sort of thing?

Only other thought is a put trace of sodium salt (eg bicarbonate or
borate on the burner so the gas flame is visibly yellow). Anything else
involves too much tinkering to make it work.

Another way is put very clear marks on the dials at the front of the
cooker. Some of them are incredibly hard to see the pointer on these
days if you do not have 20/20 vision.


--
Regards,
Martin Brown

JimG wrote:

Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the
pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that
it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult
to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all
that good...

My mother looks at the control knobs to see if they're all back at the zero
position... but doesn't always remember to do so.

If you watch your mum when she's near the cooker do you get the impression
that she's still careful of lit rings? I have the impression that my mum
doesn't pay them enough attention - partly because the flame is hard to see
- and am wondering if I should encourage her to get a ceramic hob instead.

I suspect my mother would oppose this quite strongly, and am not sure if
she'd take to touch controls easily (if we got one without rotary controls)
or with great difficulty. Not helpful is the fact that her kitchen is
mainly grey and white and I doubt she'd be happy with a black hob; the
choice in white ones is much more restricted. And, although the kitchen
used to have an electric cooker I suspect the supply for that was taken out
when the gas supply was put in, so getting a new circuit to the hob might be
tricky.

But, very worryingly, last week I saw her lean over the cooker - thank
goodness when the front rings were not on - and a very light chiffon (?)
scarf she was wearing dangled into the area above one of the unlit rings. I
drew her attention to this and she said she'd forgotten she had the scarf
on.

--
Jeremy C B Nicoll - my opinions are my own.

Email sent to my from-address will be deleted. Instead, please reply
to replacing "aaa" by "284".

On Monday 25 November 2013 17:06 JimG wrote in uk.d-i-y:

Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the
pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that
it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult
to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all
that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn
could be used to switch on a warning light?

Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector
somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market
place already for this sort of thing?

The only "good" solution I can see is buy her a new cooker with:

a) Full flame failure protection (not a given, even now)

b) A drop down lid which shuts off the ring gas supply as it closes (fairly
common).

Then all you have to do is train her to drop the lid as a matter of course!


--
Tim Watts Personal Blog: http://squiddy.blog.dionic.net/

http://www.sensorly.com/ Crowd mapping of 2G/3G/4G mobile signal coverage

Best I can think of is thermochromic paint on metalwork so that when it

is hot there is a distinct colour. CT55 and CT70 are the only common

reversible ones and they are blue/white and black/red for hot/cold

respectively. It would be nicer if they were the other way around.





Only other thought is a put trace of sodium salt (eg bicarbonate or

borate on the burner so the gas flame is visibly yellow). Anything else

involves too much tinkering to make it work.



Another way is put very clear marks on the dials at the front of the

cooker. Some of them are incredibly hard to see the pointer on these

days if you do not have 20/20 vision.

Regards,

Martin Brown

All three suggestions seem worth a try and should not be expensive. I shall certainly research them further. Much obliged.

On 25/11/2013 17:52, Tim Watts wrote:

Then all you have to do is train her to drop the lid as a matter of course!

The problem with my MIL is that she is utterly untrainable. She was
difficult all her life, but now she's just plain impossible.

On Monday, November 25, 2013 5:52:27 PM UTC, Jeremy Nicoll - news posts wrote:




Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the

pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that

it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult

to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all

that good...



My mother looks at the control knobs to see if they're all back at the zero

position... but doesn't always remember to do so.



If you watch your mum when she's near the cooker do you get the impression

that she's still careful of lit rings? I have the impression that my mum

doesn't pay them enough attention - partly because the flame is hard to see

- and am wondering if I should encourage her to get a ceramic hob instead.



I suspect my mother would oppose this quite strongly, and am not sure if

she'd take to touch controls easily (if we got one without rotary controls)

or with great difficulty. Not helpful is the fact that her kitchen is

mainly grey and white and I doubt she'd be happy with a black hob; the

choice in white ones is much more restricted. And, although the kitchen

used to have an electric cooker I suspect the supply for that was taken out

when the gas supply was put in, so getting a new circuit to the hob might be

tricky.






--

Jeremy C B Nicoll - my opinions are my own.

Jeremy,
She is certainly very careful when lighting the burners. It's just that she is increasingly forgetful.

Tim Watts wrote:
On Monday 25 November 2013 17:06 JimG wrote in uk.d-i-y:

Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the
pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that
it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult
to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all
that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn
could be used to switch on a warning light?

Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector
somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market
place already for this sort of thing?

The only "good" solution I can see is buy her a new cooker with:

a) Full flame failure protection (not a given, even now)

I must admit that amazes me (that flame failure isn't compulsory). You can
buy a new hob for £99 with flame failure devices.

b) A drop down lid which shuts off the ring gas supply as it closes (fairly
common).

We have this. Never use it. ;-)


Then all you have to do is train her to drop the lid as a matter of course!


That's the hard bit!

Tim Watts wrote:
b) A drop down lid which shuts off the ring gas supply as it closes (fairly
common).

Where do you temporarily put all the pans that live on the hob while you
close the lid?

jgh

"JimG" wrote in message
...


Best I can think of is thermochromic paint on metalwork so that when it

is hot there is a distinct colour. CT55 and CT70 are the only common

reversible ones and they are blue/white and black/red for hot/cold

respectively. It would be nicer if they were the other way around.





Only other thought is a put trace of sodium salt (eg bicarbonate or

borate on the burner so the gas flame is visibly yellow). Anything else

involves too much tinkering to make it work.



Another way is put very clear marks on the dials at the front of the

cooker. Some of them are incredibly hard to see the pointer on these

days if you do not have 20/20 vision.

Regards,

Martin Brown

All three suggestions seem worth a try and should not be expensive. I
shall certainly research them further. Much obliged.

Use Tipex on the dials. I had to do this for my mum and it worked.

On 25/11/2013 18:35, wrote:
Tim Watts wrote:
b) A drop down lid which shuts off the ring gas supply as it closes (fairly
common).

Where do you temporarily put all the pans that live on the hob while you
close the lid?

Mine live in a pan drawer.

Colin Bignell

On 25/11/2013 17:06, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn could be used to switch on a warning light?

Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market place already for this sort of thing?


There are gas hobs with residual heat indicators available. For example:

http://ao.com/product/T62R36S1-Neff-...ack-24211.aspx

Colin Bignell

Tim+ wrote:

Tim Watts wrote:

Then all you have to do is train her to drop the lid as a matter of
course!

That's the hard bit!

Hmmm. Maybe painting the outline of a toilet seat on the underneath of the
lid would help with that?

--
Jeremy C B Nicoll - my opinions are my own.

Email sent to my from-address will be deleted. Instead, please reply
to replacing "aaa" by "284".

In article ,
Tim+ writes:
I must admit that amazes me (that flame failure isn't compulsory).

I think it's only compulsory on burners which are powerful enough to
generate an explosive mixure in the minimum room size specified by
the cooker, with the expected levels of ventilation. In most cases,
this is impossible except for the oven, and giant wok or fish kettle
burners.

I think it may also be compulsory for all burners in rented homes.

You can buy a new hob for £99 with flame failure devices.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

On 25/11/2013 19:00, Nightjar wrote:
On 25/11/2013 17:06, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed
the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I
noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the
flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That,
and her eyesight isnt all that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in
turn could be used to switch on a warning light?

Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared
detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in
the market place already for this sort of thing?


There are gas hobs with residual heat indicators available. For example:

http://ao.com/product/T62R36S1-Neff-...ack-24211.aspx

Colin Bignell

The rings on our induction hob just turn themselves off if you remove
the pan. I would guess that most induction hobs would do this but I
can't claim to know.


--
Michael Chare

On Monday 25 November 2013 19:13 Michael Chare wrote in uk.d-i-y:

On 25/11/2013 19:00, Nightjar wrote:
On 25/11/2013 17:06, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed
the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I
noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the
flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That,
and her eyesight isnt all that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in
turn could be used to switch on a warning light?

Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared
detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in
the market place already for this sort of thing?


There are gas hobs with residual heat indicators available. For example:

http://ao.com/product/T62R36S1-Neff-...ack-24211.aspx

Colin Bignell

The rings on our induction hob just turn themselves off if you remove
the pan. I would guess that most induction hobs would do this but I
can't claim to know.



I think they have to to avoid kackering themselves - but even if they
didn't, they wouldn;t do much without a lump or iron on top.
--
Tim Watts Personal Blog: http://squiddy.blog.dionic.net/

http://www.sensorly.com/ Crowd mapping of 2G/3G/4G mobile signal coverage

On Monday 25 November 2013 18:35 wrote in uk.d-i-y:

Tim Watts wrote:
b) A drop down lid which shuts off the ring gas supply as it closes
(fairly common).

Where do you temporarily put all the pans that live on the hob while you
close the lid?

jgh

In the cupboard?

--
Tim Watts Personal Blog: http://squiddy.blog.dionic.net/

http://www.sensorly.com/ Crowd mapping of 2G/3G/4G mobile signal coverage

On 25/11/2013 17:06, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn could be used to switch on a warning light?

Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market place already for this sort of thing?

A bit of a back to front idea, but how about changing the cooker. Ours
has a glass lid and to prevent it being lowered onto a lit ring there is
a mechanical connection - as you lower the lid, you can actually see all
the knobs turn to the off position.

SteveW

On 25/11/2013 18:35, wrote:
Tim Watts wrote:
b) A drop down lid which shuts off the ring gas supply as it closes (fairly
common).

Where do you temporarily put all the pans that live on the hob while you
close the lid?

jgh

In the pan cupboard. If you leave them on the hob, where do you put the
unironed clothes while you are ironing?

SteveW

wrote in message
...
Tim Watts wrote:
b) A drop down lid which shuts off the ring gas supply as it closes
(fairly
common).

Where do you temporarily put all the pans that live on the hob while you
close the lid?


Dishwasher.

--
Adam

On 25/11/2013 19:38, SteveW wrote:
On 25/11/2013 17:06, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed
the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I
noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the
flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That,
and her eyesight isnt all that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in
turn could be used to switch on a warning light?

Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared
detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in
the market place already for this sort of thing?

A bit of a back to front idea, but how about changing the cooker. Ours
has a glass lid and to prevent it being lowered onto a lit ring there is
a mechanical connection - as you lower the lid, you can actually see all
the knobs turn to the off position.

SteveW

Having read this thread I googled just to find out what you are talking
about re thermo paint.
Why not paint it on the handles of the pots and if the product can take
the temp range paint it on the bits that the pots sit on on the cooker.
http://www.indestructible.co.uk/thermochromic-paint/

On 25/11/2013 20:04, ARW wrote:
wrote in message
...
Tim Watts wrote:
b) A drop down lid which shuts off the ring gas supply as it closes
(fairly
common).

Where do you temporarily put all the pans that live on the hob while you
close the lid?


Dishwasher.

What if she objects to holding them?

Colin Bignell

In article ,
JimG writes:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn could be used to switch on a warning light?
Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market place already for this sort of thing?

I just tried standing a small gas mantle upside down so one of
the burner outlets plays on it, and it does glow bright white.
It's going to be too fragile for any long term use though.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

On Mon, 25 Nov 2013 17:52:39 +0000, Tim Watts wrote:

Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit ...
snip
a) Full flame failure protection (not a given, even now)

How is that going to help the ring being left on and lit? Or are you
thinking if it gets blown out and build up of gas?

b) A drop down lid which shuts off the ring gas supply as it closes
(fairly common).

I think they all do, to stop the glass exploding if shut onto a lit
ring.

Then all you have to do is train her to drop the lid as a matter of
course!

No chance. Change is not welcome once people start to get a bid
doddery, routine and rote rule the day.

--
Cheers
Dave.

On Mon, 25 Nov 2013 21:32:11 +0000 (UTC), Andrew Gabriel wrote:

I just tried standing a small gas mantle upside down so one of
the burner outlets plays on it, and it does glow bright white.
It's going to be too fragile for any long term use though.

I quite liked the idea of a salt that coloured the flame. Would
lifting off the flame spreader and putting a bit of paste made from
ordinary salt and water near the holes/grooves work?

--
Cheers
Dave.

In message , Andrew Gabriel
writes
In article ,
JimG writes:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she
removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when
I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the
flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That,
and her eyesight isnt all that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in
turn could be used to switch on a warning light?
Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared
detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in
the market place already for this sort of thing?

I just tried standing a small gas mantle upside down so one of
the burner outlets plays on it, and it does glow bright white.
It's going to be too fragile for any long term use though.

I've not been following this so apologies for any duplication...

What about suspending a length of non flammable foil over the hob such
that the convection air currents cause it to waggle about?


--
Tim Lamb

On Monday 25 November 2013 21:51 Dave Liquorice wrote in uk.d-i-y:

On Mon, 25 Nov 2013 17:52:39 +0000, Tim Watts wrote:

Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit ...
snip
a) Full flame failure protection (not a given, even now)

How is that going to help the ring being left on and lit? Or are you
thinking if it gets blown out and build up of gas?


Yes - you didn;t specify this, but I would...

b) A drop down lid which shuts off the ring gas supply as it closes
(fairly common).

I think they all do, to stop the glass exploding if shut onto a lit
ring.

Then all you have to do is train her to drop the lid as a matter of
course!

No chance. Change is not welcome once people start to get a bid
doddery, routine and rote rule the day.


Whatever you do, she have to get used to "doing something", whether checking
for knob alignment (oo-err), looking at thermopaint colour or whatever.

I have a certain amount of paranoia when leaving the house - if I had a gas
cooker, "lid down" would be the easiest to do, remember doing and to do
correctly.

For the same reason. I love lever taps - quick look and I can see they are
all fully off!

--
Tim Watts Personal Blog: http://squiddy.blog.dionic.net/

http://www.sensorly.com/ Crowd mapping of 2G/3G/4G mobile signal coverage

On Monday, November 25, 2013 6:35:41 PM UTC, wrote:
Where do you temporarily put all the pans that live on the hob while you
close the lid?

I put them on the pan shelves if I'm going to use them again soon, or put them away in the pan cupboard if I'm not.

Owain

On 25/11/2013 17:06, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she
removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time
when I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and
the flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window.
That, and her eyesight isnt all that good. Is there some sort of
device that can detect the flame and which in turn could be used to
switch on a warning light?

As a first course of action, making sure the hob has flame failure
detection on the rings would be useful. A lit ring is a hazard, an unlit
but still on ring even more so!

Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared
detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in
the market place already for this sort of thing?

Changing the control knobs to something that shows you at a glance when
a ring is on might help.


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On 25/11/2013 19:09, Jeremy Nicoll - news posts wrote:
Tim+ wrote:

Tim Watts wrote:

Then all you have to do is train her to drop the lid as a matter of
course!

That's the hard bit!

Hmmm. Maybe painting the outline of a toilet seat on the underneath of the
lid would help with that?

;-) nice bit of lateral thinking!


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

In article ,
John Rumm writes:
On 25/11/2013 19:09, Jeremy Nicoll - news posts wrote:
Tim+ wrote:

Tim Watts wrote:

Then all you have to do is train her to drop the lid as a matter of
course!

That's the hard bit!

Hmmm. Maybe painting the outline of a toilet seat on the underneath of the
lid would help with that?

;-) nice bit of lateral thinking!

This would really not be a good idea for a confused person...

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

Jeremy Nicoll - news posts put finger to keyboard:

snip


But, very worryingly, last week I saw her lean over the cooker - thank
goodness when the front rings were not on - and a very light chiffon (?)
scarf she was wearing dangled into the area above one of the unlit
rings. I drew her attention to this and she said she'd forgotten she had
the scarf on.

See http://cheezburger.com/7913517312

Andrew Gabriel wrote:
Hmmm. Maybe painting the outline of a toilet seat on the underneath of the
lid would help with that?
This would really not be a good idea for a confused person...

Might be messy ... or painful.

Owain

On Mon, 25 Nov 2013 22:01:27 +0000, Tim Lamb
wrote:

I've not been following this so apologies for any duplication...

What about suspending a length of non flammable foil over the hob such
that the convection air currents cause it to waggle about?

Here's something with bells on, turns in the heat:

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Lichter-Glock...-/141074063605

Thomas Prufer

On Monday, 25 November 2013 17:06:43 UTC, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all that good.

Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn could be used to switch on a warning light?



Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market place already for this sort of thing?

I thought I was the only one to explore this. Thank you all. Not just a problem for the older person. Kitchens are bright places now, and the flames very clean and hard to see. ROSPA gave me figures - and they were quite comforting as there relatively few accidents from fires and burns in kitchens. They were doubtful that gas suppliers could be persuaded to add a trace substance to the gas to colour the flame. However I do think it would be worth researching and discussing - after all gas suppliers have add a scent for safety purposes. I am experimenting with salt....

On 13/05/2014 11:05, wrote:
On Monday, 25 November 2013 17:06:43 UTC, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all that good.

Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn could be used to switch on a warning light?



Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market place already for this sort of thing?

I thought I was the only one to explore this. Thank you all. Not just a problem for the older person. Kitchens are bright places now, and the flames very clean and hard to see. ROSPA gave me figures - and they were quite comforting as there relatively few accidents from fires and burns in kitchens. They were doubtful that gas suppliers could be persuaded to add a trace substance to the gas to colour the flame. However I do think it would be worth researching and discussing - after all gas suppliers have add a scent for safety purposes. I am experimenting with salt....

Try a sodium borate (borax) blob on a small loop nichrome wire arranged
so that it will be in the flame. This will require replenishing from
time to time but should colour the flame without being too invasive.

Can you not mark the controls with dayglo so that there is a strong
indication when all controls are safely off?


--
Regards,
Martin Brown

On 13/05/14 11:05, wrote:
On Monday, 25 November 2013 17:06:43 UTC, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all that good.

Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn could be used to switch on a warning light?



Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market place already for this sort of thing?

I thought I was the only one to explore this. Thank you all. Not just a problem for the older person. Kitchens are bright places now, and the flames very clean and hard to see. ROSPA gave me figures - and they were quite comforting as there relatively few accidents from fires and burns in kitchens. They were doubtful that gas suppliers could be persuaded to add a trace substance to the gas to colour the flame. However I do think it would be worth researching and discussing - after all gas suppliers have add a scent for safety purposes. I am experimenting with salt....


Modding the knobs might be easier - drill and insert small neodymium
magnet in each one so the magnet is at the bottom when the knob's off.

Fix a thin wall ali or brass tube to the fascia under the knobs with a
load of reed switches in series, each one aligned to a magnet.

Use reed switches to hold off a small relay that itself triggers a
warning light. Power from wall wart. Or improved the circuitry to take
less current.

In article ,
wrote:
On Monday, 25 November 2013 17:06:43 UTC, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed
the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I
noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the
flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That,
and her eyesight isnt all that good.

Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in
turn could be used to switch on a warning light?



Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared
detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in
the market place already for this sort of thing?

I thought I was the only one to explore this. Thank you all. Not just a
problem for the older person. Kitchens are bright places now, and the
flames very clean and hard to see. ROSPA gave me figures - and they were
quite comforting as there relatively few accidents from fires and burns
in kitchens. They were doubtful that gas suppliers could be persuaded to
add a trace substance to the gas to colour the flame. However I do think
it would be worth researching and discussing - after all gas suppliers
have add a scent for safety purposes. I am experimenting with salt....

The easy way would be to simply add a switch to the gas tap on each burner
and use that to feed your warning device. Would have the added advantage
it doesn't need the gas lit to work.

--
*Don't squat with your spurs on *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On Tue, 13 May 2014 03:05:17 -0700 (PDT),
wrote:

On Monday, 25 November 2013 17:06:43 UTC, JimG wrote:
Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all that good.

Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn could be used to switch on a warning light?



Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market place already for this sort of thing?

I thought I was the only one to explore this. Thank you all. Not just a problem for the older person. Kitchens are bright places now, and the flames very clean and hard to see. ROSPA gave me figures - and they were quite comforting as there relatively few accidents from fires and burns in kitchens. They were doubtful that gas suppliers could be persuaded to add a trace substance to the gas to colour the flame. However I do think it would be worth researching and discussing - after all gas suppliers have add a scent for safety purposes. I am experimenting with salt....

It seems to me it's the cooker manufacturers rather than the gas
suppliers that RoSPA should be lobbying.



--

Graham.

%Profound_observation%

On Tuesday, May 13, 2014 11:05:17 AM UTC+1, wrote:
On Monday, 25 November 2013 17:06:43 UTC, JimG wrote:

Twice last week my elderly mum left one gas ring lit after she removed the pan from the hob at breakfast time. It was lunch time when I noticed that it was still lit. The burner was on low heat and the flame was difficult to see because the hob is near the window. That, and her eyesight isnt all that good.
Is there some sort of device that can detect the flame and which in turn could be used to switch on a warning light?
Would it be feasible to use a thermo-couple or say an infrared detector somehow to achieve this or is there a solution available in the market place already for this sort of thing?

I thought I was the only one to explore this. Thank you all. Not just a problem for the older person. Kitchens are bright places now, and the flames very clean and hard to see. ROSPA gave me figures - and they were quite comforting as there relatively few accidents from fires and burns in kitchens. They were doubtful that gas suppliers could be persuaded to add a trace substance to the gas to colour the flame. However I do think it would be worth researching and discussing - after all gas suppliers have add a scent for safety purposes. I am experimenting with salt....

a metal electrode placed close enough will pass current when its lit. Likely could drive a neon directly if you want simple. It wont detect unlit gas though.

Next time I fit a hob I'd like to hook it up to smoke/temp/rate of rise detectors and use those to switch the thing off automatically. And make it inconvenient to reset.


NT