I have a cabinet gat heater that won't light. Gas is getting through but the pilot light won't catch and I can not get the flame lit with a lighter. I think it is in the clicker switch but have no idea where to look or how to.

Anyone have expereince with the damn things. I have the idea the switch got proressively worse at the end of last year and only found it had completely failed after buying a refill cyclinder the weekend.

Tis a ****er!

As you cannot light the flame other ways, are the air jet thingies clogged?
I am sure there is a proper name for these but my brain has temporarily lost
it.
Brian

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"Weatherlawyer" wrote in message
...
I have a cabinet gat heater that won't light. Gas is getting through but
the pilot light won't catch and I can not get the flame lit with a lighter.
I think it is in the clicker switch but have no idea where to look or how
to.

Anyone have expereince with the damn things. I have the idea the switch
got proressively worse at the end of last year and only found it had
completely failed after buying a refill cyclinder the weekend.

Tis a ****er!

On 27/11/2016 23:21, Weatherlawyer wrote:
I have a cabinet gat heater that won't light. Gas is getting through but the pilot light won't catch and I can not get the flame lit with a lighter. I think it is in the clicker switch but have no idea where to look or how to.

Anyone have expereince with the damn things. I have the idea the switch got proressively worse at the end of last year and only found it had completely failed after buying a refill cyclinder the weekend.

Tis a ****er!


You say gas goes through, but you cannot light it? That doesn't sound
right. I once fixed a similar fire, after a summer of disuse, it would
only light with a long gas lighter but not stay alight when the button
was released, I thought initially that it was the thermocouple broken ,
but it turned out that the pilot light was too small to get the
thermocouple to operate. Upon dismantling to get to the pilot light jet
I discovered the reamins of a tiny spider in the air gas mixer venturi
above the jet, cleaned that out and all was well. So in your case it is
probably a similar fault, take it to bits, clean it all and reassemble.

On Sun, 27 Nov 2016 15:21:00 -0800 (PST), Weatherlawyer
wrote:

I have a cabinet gat heater that won't light. Gas is getting through but the pilot light won't catch and I can not get the flame lit with a lighter. I think it is in the clicker switch but have no idea where to look or how to.

Anyone have expereince with the damn things. I have the idea the switch got proressively worse at the end of last year and only found it had completely failed after buying a refill cyclinder the weekend.

Tis a ****er!

Subject line reminds of someone I knew at university, who had a
classmate at school who had the most rotten farts and spent three
months collecting all his farts while in the bath to release during
the end of term school assembly.

Weatherlawyer wrote:
I have a cabinet gat heater that won't light. Gas is getting through but the pilot light won't catch and I can not get the flame lit with a lighter. I think it is in the clicker switch but have no idea where to look or how to.

Anyone have expereince with the damn things. I have the idea the switch got proressively worse at the end of last year and only found it had completely failed after buying a refill cyclinder the weekend.

Tis a ****er!

Check the wire to the piezo igniter and makes sure the electrode is
clean and there no dirt that the spark can track back to earth.

On Monday, 28 November 2016 19:08:06 UTC, Bob Minchin wrote:
Weatherlawyer wrote:
I have a cabinet gat heater that won't light. Gas is getting through but the pilot light won't catch and I can not get the flame lit with a lighter. I think it is in the clicker switch but have no idea where to look or how to.

Anyone have expereince with the damn things. I have the idea the switch got proressively worse at the end of last year and only found it had completely failed after buying a refill cyclinder the weekend.

Tis a ****er!

Check the wire to the piezo igniter and makes sure the electrode is
clean and there no dirt that the spark can track back to earth.

How?

"Weatherlawyer" wrote in message
...
On Monday, 28 November 2016 19:08:06 UTC, Bob Minchin wrote:
Weatherlawyer wrote:
I have a cabinet gat heater that won't light. Gas is getting through
but the pilot light won't catch and I can not get the flame lit with a
lighter. I think it is in the clicker switch but have no idea where to
look or how to.

Anyone have expereince with the damn things. I have the idea the switch
got proressively worse at the end of last year and only found it had
completely failed after buying a refill cyclinder the weekend.

Tis a ****er!

Check the wire to the piezo igniter and makes sure the electrode is
clean and there no dirt that the spark can track back to earth.

How?

If the insulator between the central electrode and the casing of the heater
is dirty, electricity can leak over a low(ish) resistance path through the
dirt instead of causing a nice fat spark. Maybe clean the electrode and
insulator with WD40 to clean off any grot and also remove any moisture -
it's the same principle as trying to get a car started on a damp foggy
morning.

I'm worried about "I can not get the flame lit with a lighter" because that
makes me wonder if gas is even getting to the pilot light, irrespective of
how you ignite that gas (spark or match flame).

NY wrote:
"Weatherlawyer" wrote in message
...
On Monday, 28 November 2016 19:08:06 UTC, Bob Minchin wrote:
Weatherlawyer wrote:
I have a cabinet gat heater that won't light. Gas is getting
through but the pilot light won't catch and I can not get the flame
lit with a lighter. I think it is in the clicker switch but have no
idea where to look or how to.

Anyone have expereince with the damn things. I have the idea the
switch got proressively worse at the end of last year and only
found it had completely failed after buying a refill cyclinder the
weekend.

Tis a ****er!

Check the wire to the piezo igniter and makes sure the electrode is
clean and there no dirt that the spark can track back to earth.

How?

If the insulator between the central electrode and the casing of the
heater is dirty, electricity can leak over a low(ish) resistance path
through the dirt instead of causing a nice fat spark. Maybe clean the
electrode and insulator with WD40 to clean off any grot and also remove
any moisture - it's the same principle as trying to get a car started on
a damp foggy morning.

I'm worried about "I can not get the flame lit with a lighter" because
that makes me wonder if gas is even getting to the pilot light,
irrespective of how you ignite that gas (spark or match flame).

I would expect it to be difficult to get a lighter flame close enough to
the pilot light. Ideally a spill should be tried to see if the pilot is
working.
Also if it is anything like our gas fire knob controlling the desired
heat output has to be pushed down whilst trying to light. The OP might
not be aware of this either