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If your water heater’s pilot light has gone out, your heater will no longer be able to provide you with hot water. Furthermore, when the pilot light is out, the risk of a gas leak is increased.
That’s why you’ll want to remedy this issue as soon as you possibly can. If you know how to light a water heater pilot light, you’ll be able to take care of this issue before it causes problems for you.
Thankfully, the process is fairly simple, and it’s a job you should be able to take on yourself.
Go through these steps if your pilot light is out. Stay cautious throughout the process, and you should be able to re-light your water heater quickly.
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Step One: Locate the Pilot Light Burner
Before you can light the pilot light, you’ll need to determine where the burner is. You should start by opening the door or removing the cover that is blocking access to the pilot light. Pilot light access is typically beneath the gas valve.
You may want to use a flashlight so that you can locate the exact position of the burner. Even though this is a fairly easy task, it can be useful to have someone to help you.
That way, if necessary, you can have someone hold your flashlight while you work to light the flame.
Step Two: Start the Flow of Gas
Once you’ve found the burner, you’ll need to get gas flowing so that you’ll be able to light the flame. You should turn the gas knob to the pilot setting. You may need to hold it down before gas starts to flow again.
In some cases, a water heater may not have a knob, but will instead have a button that you’ll need to hold down.
Because you’ll typically need to hold the knob or button in place in order to keep the gas on, you’ll want to make sure you’re ready to light your pilot light before you start this task. It can be helpful to use a utility lighter so that it’s easier for you to reach the burner.
Step Three: Light Your Pilot Light
If you need to light your pilot light manually, you’ll want to do so now. As mentioned above, a long lighter, like a utility lighter, is going to be the best tool for this task.
In some cases, however, you may not need to use a heater in order to light a pilot light. Instead, you’ll have to press an igniting button to get light the flame.
You may want to look at the manual for your water heater before you start this project so that you have a better sense of how it operates.
After you’ve lit the flame, you won’t want to move onto the next step immediately. Instead, you’ll want to hold the button in place for 60 seconds.
Once that time has passed, you can release the button or knob. You may want to use a timer to ensure that you keep the gas on for an entire minute.
Step Four: Make Sure The Light Is Properly Lit
Even if it looks like you’ve properly lit the flame, you’ll want to double-check to confirm with an expert, ace water heater repair that everything was done correctly.
To do this, you’ll want to press your button or turn your knob so that the gas is on again. You should hear a noise as the light is turning on.
You should see a flame when the gas is on. If the flame doesn’t ignite, you’ll have to light your pilot light again. You’ll have to repeat this step of the process until you know that the light has been lit correctly.
Step Five: Put Everything Back in Place
Once the job is done, it’s time to get your heater back to normal. If you removed a cover in order to light your pilot light, you’ll want to put it back in place now.
If you opened a door, you’ll want to make sure that the door is shut securely.
Make sure you don’t leave any of the supplies that you used near the heater. It’s particularly important to make sure your lighter is picked up and stored in a safe place. Leaving flammable options near a water heater can be a major safety risk.
Keeping Your Pilot Light from Going Out in The Future
It’s important to know how to light your water heater’s pilot light. However, since reigniting the flame can be a hassle, you’ll also want to take steps to keep this from being an issue in the future.
While there are many things that can lead to a pilot light outage, one of the most common sources of this problem is an issue with the heater’s thermocouple.
You should check the thermocouple to see if it is dirty or bent. If it is, you’ll want to clean or replace it.
In some cases, frequent issues like this are also an indicator that your heater needs to be replaced. If you have an older water heater that is prone to problems, you may want to contact a professional and look into replacing it.
A lot of people think that relighting a water heater pilot light is a task that they can’t handle. Thankfully, this job is a lot easier than it might seem. Follow these steps and take precautions to make sure you won’t have to deal with this problem again.
