It’s a lovely summer evening, and you’re about to bake chocolate chip cookies for a movie night with your friends. You buy all the ingredients, mix up the batter, toss your cookie dough into the oven and begin cleaning up the kitchen, waiting for your apartment to fill with the aroma of freshly baked cookies.
However, when you pop back in to check your cookies, you notice something is wrong. You open the oven door and find that the oven hasn’t heated up, even though the switch is on. What should you do now?
This article will highlight the common reasons why your gas oven won’t heat up, how you can implement easy fixes to the oven problems, and when to call a professional. First, let’s understand how gas ovens work.
How gas ovens work
What happens inside your gas oven when you turn on the knob? To understand how the gas oven works, let’s identify some of the parts and their functions.
- The oven burner. This is the part of the gas oven on the stovetop, where you place your pots and pans to cook food.
- Pilot flame. You see this in older models of gas ovens, where the stovetop has a constantly burning flame instead of an electric ignition generator.
- Spark generator. This part of the gas oven creates a spark to light the gas and cook your food.
- Thermostat. This temperature-measuring device is located inside and allows you to control the specific temperature to which your oven heats.
These are the basic components of any gas oven. Now let us help you understand how these parts work together.
Essentially, when you turn on the knob of your gas oven, you open the safety valve that allows gas to flow from the main supply line into your appliance. Then when you press the ignition button, it generates a spark, igniting the gas to light the burner.
When you choose to bake using the oven part of your gas oven, a current is sent to the oven’s spark electrode, guarded by a safety valve. The thermostat measures the temperature inside the oven and prevents it from getting too hot. When the oven reaches the correct temperature, the safety valve will automatically close, shutting off the gas supply to the appliance. Then when the temperature starts to lower, the safety valve reopens, and heating continues. This cycle maintains the desired average temperature until your oven timer goes off and you turn off the knob.
So, now that you know how your gas oven works, let’s look at the possible reasons why your oven is not heating up.
5 reasons why your gas oven may not be heating up
There could be multiple factors causing your gas oven to malfunction. However, before starting your DIY project by tinkering with your gas oven, remember to switch off the breaker for this appliance to prevent any accidents. If you’re not confident enough to fix the issue yourself, contact a home services agency to get an appliance repair professional.
Let’s review five reasons why your gas oven might not be heating up.
The circuit breaker may have tripped
A circuit breaker, by definition, is a safety device that stops the flow of current to your gas oven when a part of the circuit is faulty.
When a circuit breaker trips, your gas oven will not receive an electric current from the power supply and won’t heat.
Some reasons why a circuit breaker would trip include:
- Current overload
- Damaged wiring
- Faulty circuit breaker
- Open current
- Ground fault
- Damaged terminal block
A tripped circuit breaker can be a sign of an underlying problem. For example, if there was a current overload in your oven and your wires ran the risk of burning out, the breaker could have tripped to stop the current flow and prevent a fire.
If your gas oven is not heating up, you can check the bottom of the oven for a breaker valve that might have tripped.
If your circuit breaker has tripped, you can easily reset it using the following steps:
- Turn off all the appliances supplied by the tripped line.
- Find your circuit breaker box and flip the switch from “off” to “on.”
Doing this should reset your circuit breaker. However, if the breaker trips again when you turn on the appliance, you might have a faulty breaker switch or another underlying problem, like damaged wiring or an open current. In such a case, it’s best to call a professional and have them assess the damage.
The gas supply may not be connected
Another reason your gas oven might not be heating up is the absence of a gas supply.
Heating is facilitated inside your gas oven when you light up the gas using the igniter. If your gas oven doesn’t work when you press the igniter switch, it could be because your appliance is not receiving a gas supply. There could be two reasons for this issue:
- First, your gas valve could be turned off, shutting off the gas supply to your appliance. In this case, simply turn on the valve to fix the problem. It’s usually located near your gas meter and can be turned on manually by turning the dial on your gas valve.
- Second, there could be no gas supply in your pipes, causing your appliance not to receive gas even when the valve is turned on.
Sometimes access to liquid propane gas or natural gas stops for different reasons, and you might have to contact your gas-supply company to get to the bottom of the issue.
The temperature sensor may need to be repositioned or replaced
A faulty oven temperature sensor can cause your gas oven not to heat up.
The temperature sensor regulates the temperature inside the oven and shuts off the gas supply when it reaches the desired temperature. If your temperature sensor is defective, your appliance will not heat up properly and might not even turn on at all.
First, locate the sensor and confirm that it is in its proper position. If your temperature sensor touches the wall of the oven, it will alter the temperature readings and might be why your oven isn’t heating up properly. Reposition the sensor so it no longer makes contact with the oven walls and check if that solves the problem.
If the problem persists, it could be because your temperature sensor is damaged. In this scenario, contact a professional to help repair or replace your temperature sensor.
The oven control board may be malfunctioning
If you have ruled out all the above reasons, the problem could be with your oven control board. The control board is where all the knobs are located, and you can inspect the board for any signs of burning or physical damage.
Sometimes during the winter, when your gas line is exposed to freezing temperatures, the oven board can malfunction. In such a case, you should turn off all the knobs and leave your oven door open for 15 minutes, allowing the inside to cool down.
After 15 minutes, close the oven door and turn the knob back on. This process should reset your oven board and solve the problem.
The burner igniter may be broken
A faulty igniter is a common reason for oven malfunctioning. The igniter creates a spark to light up the gas, so if the oven igniter is faulty, the gas will not light up or create heat. An igniter can stop working if the coils have burnt out or become too dirty.
If your oven igniter breaks, your gas stove and oven won’t work. If you turn on the stove, you might smell gas even though the stovetop isn’t heating. If this happens, your igniter is likely faulty.
A faulty igniter is a serious fire hazard, and you should replace it as soon as possible. Here are some tips for maintaining fire safety with a faulty igniter:
- Switch off the oven and the stovetop if you smell gas.
- Do not light a match or a lighter in the kitchen until the gas smell is gone.
- Call a professional to have your igniter fixed.
As an additional safety measure, you can also turn off your gas valve until you fix your igniter or have a replacement part ready.
How to replace the igniter
Replacing an igniter is a pretty straightforward process. Here’s a step-by-step troubleshooting guide to help you safely replace your gas oven igniter:
- Make sure to shut off the gas valve to disconnect the gas flow into the appliance. This step is important for your safety, so we recommend triple-checking the safety valve to ensure it’s tightly shut.
- Next, unscrew the screws on the old igniter using a screwdriver and pull it out.
- Follow the manufacturer’s instructions to install the new igniter.
- Now you can open the safety valve to reconnect the appliance to the gas supply.
- Finally, turn on the oven to check if the new igniter is working.
Replacing a faulty igniter is simple and can easily be done at home. However, if you find this task too intimidating, you can call a professional for help.
When to call a professional
According to HomeAdvisor, the average costs for gas oven repairs range from $100 to $430. Still, the total can vary based on what is wrong with the stove and the varying labor charges of each professional. It can cost up to $1,000 to replace an entire stovetop.
You know it’s time to call a professional when you’ve tried all the above methods and the gas oven still isn’t heating up, or when you smell gas even when your gas oven is switched off.
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