Troubleshooting A Standing Gas Valve

As we begin the conversion from heating to cooling during the spring there are some things that we need to do to get our units ready to battle the summer heat. Most of us call the professionals each year to survey our units to make sure they are ready for the summer and to also make sure the proper maintenance precautions are taken. Not only is it time to check the cooling systems of the HVAC unit while the professionals are there performing the task needed for your system it is also a great time to have the standing gas valve of your unit checked.

The first question that needs to be answered for you to understand a standing gas valve is “What is a standing gas valve?”. This works much like a pilot light that is located on some of the earlier appliances such as the stove, water heater or the boiler of your system. The pilot light was a small flame that was located near the main burners on the appliances. When the gas valve is opened the burner of the appliance would begin to light producing a larger flame. Often time when the burner would not light it was because the pilot was not lit and had to be reignited by hand with a match.

Today much improvement has been made to provide a source for a pilot lite on the appliances and units we use today. The development of electric pilot has helped our systems to use less gas and work even more efficiently. This electric pilot uses a process called thermoelectric reaction to help fire the main burners. The thermocouple is a device made of two metal strips or wire made of dissimilar materials. They are welded together at one end that is known as a hot junction. The pilot flame will heat the hot junction helping to ignite the larger burners of the system.

The way this usually works is when the thermostat of the unit reaches a preset temperature the thermocouple will heat up and begin to glow. When the glow reaches a certain temperature the unit will fire up. There are certain times when this thermocouple of the pilot system will fail and it will need to be replaced. Now is a good time to have it checked or have the professionals that are performing the task of spring maintenance to your unit to take a look. This is a great time now because when we are finished with the summer cooling we do not want to wait until the first cool snap to figure out the Standing gas valve will need to be replaced.

Just like any other product we begin to replace the question comes up as to where do we get what we need. Be sure to check with HVACRsupplyNOW.com for all the parts you will need to repair your boiler.