You hop into the shower ready for the day ahead and realize you have no hot water. Now What? Well if you own a gas water heater chances are that A. your heater could be leaking or B. your Gas Water Heater Pilot Light is out.

The pilot light in a gas water heater is made possible by either of two devices. In older water heaters it’s called a thermocouple which is a heat sensing bulb attached to a copper capillary which connects to the fuel control valve. It produces a small electrical signal (millivolts) which allows the pilot to stay lit.

In newer style water heaters the manufacturers will provide either the traditional thermocouple or a pilot generator which is a larger sized sensing bulb and instead if a copper capillary tube, they actually use shielded light gauged wires which connect to the fuel control valve and again allow the pilot to stay lit.

 

In older water heaters thermocouples have a tendency to burn out which is not unusual, but in some cases, it may have moved out of position keeping it from sensing the heat generated by the pilot light. I’ve actually seen new water heaters having pilot outage issues because the thermocouple moved out of position while in transit.

 

In nine out of ten cases in my experience, the Gas Water Heater Pilot Light went out because the thermocouple lost it ability to generate enough voltage to keep the pilot going. A common repair in the world of gas water heaters. I have not had the opportunity to replace a pilot generator with the shielded wire leads on a gas water heater to date. Although I did have to replace one on my own gas fireplace.

In the video below I illustrate an older water heater followed by a more modern version and take through some steps needed should you decide to attempt this repair yourself. WARNING: I do not recommend the D.I.Y. person take on a repair like this but I know that many in fact do and with that in mind hopefully I can help you avoid some pitfalls in the process. If you having any doubt at all about attempting this type of repair, STOP and contact a qualified professional technician.

I hope you enjoy the video, and if so I’d appreciate a thumbs up and please subscribe to my youtube channel www.bobsplumbingvideos.com. I look forward to seeing you in my next video, stay well and as always HAPPY PLUMBING!

Bob