Saving at home fail

[California98Civic]

Advice? My old gas range has one of four electric spark igniters on the fritz. It sparks only faintly, only sometimes, but it will spark fully when I also turn anothr of the four igniters to the "lite" setting. Ineffiecient and concerning. I cleaned the igniter points and also the burn caps that they spark against. No improvement (maybe very, very slight but totally insufficient improvement).

Following instructions from Frigidaire I began to disassemble the cook top to inspect wires and connections beneath. I got no further than this first roughly 6 mm aluminum bolt. It snapped right away.

Thoughts how to proceed?

[rmay635703]

Do you like matches?

Must be easy out time.

Experience says old stoves are like rusted out old pickup rear brakes,
Try to fix too hard and you will be buying more parts than you originally expected.

[oil pan 4]

It looks pretty corroded.
Don't try to fix it unless you are ready to buy a new one.

[redneck]

.

Soak the remaining screw with PB Blaster. Take a pin punch and place it on top of the screw and hit the punch with a few good whacks. The vibration will help break the oxidation bond of the dissimilar metals. The PB will then work its way in. Do not use a wrench or ratchet to loosen the screw. Instead use a hand impact driver with a 3/8” drive 6 point socket (not a 12 point) continue striking the hand impact while twisting and keeping the screw wet with PB. This should loosen the screw. If and when it starts to loosen, keep turning it in the same direction only. Do not try and work it back and forth as this will only fatigue the screw more. If it breaks, you will have to drill it and use a ez out. It may however be just easier to drill new holes next to the old holes and tap rather than extract the original screws. Replace the old screws and use never seize.





upload image with url



You could also use one of these. 1/4” impact driver.



If you use the electric impact go very easy with it as it can wring the head off in a instant. Again do not reverse direction.

Personally, I believe the hand impact driver would be best in this situation.


Good Luck...🍀


>

[oil pan 4]

I think an impact will just break them faster.

[California98Civic]

Thanks for the advice, all. I had thought of PB Blaster but wondered about the extra chemicals where we cook our food. Still, with the addition of a vibration effort... hmmmm... I have the punch. I might try it on one other and see if it works better, if I feel lucky. My wife would love the excuse for us to get something. Maybe me too.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by redneck

It may however be just easier to drill new holes next to the old holes and tap rather than extract the original screws. Replace the old screws and use never seize.

This seems to be the safest way to go.

[Fat Charlie]

My last oven made it 15.5 years. The oven itself had been balking, but it finally died for good on Christmas morning when my wife went to preheat it. Broiling a roast is a 8*+@#, but it can be done.

It was an $18 part that I got off Amazon. Then I shut everything down, pulled the oven out and got to work- only to realize that I had to disassemble everything to replace that piece, and success would be a gas stove that I built all by myself.

We got a new one that weekend. I didn't build it. We're happy and haven't gotten blown up.

[California98Civic]

Awesome story, Fat Charlie!

[oil pan 4]

Hey but if they're aluminum bolts, which is weird it will be really easy to drill them out and retap them.