Intermittent Gas Leak (?)

[lkeriegrl]

Hi, I see Ha and Pokey are both on now, any thoughts on this?

I smell gas. But not all the time. I think one of the valves (the things controlled by the thumblatches on the front) sticks open or does not close all the way. It isnt the main gas hose. We have the safety valve there, it's been checked several times, it's the modern kind with the safety off switch. . . The smell is more in the top front, over the thumb latches. I have a good nose but that's as good as I can do. What's th emixture of soap:water for the bubbles?
We did not much more than clean her, but I promised not to name her until we had the $$ to do the safety. Still no news on that front.

I had asked about valve grease cause I thought they needed it, all are not smooth through the range of motion, but whoever was willing to loan explained the grease job as very involved, including having to remove the chrome top. We'd have to drill out a screw that is rusted in. What's the quickest fix to this, what's the best/'right'way to fix this?

PS the oven knob (valve) was v-e-r-y creaky yesterday. I did a lot of baking and maybe got a little carried away with trying to CWTGTO. (and on and off and on)

Thanks!
Erin

[dgaskamp]

thats all i did to mine was get a bottle of soap and water.. spray all connections one at a time and watch. I also repeated process with burner on so i could check my orifices and such.. least i would know were to start...

[lkeriegrl]

What if it is the valves sticking open? It's just every once in a while. And if we close the hose off at the pipe, then it does go away. How extensive a job is it to 'grease the valves'? I see a lot of references to having to do it but not a detail of what has to be done to actually complete it. ??

[lorikeets]

What model do you have? I have greased the valves on two model C's without too much problem. I just took out the drip pans in the front and worked through the openings. Do you have a manual? The instructions are easy to follow. Just need to remove the two screws holdings the narrow metal strip (valve stop), then maneuver the valves open and apply grease (after shutting off gas first of course!). It does take some hand strength, but not difficult. I would bet that's all the problem is.
Gwen

[Pokey Roberts]

Your question about the soap solution.
If you have a recipe for soap blubbles use it. if
not a good strong soapy water solution 25 pts
water to 1 part liquid dishwashing soap. More
or less. Just good soapy water. I use dawn and try to get the color halfway between the concentrated bottle and clear. You can put it
in a spray bottle and spray it on the hard to reach
areas.

The grease in the valves is part of the seal.
If the grease gets old, dried, hard and cracked it
can let gas leak by.
First things first put the soapy water on all
fittings, valve stems, fittings pipe etc. Any thing that gas flows in. If you can get it wet
with the soapy solution eventually it will show
you where the leak is. A bad leak will be a lot
of small bubbles that break quick and reform. A
slow leak will look like you were using the soap
bubble blower you played with as a kid.
Once you get the fittings wet start playing with
the valves, turning them on and off. You may
want to work with only one valve and the lines going to it at a time. Wet it good play with the
valve turn it on and off several times and look
for bubbles. If it is the valve you will have
to grease it and or work some lubrication into it
or try to use graphite and some kind of penetrating oil to work into the valve.
Don't forget the orifice end itself. You can
remove the burner on the surface and see if the
valve is leaking internally. I mean the gas is
going through the pipe to the orifice and is enough to smell but not enough to go through the
tube to the pilot light and ignite the burner.
Be patient. If it is leaking enough for you to smell it will show up with the soap bubbles.
It is up to you to get the soapy water to the source of the leak.
Pokey

[lkeriegrl]

Pokey,

I just read your post aloud to mu husband, who took a moment away from our watching the utter rout of Bowling Green State University by my own Ohio State Buckeyes. He's nodding sagely. It's tough for people under 30 to nod sagely, so that's saying a lot.

Thanks. we will suds them up tonight during the pumpkin pie evolution.

BTW, no one has said 'hey, don't blow yourself up!!!!"We are not using the pilots at all. Would you say there is still a danger of explosion with a leaky valve like this?

[lkeriegrl]

PS we have a B silverlite

[Pokey Roberts]

You said that you are not using the pilots at all.
If they have not been turned off or plugged that
may be what you are smelling. Start with the
pilot orifice first with the soapy water if that
is the case. Gas is there to burn and burn hot.
If there is enough to make a combustible combination
with oxygen a spark will ignite it. If it is in
an open room you would know if it was bad. If
you just have the gas odor around the stove the
odds are it will not explode.
It is your life and home that you are gambling with. Find the leak or hire someone to find and fix
it.
If it is the pilot that is the source then light it. It was designed to burn all the time.

Pokey

[lkeriegrl]

Okay, I got my soapy bottle going. I went with palmolive, but it's basically the recipe you spec'ed--halfway between clear water and pure palmolive. I tested it using a leftover bubble wand for its bubbliness.

I smelled gas, I removed the burner grates/drip pans, sprayed it all down (slopping up my baking pans in the service cabinet in the process. Dumb.) and. . .no bubbles.

I think I want to just grease the valves and then readjust the mixes and flame height whatevers. (It was a while ago)

Hubby suggests that possibly we smell gas mostly when the burners are on, and that they are just so high that some gas isn't burning. For example, the back burner and thermowell are very perfect little daisy burners, while the front two burners can form much fuller big flames. I might just post a pic to illustrate. Any experience with this?

[Todd W. White]

Sometimes, people with over-sensitive noses, when they walk into the Fellowship Hall, think that they "smell gas" when, in reality, they are smelling the burning gas in the pilot lights in out church kitchen's commercial model stove and ovens.

I'm sure not all of the gas burns in any burner - maybe all you're noticing is the residual smell of that.

Just a thought...