Water Heater Thermocouple Tester

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Water heater thermocouple tester.

Anything under or hovering around the 20 millivolts mark means the thermocouple needs to be replaced. How to test a thermopile s voltage using a multimeter. For testing a thermocouple you first have to remove it from the furnace water heater or gas appliance where it is installed. In the early 1900s honeywell applied it to the safety gas valve.

It is comprised of two different types of metal which react differently to heat and expand at different rates signaling to the water heater when to turn on or off. Here s how to test a suspected thermocouple in a gas operated water heater. Acceptable range for most water heat. Usually a lighter will suffice for the test.

A faulty thermopile may be at fault. If the pilot light doesn t stay lit check the gas water heater thermocouple by keeping the pilot button depressed. Measure the current by using the multimeter device set on millivolts. The water heater thermocouple is a device that monitors temperatures in the water heater to determine whether it needs to heat up or turn off the heat.

Light the pilot by pressing and holding the pilot light button on the gas control valve. How to test a thermocouple. If the thermocouple is working you should be able to measure 30 to 40 millivolts of voltage at the connection end of the tube when the pilot flame is on. Originally it had a ratio of copper and nickel and was labeled a coppel copper nickel element.

Thomas seeback discovered it in 1821. Once it is removed you will need a multimeter that needs to have the ability to read millivolts and a source of fire. A thermocouple is a safety device for a standing pilot gas system. If you can t light the pilot the problem most likely lies with the gas control valve or the gas flow itself not the thermocouple.

Thermocouples designed for residential gas appliances such as fireplaces water heaters and furnaces are made for 30 millivolts. A gas water heater in boise baton rouge buffalo or boston uses a thermocouple that includes a probe attached to a copper tube that screws into a port on the gas valve. One probe of the meter should be connected to the copper sheath of the thermocouple and the other to the gas valve. Discretion should be used if the reading is between 21 and 25.