Pilot light:

This is a quick page about pilot lights. Modern boilers don’t have them so general knowledge about what they are and importantly, how to re-light them is fading from the collective public mind. 

All older gas-fired warm air boilers have pilot lights. Two pilot lights on the versions which have hot water heating too. One for the warm air, another for the hot water. Both need to be alight and running all the time. 

To re-light a pilot light which has blown out is a bit fiddly. There will be a gas control valve behind the boiler front panel. On the gas valve there will be a button, grey or black usually, which the user presses down to start the gas flowing from the pilot jet. 

Whilst holding this button down, the pilot flame needs igniting with a long match or with an igniter button fitted to the boiler. Not all boilers have an igniter button, and of those fitted, not all work so even if you have the igniter button, the chances are high you’ll still need a a long match (or one of those extended kitchen cooker lighters) anyway.

Once the flame has been successfully lit, the button needs to be held down for a further 20-30 seconds while the safety device warms up in the flame. Once the safety device is hot, you can let go of the button and the pilot flame “should” stay alight.

If the flame will not stay alight then the safety device (the thermocouple) has probably failed and will need replacing. This is common.

I’ll add some photos to this page as I find them but for now, these are the bones of how to re-light your pilot light.

Many (but not all) boilers have detailed instructions how to do it printed on the back of the front panel you will have removed. Easily missed!

Mike

Menu:

Set of three extended cooker lighters in different colours -  ideal for lighting pilot lights. (Image from eBay.)