Your water heater will either have a pilot light or an electronic ignition. If the latter is what you have then you don’t need to worry about this topic. If you still have a pilot light then you will want to continue reading and find out what the thermocoupler is and why it’s important to your pilot light. Also covered below will be what you can expect to go wrong if your thermocoupler isn’t working correctly.

What Is A Thermocoupler?

The job of the thermocoupler is to make sure that your pilot light is always lit. One part is a metal rod that can touch the flame of the pilot light. That rod also connects to your water heater’s gas valve. When the pilot light is on, the warmth from that light sends messages by electronic charges to your thermocoupler to have the gas line remain open. When the pilot light goes out, that will result in the gas line closing.

Why Is A Thermocoupler Referred To As A Safety Device?

The pilot light lights the burners of your furnace. If your furnace’s pilot light remains out for too long, gas could build up. If there was a long time where the pilot light was out and then the pilot light was re-lit, your furnace could blow up. Any gas that escaped could cause carbon monoxide poisoning. The thermocoupler stops this from happening if it’s working correctly.

Can Anything Happen To The Thermocoupler?

A couple of things could cause the thermocoupler to work incorrectly. One thing that could cause that part to not work properly is if it gets dirty. That will disrupt the flow of gas to your furnace because the readings on the gas will not be correct. If you have the device checked once a year and change the air filter regularly, you could stop other problems from happening like calibrations needing to be made to the thermocoupler.

The thermocoupler will have to be replaced before you replace your furnace because their life span isn’t as long as the life span of the furnace. This is why it’s urged to have the furnace looked at once a year just in case the thermocoupler has stopped working.

 

For more information about plumbing, contact Vinny’s Jersey Plumbing, located in Wayne, New Jersey.  We also service other towns in New Jersey, such as Lodi, Livingston and Cedar Grove.