1. B. A. T. Basic Appliance Training
Basic Gas Appliance Service
presented by
Jim Campbell, Mcap

2. Outline Gas Basics Fuel Gas Code Requirements Gas Testing Devices
Safety
Characteristics
Fuel Gas Code Requirements
Gas Testing Devices
Gas Ranges
Gas Dryers
Gas Water Heaters

3. Gas Basics
This program is not designed to give you all the necessary skills and information to service all gas appliances but will form a foundation to help build your skills and knowledge.
Further information and experience will be necessary to completely understand all aspects of servicing gas products.

4. References NFPA 54 – National Fuel Gas Code
NFPA 58 – Liquefied Petroleum Gas Code
NFPA 501 & 501A – Standards for Manufactured Homes
Various service guides & training programs from Gas Appliance manufacturers

5. Gas Basics - Safety For your personal Safety:
Always use a combustible gas indicator to check for gas in the atmosphere as you enter the service area. Don’t trust your nose to warn you.
Ask the customer if they have been smelling gas.
Check high for Natural Gas, check low for LP Gas.

6. Gas Basics - Safety
Combustible gas indicators (CGI)

7. Gas Basics - Safety
Mops, brooms, newspapers or any flammable materials should not be stored near gas appliances.
Paints, solvents, gasoline or any combustible products should not be in the same room.

8. Gas Basics - Safety
Make sure a flexible gas line connection is installed connecting the gas houseline to the appliance to reduce the likelihood of damage if movement should occur.
All gas appliances should have a gas shut-off valve installed in the gas line that lets you turn off the gas to that appliance if there is a gas leak.

9. Gas Basics - Safety
Make yourself aware of where the main shut-off is or the gas meter / shut-off in case of any emergency while you are in the customer’s home.
Main shut-off

10. Gas Basics – Safety Safe Servicing Practices
Be sure to wear Safety Glasses and any other Personal Protection Equipment while performing service work.
Before servicing or moving an appliance:
Disconnect power
Turn off the gas supply
Turn off the water supply
Be sure to exercise “Lock-Out / Tag-Out” procedures

11. Gas Basics - Safety
NEVER interfere with the proper operation of any safety device. It is never acceptable to bypass a Safety or an operating control and leave the unit in operation.
Use only replacement parts designed for that specific appliance.
NO MacGyver-ing

12. Gas Basics - Safety Prior to returning an appliance to service:
Make sure all electrical connections are correct and secure, dressed, away from sharp edges and moving parts and well insulated and protected from damage.
See that access panels are securely reassembled and all screws back where they belong.

13. Gas Basics - Safety
One of the major concerns when working on Gas Burning appliances is the production of CO (Carbon Monoxide).
All Gas Burning appliances have the potential for creating CO.

14. Gas Basics - Safety Gas Burning appliances produce excessive CO if:
Burners are not properly adjusted
Flame impingement is occurring
Improper venting
Lack of air for complete combustion

15. Gas Basics – Safety Effects of CO Poisoning
9 ppm The maximum allowable concentration for short-term exposure in a living area according to ASHRAE.
35 ppm The maximum allowable concentration for continuous exposure in any eight-hour period, according to federal law.
200* ppm Slight headache, tiredness, dizziness, and nausea after two to three hours.
400 ppm Frontal headaches within one to two hours, life-threatening after three hours, also maximum parts per million in flue gas according to EPA and AGA.
800 ppm Dizziness, nausea, and convulsions within 45 minutes. Unconsciousness within two hours. Death within two to three hours.
1,600 ppm Headache, dizziness, and nausea within 20 minutes. Death within one hour.
3,200 ppm Headache, dizziness, and nausea within 5 to 10 minutes. Death within 30 minutes.
6,400 ppm Headache, dizziness, and nausea within 1 to 2 minutes. Death within 10 to 15 minutes.
12,800 ppm Death within 1 to 3 minutes.
* Maximum CO concentration for exposure at any time as prescribed by OSHA.
Effects can vary significantly based on age, sex, weight, and overall state of health.

16. Gas Basics - Safety
The CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) recommends that an approved CO detector be installed in every home.
CO detectors should be mounted in and around the sleeping areas, not in a kitchen or near gas burning appliances.

17. Gas Basics - Characteristics

18. Gas Basics - Characteristics
Natural Gas ratio Gas to Air
4% to 14%
Propane ration Gas to Air
2% to 10%

19. Gas Appliance Testing Devices
If you use Soap Solution when testing for leaks, you must clean it off to eliminate corrosion.

20. Gas Appliance Testing Devices - Manometers
Manometers are primarily used to measure pressures of less than 1 PSI.
If you use a spring gauge to check gas pressures, always check your spring gauge for accuracy by comparison to known pressures or a manometer.
Manometers normally indicate pressures in “Inches of Water Column” (“wc).

21. Gas Appliance Testing Devices - Manometers
How to read a manometer:

22. Gas Appliance Testing Devices - Manometers
This is a commonly used Direct Read manometer.
Upright mode for common measurements.
Incline mode for pressures less than 1”wc

23. Fuel Gas Codes
If you work on Gas burning appliances you should have the applicable code available to you
National Fuel Gas Code – NFPA54
NFPA 501 & 501A – Standards for Manufactured Homes
NFPA 58 – LP Code
International Fuel Gas Code
Local Jurisdiction codes

24. Fuel Gas Codes
Fuel Gas Codes establish the bare minimum requirements for gas burning equipment:
Installation
Piping
Connections to fuel system
Combustion Air Requirements
Venting

25. Fuel Gas Codes
Appliances must have a shut-off valve within 6 feet of the appliance.
Connectors must be approved connectors
Primarily Stainless Steel or Coated connectors
Appliances must be supplied with the required gas supply, pressure & quantity

26. Fuel Gas Codes
The major concern when it comes to the gas burning appliances that we deal with; gas ranges, gas dryers and gas water heaters, is the amount of air available for proper combustion.
Unless we go through exhaustive measures to determine the amount of infiltration air into the structure where the appliance is installed, we fall back on the minimum requirements for equipment.

27. Fuel Gas Codes The minimum amount of air required by Standard Method:
The minimum required volume shall be 50ft3 / 1000 Btu / hr
If we have a standard gas range with 4 surface burners and the two oven burners, bake and broil; it is rated for 65,000 Btus input, how much air is required?
_________________ft3

28. Gas Ranges
Gas ranges are different from Electric ranges because the heat comes from a gas flame instead of a heating element.
Natural Gas is delivered to the range at approx. 7”wc. A regulator inside the range drops the pressure to a normal manifold pressure of 3.5 to 4”wc.
Measuring the gas pressure would be done using a manometer or magnehelic gauge.

29. Gas Ranges
The surface burners are supplied with gas through the burner valve

30. Gas Ranges
Actual surface burner gas valve operation
Burner adjustment

31. Gas Ranges Checking burners Which flame indicates proper combustion?
A B C D

32. Gas Ranges
Flame quenching – normally results in a complaint about odors.
Customers may complain about gas odors or even CO. They are actually smelling the Aldehydes from incomplete combustion.
Improper flame diagnostics
Cleaning burners

33. Gas Ranges Gas burner ignition systems include:
Standing pilot
Spark (Electronic) ignition
Hot Surface ignition
Standing pilot, surface burners

34. Gas Ranges Relighting standing pilot Adjusting the pilot
Ensure pilot is not too high, causes soot under pilot hood and creates Aldahydes
Adjusting the pilot
Turn the pilot up just enough to keep it lit
Cleaning the pilot
Never, Never use a broach to clean a pilot. A broach is a three sided file and will enlarge the pilot and cause problems. Use compressed air.

35. Gas Ranges Electronic ignition Consists of the following components:
Ignitor switches
Ignitor spark module
Surface burner ignitors (electrodes)
Ignitor switches for the surface burners are wired in parallel to each other.

36. Gas Ranges
When the burner control is turned to “Lite”, the switch closes a 120 Volt circuit to an Electronic Spark Module. The module steps up the 120 Volt input to approximately 10,000 to 20,000 volts. The high voltage causes the current to jump from the electrode to ground.

37. Gas Ranges
Spark Module and Spark Electrode

38. Gas Ranges
Surface burner layout

39. Gas Ranges
Sealed burner layout

40. Gas Ranges Types of Electronic ignition systems for surface burners:
All burners spark & oven sparks
One side of burners & oven independent
One burner sparks & oven is independent
Electronic ignition diagnostics
Burners spark for no reason, middle of night.

41. Gas Ranges Oven ignition systems: Standing pilot Intermittent spark
Hot Surface (Glow bar)

42. Gas Ranges
Standing Pilot

43. Gas Ranges
Oven Safety Valve
Stand-by vs. Heater pilot

44. Gas Ranges
Oven Safety Valve opening

45. Gas Ranges
Hot Surface (Glo-Bar) Ignition, aka – HIS

46. Gas Ranges
HSI operation 1 2 3

47. Gas Ranges Testing components Oven control Burner switches Limits
May have to Choke it
Burner switches
Test for open and close
Limits
Should all be normally closed
Locking mechanisms
Are the switches in the correct positions
Now what about this Choking thing?

48. Gas Ranges Testing components, Glo-Bar ignitors
Either ignitor should read about 50 to 150 ohms resistance when cold.
2.5 to 3.0 Amps
3.0 to 3.6 Amps

49. Gas Ranges
Testing oven temperature sensor

50. Gas Dryers
Everything about Gas Dryers is the same as Electric Dryers except for the source of heat and Gas Dryers operate on 120 Volts instead of 240.
Timers / PCB boards are about the same
Thermostats are the same
Pretty much the same except for the gas burner.

51. Gas Dryers Provides heat, either electric elements or gas burner.
Circulates air
Tumbles the clothes

52. Gas Dryers Natural gas is supplied to gas dryers at approx. 7”wc.
A pressure regulator inside the dryer cuts that pressure down to an operating pressure of 3.5 to 4”wc.
The gas is normally ignited with a hot surface ignitor.

53. Gas Dryers Gas dryer heating system. Burner Tube Gas Valve Inlet
Operating Coils
This Gas Valve assembly is referred to as a “K” series. The coils are wired.

54. Gas Dryers
Gas dryer heating system.
Hot Surface Ignitor

55. Gas Dryers Gas dryer heating system. Oven cone with High Limit
Flame Sensor
Operating Coils
This Gas Valve assembly is referred to as an “M” series. The coils are modular plug-in instead of wired.

56. Gas Dryers Gas dryer heating system. Hot Surface Ignitor
120 Volt Power in

57. Gas Dryers
Gas dryer heating system. N
1300 
600  L1
700 

58. Gas Water Heaters

59. Gas Water Heaters
Typical components

60. Gas Water Heater
Power Vented Water Heater

61. Gas Water Heater
Water Heater with FVIR

62. Gas Water Heater Troubleshooting Pilot outages Thermocouple Gas Valve
FVIR system cleaning

63. Gas Water Heater

64. Gas Appliance Service For reference- Available by email:
address:
Available by
please put ( BAT training ) in the subject line:
Whirlpool – Adjustments and Repairs to minimize CO emissions
Frigidaire – Procedures for Repair and Adjustments to minimize CO
GE – CO training manual
Cleaning instructions for Sealed water heaters