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How to Relight Your Water Heater Pilot Light

As a professional, licensed plumbing company in Louisville, Kentucky, we can handle just about any plumbing emergency that comes up.

But sometimes, your plumbing problem is a small thing that the homeowner can handle. One of these typical minor problems is when your gas water heater’s pilot light goes out.

Any time you’re dealing with natural gas, it can be a little intimidating. So here are some simple instructions to help you get your water heater’s pilot light relit.

First, you should check your owner’s manual or the side of the unit, since instructions for your particular unit are often right there. If you’ve lost the owner’s manual or the labels have peeled off your unit, here are some basic instructions.

Turn the gas valve to OFF. Wait for about 5 minutes. Turn the gas valve to PILOT. Push down on it or the red button nearby. Hold it down and wait for the pilot indicator to light.

If your water heater requires manual relighting, use a barbecue lighter to ignite the gas at the end of the supply tube. Continue to hold down the control button after the pilot is lit for about a minute. This allows the pilot to heat a sensor that automatically shuts off the gas when the pilot goes out.

Release the control button. Repeat this process if the pilot light goes out. Once the pilot remains lit, turn the valve to ON, which should ignite the burner.

If these instructions don’t work, it might be time to call in a licensed plumber. Call Dauenhauer any hour. We’ll send out one of our friendly plumbing techs to get your gas water heater up and running again.

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