You might be wondering whether it is dangerous if your fireplace pilot light goes out. Many propane-type fireplaces have a pilot light, a small flame that is lit continuously and helps restart your burner if it goes out; it even prevents gas leaks. But is it dangerous if this light goes out?
It is generally not dangerous if your fireplace pilot goes out, but you should be careful because gas can leak. The main concern is that carbon monoxide leaks when the pilot light goes out, but gas appliances don’t emit carbon monoxide, as there’s no combustion.
We’ll talk more about what it means when your fireplace pilot is out, and we will discuss what you should do in this situation, so keep reading!
How Dangerous Is It If Your Pilot Light Goes Out?
We talked about pilot lights briefly in the introduction. This continuous flame needs to stay lit at all times; this way, your fireplace can ignite and start up properly. However, in some cases, your fireplace pilot might go out all of a sudden or might not appear lit at all.
Having an unlit pilot light is not inherently dangerous to you and your family. Of course, some people worry that this is a sign of carbon monoxide or other dangerous or explosive situation, but that isn’t the case.
Sometimes, though, there can still be gas leaking out, so you do want to be careful. Still, a pilot light that flickers off won’t directly harm you in most cases. Usually, it just means that your fireplace needs to be repaired in some way.
In addition, most fireplaces have safety measures in place that protect you. So even if the pilot light goes out, you won’t have to worry about gas leaks or other issues. In particular, gas valves are made to be temperature sensitive. If the pilot light goes out, the valve will shut off on its own for your safety.
You don’t want to leave this issue alone, though, especially if your fireplace’s pilot light keeps turning off. But, what does it mean when your pilot light goes out or isn’t appearing?
Why Is Your Pilot Light Going Out Or Not Appearing?
Your fireplace pilot light could be going out or not appearing for a few different reasons. To begin with, some newer propane models don’t have a pilot light at all. This is because the fire will be started with electricity. Having an electric ignitor in place of a pilot light can be convenient, but your fireplace won’t start on its own if the power goes out.
What if you know you have a pilot light and it goes out, what exactly has happened, and what should be done? When your pilot light has gone out without you manually turning it off, this could mean that the gas flow in your fireplace is being interrupted.
You might jump to the worst-case scenario and think that gas is leaking into your home. This is highly unlikely, though. When the gas flow is interrupted, it has most likely stopped flowing; this could be due to clogging in your gas line.
So you won’t have to worry about your house getting set on fire if the flame goes out. Homeowners should still fix their fireplace, as it won’t work correctly if the gas flow is disrupted. And, ignoring this issue won’t make your fireplace work all of a sudden.
If you are worried about a gas leak or smell of gas, make sure to turn off your fireplace and turn off the gas that goes to your fireplace.
How Do You Relight A Pilot Light When It Goes Out
If your pilot light goes out, you can relight it on your own. And some homeowners might also want to restart their pilot light and reignite it at various points in the year. Keeping your pilot light on all year won’t be a huge expense.
It can cost a little over a hundred dollars, which means that some homeowners might decide to turn off this light on their own and turn it on when they need to use their fireplace.
Throughout this section of the post, we’ll discuss how you can restart the light in your furnace when you have manually shut it off or when it has shut off unexpectedly.
When you are turning your pilot light on and off, you want to be safe, though. To stay safe, make sure that you check the manufacturing instructions that come with your fireplace.
Step 1
To begin, if you are turning off your pilot light, you want to turn off the gas feed for your pilot light and your fireplace. This will help you determine if there is any gas build-up. Again, this is highly unlikely, but you don’t want to take any chances. Wait a few minutes, then sniff the air.
Step 2
After you are sure there is no gas buildup, you can begin the process of relighting your pilot light. If your fireplace pilot light has turned off unexpectedly, then move on to the third step.
Step 3
Whenever you decide to relight your fireplace pilot light, you will need to read the manufacturing instructions carefully. This should have come with your appliance when you first got your fireplace.
In most cases, all you will have to do is depress your pilot valve yourself. Then, you can relight your pilot light with a match or a lighter.
Step 4
Don’t just light the flame and forget about your fireplace, though. We recommend watching the flame and looking for any abnormal signs. If the flame looks different or off in any way, then you might need to call in a professional to look at your fireplace.
Also, if you can’t find your manufacturing instructions, you can call in someone who knows how to fix fireplaces. Again, you are not in any immediate danger when dealing with this issue, but you want to make sure that your system is running correctly and smoothly.
This way, you don’t have to pay for more expensive repairs or do a total replacement of your system down the line.
