MT.Net’s gas oven is working again after a trip to D&L Parts on the way home from work. After popping the oven’s model number into The Google, I discovered PartSelect.Com, a site that not only has all the schematics and part numbers listed but also has advice from other Do-It-Yourselfers on how to install them.
The problem part, for those of you at home, isn’t known as a thermocouple but an igniter. Its an electronic version of a match to ignite the gas, only turning on the gas when the igniter’s temperature reaches a certain point. The beauty of it all was I never had to mess with the gas valves or pipes or anything: it was as technically challenging as changing a spark plug. Removing the igniter consisted of removing two screws and unplugging it. The time-consuming part is working inside the cramped broiler compartment beneath the oven compartment.
This particular job would’ve been 15 minutes, tops, but I ran into a common issue: the replacement GE igniter had a female plug – the same as the supposedly matching oven plug. GE helpfully includes porcelean wire caps for when you have to reuse the old connector. Wiring that up took the majority of my time as initially I was stupid and tried to wire it while lying on the floor with my arms jammed forward into a tight compartment.
Now the oven lights within 30 seconds as it should, whereas it used to take 2 minutes (or longer) before. We saved $100 on a 15 minute repair and I did the job right.