Thermopile, Millivolt Generator, Powered Gas Valve Not Working!

[@rangepro]

YOU know what is amazing to me is, I watch you almost everyday and the homes that you go a lot are run down and it seems people don't give a shit whether its a pig pen or not! YOU Know you don't always have to have the best , but it can at least be clean!!

[@jthonn]

IKR, thing is, the money is still green.

[@angelr8892]

I was billeted in 2 barracks that had been declared unfit for habitation during my time in the Marines.But you better believe we kept them spotless. The roof of barracks 79 at El Toro collapsed a couple of weeks after I moved out. But it was undoubtedly clean when it imploded. 😁 Pride vs no pride.

[@genesun71]

Had an old unit heater that was like that in my fist shop . Had to plug and unplug the limit about one a month. Finally found a product called Deoxit and never had to clean the terminals again. Now I put that Sh*t on everything! Best thing ever made for low voltage, HDMI, Ethernet, phone chargers, ports and cables. And it won't melt plastic.

[@HVACGUY]

Thanks for the sugestion

[@tedperry2441]

Merry Christmas.

[@sziltner]

Merry Christmas 🎄 Tnx for all the first class videos. Have a great healthy and prosperous 2025!

[@HVACGUY]

Thanks, you too! Merry Christmas!

[@kens.3729]

Thanks for sharing this Odd Setup at this Customer location. 🤔👍

[@bluesteel48]

I once installed a thermopile gas steam boiler. The homeowner wanted programmable thermostat and auto feed water. Interesting install. Had to add a 24 volt transformer and an isolation relay to operate the system. I left the regular thermostat installed and the system will run if the power fails.

[@everettstevenson2111]

Hey Curtis, of HVAC Guy not easy being cheesy. I like your podcast/social media. Sound like the wall thermostat is going bad. Again the heat anticipator, which is mainly to stop power spikes and power surge on low voltage control system, 24 vac or millivolt sytem. Question is no millivolts, but milliamperes going to gas valve. Love you buddy, you be safe out there.

[@TomLawson05]

Great troubleshooting on the old beast thanks for the video

[@jjoejones1]

As an electrician, I would have checked continuity through the blue leads of the limit switch. Much faster than pulling the grill and exercising the spade connectors.

[@jthonn]

Merry Christmas, just a little movement made it work, which the first thing I thought was loose connection. Well I was wrong, it was bad connection. I've worked on a couple of wall furnaces, I'm talking 35, 40 years ago. They were nothing like that. Good job

[@SFbank721]

I always would disassemble pilot burner orifice and clean it and shine up generator with wire brush or sandpaper

[@stevencossaboon3237]

Nice work Curtis.

[@HVACGUY]

Thanks!

[@w5cdt]

I think water heaters also use millivolt signals to keep the pilot light going.

[@JamesAgans]

Its 27 degrees F where I am. Merry Christmas, Curtis. Take Christmas off, Brother. Lolol

[@robalexander7348]

Thanks Curtis, that was a interesting HR fault, so well done 👍 Au

[@JakePorterHVAC]

Hope you have a good Christmas. Stay safe out there.

[@HVACGUY]

Thanks, you too!

[@beerbrewer7372]

Merry Christmas Mr. HVAC Guy! Love your content Wish you the very best in 2025.

[@HVACGUY]

Thanks, you too!

[@OnusBones]

Sounds like a perfectly reasonable explanation, and hopefully the fix will last at least through the season. Nice one.

[@Sctronic209]

Always make sure you have a good strong pilot and no build up on the thermopile. 190mv seems a little low, boarder line at the gas valve. Thermopiles are rated 750mv open circuit.

[@bills6946]

I was surprised to see that heater mounted on plywood with zero clearance. I would have thought it would need standoffs for at least a one inch gap to a combustable surface. Merry Christmas to all techs

[@franks6837]

I cut my teeth on millivoltage 35 plus years ago. Clean the pilot and sand the powerpile lightly sand the powerpile . Make sure connections are sound and most importantly make sure it is a millivolt thermostat on the wall

[@HVACGUY]

Good advice

[@fernandobazan829]

what produces the 35mv to begin with is there a relay or transformer? please or board

[@unmountablebootvolume]

@@fernandobazan829 The 35mv come from the flame sensor itself. It is a thermoelectric generator. One end gets heated by the flame, the other end is screwed to a cold piece of metal, and the heat flowing through it makes it generate electricity. They use the same technology on satellites, which have a piece of plutonium on one side of the thermoelectric element, heating it up, and a radiator on the other side, cooling it down. The voyager probes and some mars rovers are powered by such generators.

[@franks6837]

@@fernandobazan829 the thermopile or as we call them in Canada a powerpile in a perfect world they will make up to 750 millivolts, if you're lucky you'll get 550-650 millivolts which will open anything that is mv

[@rickmarr4744]

Merry Christmas to you

[@HVACGUY]

Merry Christmas to you too!

[@williamjosephbc17Q]

you could sand paper the bulb on the power pile and also cut the wire nut connections and sand the wires and if you can clean thermostat contacts...

[@bigred917]

Merry Christmas Curtis

[@HVACGUY]

Merry Christmas

[@catwrangler1613]

try using a contact grease...it works

[@bugeyedwillypetfarm9625]

Have not fixed a mv gas valve piolet system in 30 years

[@ronroberts7566]

only other thing i would have done was wire brush exterior of thermopile, adjust flame impingement to try to maximize output voltage

[@edwinadams5767]

Merry Christmas from Cape Town, South Africa. Thanks for sharing your videos.

[@HVACGUY]

Merry Christmas 🎄

[@joemartinez-673]

MERRY CHRISTMAS 🎅 🎄

[@joehrlein847]

Curtis, Merry Christmas to you and your family. 🎄🎅

[@scottmaz4063]

54 it's 23 here in New York.

[@MikeSmith-gi8fu]

I don't understand, 198 mvdc is awfully low for a reading? I'm surprised it was working. Thought you needed a minimum of like 350

[@tedlahm5740]

thermopile 750mv.

[@andrewclarke3622]

Are any of these units fan forced or electric? Happy Holidays

[@HVACGUY]

Yes, some come with an optional fan on top

[@harrydickson4575]

👍👍👍

[@JamesAgans]

I guess you meant 190 MV.

[@tedlahm5740]

750 mv. thermopile.

[@JamesAgans]

@tedlahm5740 Thank You, Ted.

[@williamtorres3394]

Looks like a soft pilot to me

[@samuelnason8585]

MERRY CHRISTMAS

[@Qualityservicesbcs]

It’s like 73 here was 40 this morning

[@israelllanas4909]

Compadre en que estado estas que pases feliz navidad 🤶 y qùe santa te triga otros toy y mucha felicidad

[@HVACGUY]

Muchicimas gracias. Saludos desde Georgia

[@Qualityservicesbcs]

It’s Christmas Eve Eve hehe

[@TheDeafMechanic]

Those old power piles can be very very finicky. I’ve seen on a few VERY old systems the connections be soldered to the gas valve.

[@everettstevenson2111]

Apollo 13 flight control, do we have a go or no go, copy, Curtis we still on VOX, copy.

[@JimAlderson-cn6ek]

Don't believe ur generators producing enough milavolts if u look at the wight build up on it that's enough to drop the voltage should clean it or replace it would have been my first move

[@TooCloseSeries]

My compressor is failing and its $3,500 to replace. This is on top the the $3,000 I've spent on it the last year. I'm just gonna be cold I guess.

[@Sctronic209]

Merry Christmas Curtis