Meursault74
Well-known member
Ironic or not. I didn't have hot water yesterday. Pulled out the burner and checked things out as it's hard for me to see if the pilot even lights from the outside the way the tank sits. Thermocouple barely put out 20mV after several minutes and pilot would go out without me depressing the gas valve. I buy the universal thermocouple at HD and go to install it. The flame end doesn't fit all the way in the bracket by the pilot. I suppose a water heater is female, as this universal thermocouple has some ribbed area along the shaft (for her pleasure 
), The original TC didn't have those ribs. I had to drill out the original holes in the bracket by 1/64 of an inch to make it go through. Maybe I should have spit on it first, but I thought of that after I had drilled it out.
Put it all back. Everything tight. Leaked checked with soapy water.............. que Don Ho ........... "Tiny Bubbles". Redid connections and leak checked again. Now OK, Don Ho music can stop.
Pilot on, burner on and hot water.
So, the moral is, yes, most things are simple on the surface, there can be issues and it's good to have the tools on hand to deal with them. No matter how tight a gas connection feels, still check it with soapy water to check for leaks. Lastly hope you enjoyed the tale.
), The original TC didn't have those ribs. I had to drill out the original holes in the bracket by 1/64 of an inch to make it go through. Maybe I should have spit on it first, but I thought of that after I had drilled it out. Put it all back. Everything tight. Leaked checked with soapy water.............. que Don Ho ........... "Tiny Bubbles". Redid connections and leak checked again. Now OK, Don Ho music can stop.
Pilot on, burner on and hot water.
So, the moral is, yes, most things are simple on the surface, there can be issues and it's good to have the tools on hand to deal with them. No matter how tight a gas connection feels, still check it with soapy water to check for leaks. Lastly hope you enjoyed the tale.