Turning on a radiant heater

whoo tall order! well, since that unit uses a piezo crystal spark gap that's half the battle. go to the grainger site and find a 24 volt electrically operated solenoid for gas use. anything else won't do. next go to the white rodges web site and find a spark igniter with a flame rod flame detector 24 volt. you'll also need at least a 500va 120/24 volt transformer. a standard honeywell stat will do. I'm thinking the unit uses a millivolt generator to keep the gas valve open. you could substitute a mercury button cell to energize the pilot valve and keep the valve open. give me your email addy and I'll see if I can draw up a diagram for you.