Why does the pilot light keep going out?

no info generic answer --check thermocouple --and safety switches

thermocouple usually

Usually it's the thermocouple not generating enough current.

Did you turn the gas on ?????

Just keep repeating the instructions.

It takes a while depending on what size the feed line is and how long for gas to enter the valve and then to the pilot.

It's can take mins.

This is the problem, the gas has not made it to the valve.

Even if the thermocouple is bad, no matter what the pilot will light, if the thermocouple was bad the plot would not stay lit and go out, but it will still light.

Like I said it can take a while.

pilot light keeps going out! more then likely its the thermal coupling doing this. if bad it shut all gas to heater for a safety measure. just shut power off, then turn gas off and replace it. then you should be ready to go. to relight heater hold down on gas vavle knob in the pilot position, hold down and light it at the coupling where gas comes out. when it is lit, continue to hold down for 60 seconds. release knob very slow. then if its lit, turn to the run position. if flme goes out, wait at least 5 minutes to expel the gas fumes and turn to pilot and try again. good-day !

If your pilot on your gas water heater will not stay lit you need to take one step at a time.

Let's look at how you tried top light it. Turn the gas valve to the off position and then move it to the pilot position. If you can see inside under the heater and there is no glass view window you need to take a lighter or a match on an extended stick so the flame can sit right under the pilot tube. Push down on the red button and then the gas should light on the pilot burner. Hold the button down for a FULL 60 seconds.

Then slowly release the red button the main burner should then come on. Now if the pilot flame goes out right away as you're releasing the red button you have one or two more things you need to look at.

1st would be to replace the thermo coupling. You have to remove the whole burner tray to do that. If that does not work then the gas valve is bad and you need to replace it also. Make sure that when you buy a new gas valve you match up the gas type Natural gas to L P gas. They must match with the gas feeding your house or it will never work,

Thanks and best of luck

R J

I looked up this unit for you and found out it is a hot water system. She needs to get to the main gas valve to light the pilot. This unit has what is called a thermocouple on it that keeps the pilot on, even when the boiler shuts down. Its just a matter of lighting the pilot light. There should be a metal plate with the directions on it at the gas valve to lite it. You will have a knob, more then likely red or black in color on top of the valve. It will say on, off, and pilot. It should be in the on position now. Turn it to pilot. Have some matches with you and a flashlight if you can. You will need to look back into the burner area to where your pilot light will be. The thermocouple is a copper colored tubing that runs right back to the pilot, as it has to get hot from the pilot flame to work. To start, depending on how far back you have to reach with the match, you may need to use a piece of solid cardboard rolled up, a small piece to light it and reach in. Turn the knob to pilot. Now, push down on the knob and hold it down. This lets gas get back to the pilot, so you must keep it down and light it at the same time. Once it is lite, you have to hold it down for at least a minute. Slowly release it, very slow. The flame should then stay on. Once it is on, turn the gas knob to on. With the thermostat set to come on, it will fire up and heat the water. If the pilot will not stay lite after you hold it down for 1 minute, and keeps going out, the thermocouple will need to be replaced. It is the copper line that screws into the gas valve and goes back to the pilot. You can get them at any hardware store for around $6.00. Maybe you can help her install it. It is very simple to do. I believe the pilot just blew out and she will need to light it. Just follow what I have told you, and she will get it lite. Good Luck to you.

check and or replace the thermal coupling. the coupling goes into the main gas control, if the coupling is bad it will shut off gas supply. as a safety measure.

Remove your entire pilot assembly from the heater and gas valve. Remove the aluminum gas line that feeds the pilot assembly. There is a small orifice inside the pilot assembly that may or may not fall out when you take the line off. If it does not fall out remove it and be sure that the very small holes in the top of it are clear. It sounds to me like even though the flame is blue and in contact with the thermo-couple, when the main flame turns off it causes the pilot flame to wave away from the thermo-couple thus shutting it down due to a weak pilot. I have run into this several times and should do the trick.

The pilot light jet may have got a little bit of dirt or grit in it which is preventing it from keeping alight. Try probing the jet with a fine piece of wire to see it the blockage can be dislodged. You may have to unscrew the jet to clear it by blowing air through it. Make sure gas is turned off first before removing any parts.

The pilot light also has a thermocouple that allows gas to the pilot light while the flame is burning. If flame goes out it shuts gas off to the pilot jet. The thermocouple is bypassed by a switch during the initial ignition and once the thermocouple warms up after a minute or two of holding in the bypass switch, it should maintain the pilot. If, after cleaning, the pilot light keeps going out, it would seem that your thermocouple is faulty and needs to be replaced