# Oven Problem



## dbauers (Jul 5, 2006)

Just got back from our maiden voyage in the new Outback. Trip was good except had to pack up in the rain. Tried to light the oven and could not get it to light. I could push the knob and light the pilot but as soon as I released and tried to light the main burner the pilot would go out. I tried holding the knob in for several minutes with the pilot going but again as soon as it was released the pilot light would go out. I had plenty of gas because I could light all of the stove burners. Any body out there have a suggestion??


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

dbauers,

Lighting the oven is a bit of a pain until you get the hang of it.

The culprit is the thermal couple. This is a gas valve for oven burner that only opens when it gets really hot. The idea is that if the flame goes out, the valve cools down and closes, thus stopping the trailer from filling up with gas!

The trick is to find the spot where the thermal couple is with your lighter and make sure you get it hot enough. Again, once you get the hang of it, it's easy.

Happy Trails,
Doug


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## dbauers (Jul 5, 2006)

I was kinda thinking the thermocoulpling might be bad. I am 100 miles away from the dealer and I can change it myself if it is indeed bad. Is there a way to test it to verify if it is indeed bad?


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## shaela21 (Aug 16, 2005)

The only way that I have been able to successfully light the oven is to light one of the burners on the stove on high, then light the oven pilot light. Maybe this draws propane up to the stove and therefore to the oven burner. After the pilot lights, I shut off the stove and the oven stays lit. Otherwise I find it a pain to get it lit. Hope this helps.


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

shaela21 said:


> The only way that I have been able to successfully light the oven is to light one of the burners on the stove on high, then light the oven pilot light.


That's an interesting idea, shaela21.









I may have to try that next time. We have got lighting ours down pretty well by now, but it would be interesting to see what difference that might make.

Happy Trails,
Doug


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## Doxie-Doglover (Apr 19, 2006)

when dry camping last time, the hot water tank kept kept quitting. After several re-lites it dawned on me the thermocouple might be slightly off.It was, bent it slightly so it was more in flame and all was well. I learned this from my home freestanding propane heater. After taking out of winter storage the thing wouldn't stay lit. A tech came over and showed me the coupler had gotten bent when the heater was carried upstairs. Simple fix...

Now for some humor: 16 years ago when I started in the propane industry and took a phone message I told the boss some lady called because she was having trouble with her "Thermal Couple". I never quit getting teased over that one


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## California Jim (Dec 11, 2003)

It's a very simple system as noted above. The only things that can fail are the thermocouple and the gas valve. If the problem persists after making sure that the end 3/8" of the thermocouple are right in the middle of the pilot light, then it's time to find out which is not working.

The thermocouple is a cheap part and also the most likely to fail. I would start there.


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## KosinTrouble (Jul 18, 2005)

I had similar problem...

Except my problem is they just didnt hook up the element. So when I went to light the oven I ended up lighting the area near the back of the stove and a "tiger torch" type flame came out. And the exact thing happened to me, once I let go of the knob it would go out.

So just make sure the actual element is there and that it is attached.

Yes I know, wasnt too bright about the element, and wasnt sure exactly how a rv stove was suppose to work. But know I do!

Kos


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

Kos,

Are you telling us that Gilligan's cousin works for the oven manufacturer now?
Great!









Happy Trails,
Doug


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## courtsfamily (Jun 8, 2006)

Hey guys! Thought I would chime in on this topic. We've had our 28 krs since June 06 and have made 5 trips so far and everything worked ok. this last w/e we were out and wanted to cook dinner, but the oven would not stay lit. The pilot would lite and even stay on for a few minutes after I turned up the temp to preheat. Within 3 minutes it would shut off - pilot and all. Any suggestions? Does it sound like the thermal coupling you are talking about? Any suggestions would be great - we're leaving for labor day next week and will definitely need the oven!! thanks!!!


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## California Jim (Dec 11, 2003)

Again, be sure the TC is in direct contact with the flame. You could also check it's connection at the gas valve to make sure that it's screwed in correctly.

Also, a salty old plumber once taught me that in a pinch you can sometimes get them working again by giving them a WHACK with a metal object. The shock will sometimes bring them back to life, albeit temporarily.


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

There is little in this world you can't fix with a bigger hammer. Eh Jim?









Happy Trails,
Doug


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## California Jim (Dec 11, 2003)

Exactly







That and duct tape


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

Seems like our oven fires up (yes...pun intended) every time with not much work.


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## Thor (Apr 7, 2004)

shaela21 said:


> The only way that I have been able to successfully light the oven is to light one of the burners on the stove on high, then light the oven pilot light. Maybe this draws propane up to the stove and therefore to the oven burner. After the pilot lights, I shut off the stove and the oven stays lit. Otherwise I find it a pain to get it lit. Hope this helps.


That is exactly what i do.

Thor


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## G.G.Gator (Aug 4, 2006)

PDX_Doug said:


> There is little in this world you can't fix with a bigger hammer. Eh Jim?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


If you can't fix it with the above, at least you can make it so that nobody else can fix it either.


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## Lady Di (Oct 28, 2005)

Used our oven the first time last weekend. Guess I was a little leery of it with having to light the pilot. Got a flashlight, so I could see what I was doing, and lit it. First time it went out, but I relit it, and it worked like it was supposed to.

We bought our camper used. But it definetely has Outback quality written all over it.


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## Sluggo54 (Jun 15, 2005)

Follow the lead from the thermocouple back to where it screws onto the safety valve, and see if maybe Gilligan didn't hook it up. If he did, and the t-couple is sitting with the pilot flame about a quarter inch back from the end, get a new t-couple. They are inexpensive, and near universal except for length and the skinny kind - the "slim jim", which will replace almost any thermocouple.

Sluggo


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## HootBob (Apr 26, 2004)

shaela21 said:


> The only way that I have been able to successfully light the oven is to light one of the burners on the stove on high, then light the oven pilot light. Maybe this draws propane up to the stove and therefore to the oven burner. After the pilot lights, I shut off the stove and the oven stays lit. Otherwise I find it a pain to get it lit. Hope this helps.


interesting I never would have thouht of that

Don


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

The oven has a two pilot system.

The primary pilot has no safety thermocouple as the flow is so small it will not build to hazardous levels. The primary can be very hard to light.

How it operates - Starting with the oven lit and in the pilot position there is a very small flame. Turning the stove to a set temperature opens the secondary pilot which has a larger gas flow and thus a larger flame and it heats the safety thermocouple. Once the safety is hot enough the many isolation valve is opened. If the secondary does not light then the main burner will not light.

I use the following procedure to get the very low flow primary pilot to light.

Hold a lighter under the pilot assembly and turn the oven control to 200 degrees. This will cause the secondary pilot to open and the gas flow is such that it should light almost immediately. Wait for the safety thermocouple to open the main burner then turn the control back to pilot. By the time you get to the point to turn it back to pilot the primary pilot line has been purged of air and it should stay lit.


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## RizFam (Feb 25, 2006)

shaela21 said:


> The only way that I have been able to successfully light the oven is to light one of the burners on the stove on high, then light the oven pilot light. Maybe this draws propane up to the stove and therefore to the oven burner. After the pilot lights, I shut off the stove and the oven stays lit. Otherwise I find it a pain to get it lit. Hope this helps.


I use my oven for the first time this past labor day weekend. I used the method above after thoroughly reading the manual's instructions & this thread, it worked well both times. I made a successful beer bread & then an apple cake







I was very pleased with the results. I also put a Pampered Chef stone in the oven, another great tip found here on Outbackers.com & found that I had to reduce my baking time by 5-10 min. The oven works great









Just thought I'd add my 2 cents








Tami


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## huntr70 (Jul 8, 2005)

We used our oven quite frequently also, without any problems.

I still have to get a stone or tile to spread the heat though









Steve


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## Lady Di (Oct 28, 2005)

We had an extra K-mart stone. Dh had to cut down opposing sides since the door wouldn't close with the stone in. We have a cheap wetsaw. Did some baking last weekend, Everything came out fine.


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## dbauers (Jul 5, 2006)

I believe I might have the problem fixed. I spoke to the technical folks at Atwood, the stoves manufacturer and they said they had a problem with a run of control knobs being drilled too deep which would not allow the gas valve to be depressed fully. He sent me a new knob free of charge and I just received it yesterday. After installing the new knob, it definatly sticks out further and I was able to get the stove to light!! So if anyone else has a late model stove with this problem you might want to check this. Thanks for everyones suggestions.


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