4 replies to this topic

[gratefulwood]

Hello all,
Thanks once again for all the help in the laundry shack!
Our stove(propane) never had any problems untill about a year ago.It was smelling funny and not heating right.
It turns out the bottom burner was sooted up,so I took it out and blew it out with compressed air.
About 6 months later it did it again.
Now,It's starting to get that smell once more.
Any ideas of what would be causing this?
Bill McK.

[Pegi]

Check your air to gas ratio. Too much air will cause the sooting, not burning the gas right.  Adjust the air shutter to see if makes a difference.  Also be sure the propane tank is full, can cause this if the pressure is too low.  And be sure to have the right sized orifices.  There were also some G.E. gas ranges that would not burn right on propane, the orifices just would not adjust properly, but do not know if you have one of those.  You might call .G.E. with the model and serial numbers to see if this is one that the burners needed to be replaced..

[gratefulwood]

[user=533]Pegi[/user] wrote:
. Also be sure the propane tank is full, can cause this if the pressure is too low.

Hmmm,
The stove ran great for years,but with the skyrocketing price of propane the past year or so,I've basically keep the propane tank low.
Especially in the summer.(I have a gas furnace)
In the winter I told the supplier to only put in 200 gallons at a time(to keep the bill under $500.)
I don't let the guy come anytime he wants 'cause every spring,when gas is high,he would come and top off the tank and leave me with an $800-$900 bill:(
I kinda figured they did this to everybody to boost the sales since they don't sell much in the summer.
I'm seriously thinking about buying my own tank so I can shop around and get a better price.
Once again thanks for you're help Pegi!
Bill McK.

[Pegi]

You are quite welcome.  This would make sense if this problem started around the same time you were not keeping the tank full.  Hope this solves the problem as I would not want to be responsable for your gas bill for filling the tank if this does NOT take care of your sooty oven!!  :shock:

[Samurai Appliance Repair Man]

If you always keep your propane tank low, this concentrates the ehtyl mercaptan (the stinky stuff they put in the gas so you can smell it-- propane is naturally odorless). Since the ethyl mercaptan is heavier than propane, it tends to concentrate at the bottom of the tank and become more noticeable when the tank is low. Other fun facts to know and tell about ethyl mercaptan: it has an affinity for metal and tends to infuse the crystalline structure of metals-- in extreme cases it can make some metals become porous or brittle; in higher concentrations, ethyl mercaptan is not completely consumed in normal propane burner flames and so it can escape into the surrounding room unburned, resulting in "smelling gas."

P.S. It's not too much, but too little primary combustion air that will cause sooting. Sooting, like carbon monoxide, is a product of incomplete combustion. Incomplete combustion results from insufficient primary combustion air for the amount of fuel present.