For a natural gas home, you pay for you gas by the Therm. A Therm = 100,000 BTU. So if you your pilot uses 1,000 BTU/hr and it is running for 24 hours a day, and 30 days a month, that comes out to be about 720,000 BTU. Divide that by 100,000 BTU to find the amount of Therms it uses (approximately 7.2).

The pilot light burns significantly less fuel than a fire but it can cost $8 to $10 a month if your fireplace is fueled by natural gas. If your fireplace is fueled by propane, it could cost up to $20 a month. Turning off the pilot would reduce your energy costs during the summer.

The average gas fireplace pilot uses about 21 ft3 (0.6 m3) of gas per day. In the past, manufacturers have claimed that people turn off pilot lights between uses. If this were the case, many gas fireplaces would be quite efficient.

A pilot light is a small flame that is kept lit to provide a catalyst for the main burner to be turned on when needed. The average fuel consumption of your standing Pilot light is: Natural gas is $0.60 a day = $219 a year. Liquid Propane is $1.80 a day = $657 a year.

Can a Pilot Light Outage Be Dangerous? The worry here is that when a pilot goes out, the gas valve that supplies the fuel for the pilot flame could still be pumping gas. This can mean a buildup of gas, and when the pilot is relit or relights itself it could result in a very serious explosion.

A pilot light should be a crisp blue colour. A yellow or orange pilot light will produce carbon monoxide – an odourless, colourless gas that can fill your home and cause carbon monoxide poisoning. Symptoms of this condition include dizziness, headache, fatigue, nausea, unconsciousness, brain damage and death.

If it senses that the pilot light has gone out, the thermocouple shuts off the gas supply to the flame in order to prevent safety issues with your water heater. Over time, thermocouples can begin to malfunction and shut off the gas supply to the pilot light even if it’s burning properly. A bent or dirty thermocouple.

Failed Thermocouple Symptoms

• The first is signs of contamination on the tube, which can include discoloration, cracks, or pinholes.
• Next, check the wiring for any signs of wear or corrosion like missing insulation or bare wire.

The thermocouple is an apparatus that senses whether the pilot light is lit and triggers the gas control valve. Repairs typically cost about $150 to have it done professionally, though a new thermocouple itself only costs about $20 on average.

It’s easy to replace and a new one costs $5 to $10. Rather than trying to unfasten the thermocouple inside the water heater’s burning chamber, it’s easier to remove the whole burner and thermocouple assembly.

If your furnace’s pilot light won’t stay on, the furnace won’t work. Some common causes include issues with the thermocouple and pilot tube. A faulty thermocouple may arbitrarily determine that the light is off when you want it on and vice versa. It could simply be that the thermocouple is bent.

The best way to clean your thermocouple is to use either a piece of steel wool or the coarse side of a sponge to gently clean off any soot or other remnants. You can use a pencil eraser to clean between the threads of the screw that connects the thermocouple to the control valve of your system.

If the Thermocouple is faulty it will cause the unit to shut down. How to clean? Remove Thermocouple from pilot assembly, using steel wool or emery cloth to lightly clean the tip removing any soot or build up that might have accorded due to an improper pilot flame.