Kenmore Canada Propane Range 970-330480 Oven Heat Issue

[moreryan]

Model Number

970-330480

Brand

Sears Kenmore

Age

More than 10 years

Hi All,

Thanks in advance for any information, what a great forum!

We bought our house this past December, and inherited the ~20 year old propane range with the purchase.

After much use, baking bread etc in the first few months, the propane oven glow bar needed replacement, as the gas would no longer flow, though the bar still glowed.

I grabbed a cheap generic glow bar from amazon, and got another couple months out of the oven.

I complained to the seller of the short part lifespan and got another one in the mail, and a similar but more expensive part, Frigidaire 5303935066, that I bought hoping to avoid the short service life of the first.

I have installed the more expensive part, and the oven lights nice and quick, a little over 30 seconds, but it will not heat up much, or quickly, as the blue flames are only about 1/2", under the heat deflector.

I am wondering if my glow bar could possibly be defective, since the oven lights so nice and quickly - or if perhaps the gas safety valve is the issue.

I am able to take an ammeter reading of the glow bar in use, but I haven't done that yet.

If the glow bar isn't drawing the requisite amperage, is it possible for the gas safety valve to partially open?

The gas pressure seems fine, all the stove burners work as they should, and I can run them all at once.

I have tried flicking the gas shut off tab off and on a few times, for the oven on the regulator in the range top.



I am comfortable with basic AC and DC electrical work, but I don't have tools for gas line pressure testing etc. and will enlist the gas fitters help if we head too far in that direction.

So, to sum it up, I am looking for troubleshooting advice for my 970-330480 Propane Range Oven, and also looking for a parts list so I can find the correct parts (if they are even available!) to pursue the repair further.

All the best,

Ryan

 

[Jake]

Hi, I couldn't locate the parts list for your model, most 970 Canada models are not online for parts look up.

Go by I said in this post to use a amp meter to check it for amps:

Frigidaire FGF366BCB Bake and Broil won't work -- Both igniters bad?

I recently acquired a Frigidaire LP range that I was told worked with no issues (actual age unknown). The cooktop burners light and work fine, however neither the oven nor the broiler will light. Both of the igniters glow. I understand that the igniters are the most common problem, but my...

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You can also ohm test the oven safety valve per this video:

Jake

 

[moreryan]

Hi Jake!

Ryan reporting back.

I just did a little troubleshooting, and tested the current draw of my Frigidaire 5303935066 glow bar. It pulls 3.22 amps shortly after startup, then stabilizes to 3.00 amps once fully lit, and stays there for as long as it's lit.

Out of curiosity, knowing a draw of 3.2 to 3.6 amps is what we are typically looking for, to see if a much higher draw would open the gas oven safety valve further, I hooked my second off-brand glow bar in parallel with the installed Frigidaire 5303935066, for a running load of 5.75 amps. The gas flow remained the same.

I also performed a successful test for continuity on the gas oven safety valve.

What do you suppose I should try next?

Thank you for your help.

 

[Jake]

It pulls 3.22 amps shortly after startup, then stabilizes to 3.00 amps once fully lit, and stays there for as long as it's lit.

That seems the problem, the amps are too low.

Out of curiosity, knowing a draw of 3.2 to 3.6 amps is what we are typically looking for, to see if a much higher draw would open the gas oven safety valve further, I hooked my second off-brand glow bar in parallel with the installed Frigidaire 5303935066, for a running load of 5.75 amps. The gas flow remained the same.

I've never done that before, so I really can't answer that.

What was the original part number of your original oven bake ignitor? The part number should be stamped on it.

Jake