HELP! Lighting 2 or 3 year old Geneses on a very Damp evening


 
R

Rita Y

TVWBB Emerald Member
A very humid (after late afternoon showers) evening. I cannot light my 3-year-old Genesis. I've tried the hand-held lighter in several spots near the burners and also in the small hole on the left side of the underpart of the grill. I cannot get it lit. Can anyone please advise?

Rita
 
I tried my big butane torch over the burners BRIEFLY, trying to dry them off while clicking the "on" button to try to dry them off (not too smart, huh?) but that didn't work either). Luckily no explosion and eyebrows still intact.
 
So you are saying that you put a lighter on the main burner with the main burner on and propane tank valve turned on and it won't even start to light? Did you smell any propane when all valves are turned on?
 
Sorry. My last post has disappeared.

Not propane; natural gas. No smell of gas which would be unusual under the circumstances. All worked perfectly as usual when I last grilled last week. Nothing has changed with the connection to the gas line as far as I know.

My opinion is that the humidity has something to do with this as I have had some very temporary problems firing up on occasion before when it has been very humid. That is why I tried the torch on the burners (to unsuccessfully try to dry them off).
 
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I can't imagine why humidity would cause any problems, other than if water got in the burners, orifices, etc. Since you can't smell the NG, the problem might be with the regulator........

Maybe try shutting the gas off between the house & the regulafor an hour or two, make sure the valves on the grill are all off, and then turn the supply back on, wait a few minutes......... that's where I'd start anyway.
 
Bob and Clint, your suggestions seem to be a reasonable thing to do to check. I wound up iron skilletting the steaks and they did turn out very good (great crust), but I still have to check out my grill. Thanks for the input and I will try it in the morning. It is so nice to have such good support here. Thank you!

Rita
 
Rita Y;
I have a propane gas grill. A couple of years ago, I had to replace the burners. My son was visiting and actually did most of the work. However, after we tried the grill it would NOT come up to heat. I did a bit of research and learned that propane grills now have a "safety" that will shut the gas off under certain circumstances.

It is possible that your natural gas grill may have a similar safety. If so, turn all of your burners off and the main gas line. Let it set a few minutes. Then, SLOWLY, open your main gas valve (corresponding to my propane tank valve). Then, open one burner and light. Then light the others.

In my case, the safety is engaged when it thinks a hose has broken. Having all of the burners on before opening the tank sends a message that a hose is broken. The gas supply must feel some back pressure when the valve is opened to bypass the "safety".

So, all burners off. Main valve off. Open main balve SLOWLY. Light one burner, then the others one by one.

Hopefully, it is something this simple.

We have at least a couple of members here who are certified "gas people" and maybe one of them could chime in.

Let us know how things have worked out regardless of the solution.

Keep on smokin',
Dale53:wsm:
 
I think that Roberts advice should be the first place to start. It is the safest approach for someone who is not an expert with gas. Let us know how it goes.
 
Rita, Do you have a gas valve where your gas line comes out of the house and connects to your grill hose? You should, make sure someone didn't shut that valve. Not smelling any gas tells me it might be shut off, especially if all your other gas appliances are working okay.
I have an NG E320 and it's super humid and pouring rain here and it works just fine.
 
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I'll have to check to see if I have a shut-off valve, which might be under the deck. In any case nothing has changed and the grill lit just fine last week. I have some chores that need immediate attention and I'll have to put the grill off for a few days. My Honey-Do List is growing exponentially lately.
 
Not yet, Timothy. Thank you for asking. Life keeps getting in the way and things seem break down when one can't possibly spare the time or focus to fix them. I do want to give the grill a thorough cleaning to make sure that the burners are not obstructed. When I do resolve this I'll be sure to post the solution.
 
UPDATE: I was hosing the leaves and pine straw off my deck near the grill when I heard a clunk. Apparently the flexible hose from the grill was very loose and fell off from the copper connection to the gas line. It must have been barely disconnected for weeks but still hanging loosely to the copper gas line. The copper gas line must have some type of safety lever within the orifice that automatically shuts off the gas flow, hence the lack of natural gas odor. I just popped that flexible hose back on the copper nozzle and the grill lit perfectly! What a relief.

Thanks to all for your thoughtful suggestions. Shrimp on the barbie tomorrow.

Rita
 
Rita Y;
I am truly happy for you that things turned out well. Gas grills CAN be dangerous, if not managed properly. Here's a big "thumbs up" for you!!

Keep on smokin',
Dale53:wsm:
 
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