Patio heaters are an incredible asset to your home because they make it possible for you to hang out on your patio when the weather gets chillier.
This means that you don’t just get to enjoy the fresh air on your patio, but you can also relax and feel comfortable in the warmth they generously emit.
Modern patio heaters come with an automatic ignition function that switches the heater on with just a button. However, there are times when this automatic ignition function fails. In that case, you should know how to light patio heater manually.
Here are some ways on how to light patio heater manually.
Turn the control knob
It may sound like we are stating the obvious here, but sometimes it gets difficult to locate the control knob in a patio heater. It could be the complicated design of the heater or your unfamiliarity with the product that results in you getting confused about the switch that turns the heater on.
And even if you find the control knob, you may feel confused as to which direction it needs to be moved to switch the heater on without blowing it up. To accomplish this task, turn the knob at approximately 45 degrees counterclockwise.
Time to light it up
Now that you have located the control knob and turned it in the right direction too, you might hear the hissing sound of the gas. Don’t worry; it’s not anything to be worried about.
When you turn the knob, it emits the gas from the fuel supply installed in your heater. As soon as the gas is on, you have to light it up. You can use any kind of lighting device, but the ideal lighter is a candle.
Make sure you have a large candle in your hand when you bring it near to the gas supply. Once the candlelight is in the hole, you should see a flame.
Set the intensity of the heater
Once you are done lighting up the heater, the time has come to set the intensity of the patio heater’s heat. You can use the same control knob that you turned 45 degrees to set the flame intensity. The higher and stronger the flame, the hotter your heater will get.
Lighting up a propane heater
Lighting a patio heater that uses propane as the fuel source does not typically require a lighter or matches. You don’t even have to locate and turn the knobs.
The right way to light up a propane patio heater is to connect the propane tank first to the gasket of the heater. You have to make sure that the gasket is latched onto the propane tube. To do that, turn the handle until the gasket is strongly on the regulator.
Rotate the head after that, until the regulator and the tank pipe are securely latched. Then you have to switch the gas tank on by turning its handle.
Turn the ignition switch on
Once you are done latching the regulator and the tank pipe, after turning the handle, turn the ignition switch on and hold it for 10 seconds. This is because the gas does not immediately fly up to the tube of the heater.
As the gas reaches the tube and the flames are picked, it starts burning. Turn the switch to high to make sure that the gas is burning at full pressure.
The valve must be open
Before you light up your heater or turn the ignition switch on, make sure that the tank is full. The valve of the tank should be completely open to ensure that the flow of gas is steady to the burner and is burning the gas as it should.
Never flip the tank
If the tank is almost empty, chances are it won’t allow the burner to produce a flame. If that happens, don’t try to flip the tank to consume the fuel left in it. A propane tank that is near to its full consumption must always be replaced and the tank must be kept upright at all costs.
Tips to troubleshoot lighting failure
Lighting up your patio heater is easy, but when the heater fails to lit up, this is when you should know these tips to troubleshoot the reason.
- Check if your gas tank is connected. If the propane tank or any other gas tank is disconnected, your patio heater will not light up. Disconnect the gas tank and reconnect it using the same procedure mentioned above.
- Check if your propane tank or gas tank is empty. If your tank is almost empty, the gas might take some time to reach the tube, or it might not reach the tube at all. Replace the tank and then light the heater.
- Check if your gas pipe has a leak. If you smell gas around your heater, turn it off immediately and do not light a match stick, candle or any other flammable object near the heater. Detect the leak and patch it up or replace the pipe altogether to avoid starting a fire.
