How to light a gas stove? First, you have to ensure that the room is well ventilated and light the burner with utmost precaution. Nevertheless, lighting a gas stove is like lighting a gas candle but with more risks and hazards.
Our gas stoves tend to get damaged as time passes. One of the components that a gas stove usually gets damaged first is the igniter. Your gas stove is probably an old model or has been damaged.
Well, you could still make use of your gas stoves since you could still light them manually. However, while taking this into thought, never forget to take safety precautions since it is the gas we’re talking about. If you are going to light your gas stove manually, there are a few simple steps to ensure that you will safely do it. This article will help you with everything there has to know about lighting up your gas stove manually.
Steps To Light A Gas Stove
So the question is ‘how to light a gas stove’? You will have to do this safely, of course. You could either use a lighter or a long match to help you out, but beware of the dangers and practice safety precautions. I’ll teach you how to do it safely.
Step #1. Safety first
Before anything else, ensure your safety. You have to light the stove and not your entire house. So to ensure that it is safe to light the match or lighter, follow the procedures of preparations first.
Step #2. Turn the stove off
Before you light the match, make sure that the knobs for your gas range are turned off to avoid any gas leakage. One of the most common reasons for houses getting burned is an open gas range, so be aware. To check, make sure that there is no gas smelling or it doesn’t reek gas at all.
Step #3. Ventilation
To avoid gas from encircling around the room and create a blazing fire if you light a match, open the windows and doors of your kitchen. It is essential to keep them well-ventilated. Let the air in and out first before turning the gas range on.
Step #4. Lighting the stove
If you are already sure that the air has circulated the room and is well-ventilated, you can start lighting the stove. To do this, turn the stove know to a medium and light a match or lighter near its gas ring.
Hold the match near the ring of holes at the center of the burner where the fire is usually on. Wait till the stove is fully ignited around the trim ring pattern. Remove the match and put it off using water. After putting the fire out, throw it in a trash bin for safety and a hazard-free environment. Then you have successfully lightened up your gas stove manually.
Step #5. If it doesn’t light
If the fire missed the holes rig where the gas is released, turn the gas range off immediately. Turn the knobs off to close the gas ways. Let air circulate for a few minutes and retry step #5. If you are still unable to light your gas stove after several attempts, turn everything off. That includes the knobs on the stove and the gas range. Then, have a professional look at it to determine the problem.
Safety Tips To Light A Gas Stove
Of course, since we are using a gas stove is usually a cause of a fire break. Therefore, some risks and hazards never are overlooked when attempting or doing the lighting. Some of the safety tips are the following.
#1. Risk of suffocation
Yes, if you leave the gas stove open when there is no fire in the ringed holes, the gas will leak and envelope the whole room. However, you could avoid this by being sharp on when to turn the stove off and make sure that the room is well ventilated.
#2. Fire hazard
Since gas is a highly flammable substance, it is prone to catching fire, even suspended in the air. Opening the gas stove and lighting it must be done within 10 seconds or else the gas will leak from the stove. Leaving it open for too long and lighting it will make everything ignite and cause a fire.
#3. Keep inflammable away
Before you light up your stove, make sure that there are no flammable and inflammable objects like plastic near it. These objects may catch the flames or melt due to heat coming from the burners. Know how to fix orange flame on a gas stove.
#4. Emergency ready
In many cases, it is necessary to have an emergency supply available in the rising of unexpected events. Have a fire extinguisher ready in any case. Most believe that water is the sworn enemy of fire, but that is not the case with gas stoves. Have emergency numbers written on a sticky note.
#5. Personal safety precautions
It is also essential to practice self-precaution in the kitchen. For example, never use loose clothes while near the gas stove, or it will readily catch fire and set yourself dancing in flames. Keep the children away in the kitchen and avoid playing while cooking. If you are teaching your kid or a teenager how to cook, never leave them unsupervised so that there will be no serious accidents.
#6. Smoke alarm
It would be a wise decision if you decided to install a smoke alarm in case a fire breaks down. Also, there have been gas detectors available in the market that detects gas content in the room and reports it to you if safety levels are exceeded.
Conclusion
Knowing how to light a gas stove properly is a valuable skill that could probably save you in the event the igniter breaks. Nevertheless, always practice safety precautions, especially when handling hazardous substances like gas and flames. Read how to repair gas stove burners and how long should I let my house air out if I left my gas stove on.