Majestic 36cdvrrn won't stay lit

[Cholleman]

Hey all,

Just found Hearth.com and I've got a problem. We just moved into our new construction house and we have a problem with the gas fireplace. Up until tonight, the fireplace worked great, but now it won't stay lit. Flip the wall switch and it starts to light, but goes out after a few seconds. the pilot stays lit no matter what. all the wiring looks fine, no burns or melts. I don't believe it's the wall switch since it tries to light but goes out. any ideas?

also, the hole that was made in the bottom of the box for the gas line to be run through is quite large and drafty. what's a safe method to seal off this hole to keep out the drafts? i thought about packing it with fiberglass insulation, but i don't know if that area is susceptible to high heat and/or if fiberglass insulation is non-flammable.

thanks for any help.

oh btw, the label says Tempco, by majestic if that helps at all.

 

[DAKSY]

[quote author="Cholleman" date="1234004150"]Hey all,

Just found Hearth.com and I've got a problem. We just moved into our new construction house and we have a problem with the gas fireplace. Up until tonight, the fireplace worked great, but now it won't stay lit. Flip the wall switch and it starts to light, but goes out after a few seconds. the pilot stays lit no matter what. all the wiring looks fine, no burns or melts. I don't believe it's the wall switch since it tries to light but goes out. any ideas?

According to the manual I found on-line, it's a millivolt system...
First thing I'd do is test the thermopile.
You need a multimeter set to vdc...
Take a reading across the TP & the TH-TP terminals on the valve.
With the pilot only, you should be getting about 550 +/- mv.
With the burner on you should be around 220+/- mv.
If you don't get readings similar to those, replace the thermopile...
$50 +/- at True Value...
If these readings are good, try pulling the wall switch out of the system & connecting the two wires together.
There shouldn't be any AC juice there to zap ya...
If it works fine, when you connect the wires, then replace the wall switch.
If it still acts erratically, try jumping the TP-TH & the TH terminals on the valve.
If it works fine, replace the switch wire with 18 ga t-stat wire...
If it STILL acts erratically, you may be having a valve problem, but I doubt it...
Let us know what you come up with...

also, the hole that was made in the bottom of the box for the gas line to be run through is quite large and drafty. what's a safe method to seal off this hole to keep out the drafts? i thought about packing it with fiberglass insulation, but i don't know if that area is susceptible to high heat and/or if fiberglass insulation is non-flammable.

You CAN pack that hole with fiberglass insulation - OR you can block it off with aluminum (Al) tape.
We jam it full of fiberglass & then secure the fiberglass with Al tape.
Also, tape off ANY other holes- like where wiring comes in - under there with the Al tape...
Good luck with your "service call!"

 

[Cholleman]

thanks for the quick reply. i found a post last night in which someone said to jump the th and the thtp posts together to try to rule out the wall switch. i did that to no avail. i have a multimeter at work but not at home, so i'll have to see if i can get one from a friend. the good thing is, since the home is new we have a 1 year builder warranty but i thought i'd post on here to see if it was something simple i could fix myself before calling the builder out on monday.

i believe i still have a little fiberglass insulation floating around here somewhere along with aluminum duct tape. i'll pack it full and seal it off. thanks!