# Another VC Radiance problem



## erikb45 (Nov 28, 2013)

Been a little while since ive been on here. last year we purchased a used VC Radiance stove Nat gas. It has a honey well valve operated by a Honeywell remote. The remote was acquired new.

The stove was working fine untill now.
-The flame height is not adjustable it is stuck on a setting.
-The stove lights intermittently when it does light i here a click
when it doesnt light there is no click
There is no rhyme or reason sometimes it works most times it doesnt
The pilot light is on and working fine.
the remote operates the blower just fine

im pretty sure its a electric issue of some sort. maybe valve

Does anyone have the MV testing instructions? Maybe can walk me through it. Theres only a few wires to test


Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions


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## xtrordinair (Nov 28, 2013)

to test the M.V. set your multimeter to the DC scale and put the test leads on the top and bottom screws on the valve terminal block.with the stove off and just the pilot lit you get around 400 + .With the burner engaged you should be no less than 200 .


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## erikb45 (Nov 29, 2013)

xtrordinair said:


> to test the M.V. set your multimeter to the DC scale and put the test leads on the top and bottom screws on the valve terminal block.with the stove off and just the pilot lit you get around 400 + .With the burner engaged you should be no less than 200 .



Thanks for your response. Im not seeing the terminals your speaking of. I have 4 wires coming into the unit


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## DAKSY (Nov 29, 2013)

erikb45 said:


> Thanks for your response. Im not seeing the terminals your speaking of. I have 4 wires coming into the unit


 
Maybe you could post a picture of your gas valve...


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## erikb45 (Nov 29, 2013)

Heres a few pics.


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## DAKSY (Nov 29, 2013)

erikb45 said:


> Heres a few pics.


 
Good job!
In the last two pics, there is an armored wire.
I'm willing to bet that's your thermopile connection.
The two terminals where that's attached to gas valve is where you should be able to take the millivolt readings...If you get a negative number don't worry about it. You have the probes reversed on your meter. The NUMBER will be the same...
.


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## erikb45 (Nov 29, 2013)

Im sorry I dont follow. By armor you mean the white armor? It appears there is 4 of those


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## DAKSY (Nov 29, 2013)

erikb45 said:


> Im sorry I dont follow. By armor you mean the white armor? It appears there is 4 of those


 
Try taking a reading on one set of wires. A red one & a white one. Let us know what Millivolt readings you get, if any...


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## erikb45 (Nov 29, 2013)

With the stove on. I tested the red and white wire closest to the front of the stove. I got a reading of about 200 give or take.
With the stove off i got a reading of about 280. (p.s. cant get stove back on and still have no flame adjustment)

I think the flame adjustment has alot to do with it My guess


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## DAKSY (Nov 29, 2013)

erikb45 said:


> With the stove on. I tested the red and white wire closest to the front of the stove. I got a reading of about 200 give or take.
> With the stove off i got a reading of about 280. (p.s. cant get stove back on and still have no flame adjustment)
> 
> I think the flame adjustment has alot to do with it My guess


 
With the stove off, your reading should be anywhere from 450 - 600mV. If you trace those wires into the firebox, can you see the Thermopile? Metallic cylinder, about 3/8" diameter x about 2.5" long...Just might be time for a new one, but I'll admit that I haven't worked on a lot of the Honeywell valves...Dave Gault! Calling Dave Gault!


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## erikb45 (Nov 29, 2013)

What is the thermopiles job? does it have anything to do with flame adjustment?


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## DAKSY (Nov 29, 2013)

The thermopile keeps the gas flowing to the burner. If there's no gas, there's definitely no adjustment. The click you hear is the millivolt charge from the thermopile opening electromagnets in the gas valve, allowing the gas to flow to the burner. Have you checked the wiring connections on the valve?


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## xtrordinair (Nov 29, 2013)

ive worked on these valves alot cause its what i do for a living..that valve has been discontinued cause of all the issues its had, its dual thermopile driven so you would test 
both the front two and the rear two wires going into the side of the valve at the bottom with readings as daksy said earlier


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## erikb45 (Nov 29, 2013)

Thanks for your help so far! It is appreciated.

I looked quickly at the wires/connections gave them a wiggle. They seem to be connected securely. I have not looked at the thermopile end.  

Heres what i find odd - yesterday morning stove wouldnt come on. this morning it did and again this evening. when i shut it off before to test it it wont go back on now. 
Could the thermopile go bad intermittently ?


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## erikb45 (Nov 29, 2013)

xtrordinair said:


> ive worked on these valves alot cause its what i do for a living..that valve has been discontinued cause of all the issues its had, its dual thermopile driven so you would test
> both the front two and the rear two wires going into the side of the valve at the bottom with readings as daksy said earlier


I tested the rearset of wires also i was getting readings of   *.*390 with the decimal.

The thermopile for this is discontinued? Figures just my luck


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## xtrordinair (Nov 29, 2013)

no the valve is discontinued, what setting are you using to test on your meter?make sure its on the V with three dots above it on your scale.thermopiles are easy to obtain for around 50 bucks so lets hope thats it.Whats your pilot flame look like ?Remember that the thermopiles voltage comes from the heat of the pilot flame so if it is weak or real yellow that could be your problem i see that alot.


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## erikb45 (Nov 29, 2013)

My pilot light is blue and full. It matches the image in the manual Im confident the pilot is ok/normal

My tester is set to V on dc. It shows a mV on the display. Would the thermopile have a part number on it? So i could order one?

Thanks for our help


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## DAKSY (Nov 29, 2013)

erikb45 said:


> My pilot light is blue and full. It matches the image in the manual Im confident the pilot is ok/normal
> 
> My tester is set to V on dc. It shows a mV on the display. Would the thermopile have a part number on it? So i could order one?
> 
> Thanks for our help


 
You can get them at True Value Hardware stores. Ask for a universal millivolt generator...Like xtrordinair said...about $50...


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## xtrordinair (Nov 29, 2013)

no it just says made in mexico...go figure! no you can google thermopile generator or ebay it .But most stove stores and heating supply houses will have them.How old is the unit? The valve will set you back around 600 + ,cause you will end up getting a new remote,receiver for the remote,of coarse the valve and pilot assembly.They refer to this as a complete engine assembly upgrade.


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## erikb45 (Nov 29, 2013)

First. I retested again 

stove off front 2 wires about 340       
Stove off back 2 wires OL 

Cant get stove back on to retest in on position

I bought this stove used last year i think i paid about $350 if i remember correctly. Guy said he never used it because he had propane. I will most likely not entertain the idea of replacing the valve if its that much. I would rather have a wood burner or insert for my basement fireplace. 

If i go buy 2 thermopiles tomm should they be honeywells or it doesnt matter?
It looks like the hole into the stove was sealed with a red/orange silicone should i do the same? (obviously high heat)


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## xtrordinair (Nov 29, 2013)

yes any high temp silicone will work fine .If your getting no reading on one side that could be the problem...i dont blame you for not wanting to change that valve...i did one on a lennox DV about a week ago cost him almost 900 with labor .The unit was built into the wall with marble in front of it so he was kind forced to fix it.Good luck i hope that solves it for ya.


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## erikb45 (Nov 29, 2013)

Thanks to both of you DASKY & XTRORDINAIR Ill update my findings tomm.

I found this on the truevalue website- im hoping they have it in stock 
http://www.truevalue.com/product/Thermopile-Generator/20987.uts


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## erikb45 (Nov 30, 2013)

can you guys tell me how the thermopiles come out of the bracket? It looks like they unscrew bur i cannot seem to get them out. I have already broken 3 screws up to this point and this thing is gonna wind up in the trash soon.


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## xtrordinair (Nov 30, 2013)

7/16 wrench removes the nut holding them in


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## erikb45 (Nov 30, 2013)

UPDATE: Both thermopiles have been replaced 
pilot is lit
stove will still not come on.
Im getting 7 flashes on the red led


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## xtrordinair (Nov 30, 2013)

thats a error code related to the flame height control solenoid .i would say that gas valve is pretty much a paper weight at this point.sorry for the bad news but unless your in love with that unit junk it and dont look back.


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## erikb45 (Nov 30, 2013)

GREAT!

Thanks for all the help


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## xtrordinair (Nov 30, 2013)

if you want to try one more thing ,i have seen these get internally stuck ,get the pilot lit and burning for several minutes to insure theres enough MV built up, then while trying to make the burner light with the remote tap around on the valve in several spots with a cresent wrench or similar tool .dont be afraid to tap on it with light force it wont hurt it at all.


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## erikb45 (Jan 4, 2014)

so stove was working for a while since my last post. still with no flame adjustment. what valve replaces this one? and is it complicated to swap out?


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## xtrordinair (Jan 4, 2014)

the valve has been discontinued,i thought we discussed this allready.it will require a complete valve conversion upgrade at a cost of about 750+ dollars.


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