Gas stove clicking but not lighting, or clicking when it is off

It clicks, but the burner will not light

First, the gas. If a burner has clicked for several seconds without lighting, turn that knob to OFF and let the gas clear; Miele's instructions say to wait at least a minute before the next try. Thermador says a smell of gas for up to 4 seconds after a burner lights is normal. A smell that stays is a different matter, covered further down.

A burner that sparks without catching has a fault either in the way the spark reaches the gas or in the gas reaching the burner. The makers' own lists run from moisture after cleaning or a boil-over to a worn spark system, and GE says that a burner that still only clicks once it is clean, dry and in place needs service. Clicking without a flame that comes back day after day is worth a call rather than more tries at the knob.

When the power comes back

Some cooktops lock their burners when the power first comes back after an outage, and Thermador notes that its igniters may spark once or twice when the power returns, even with the cooktop off. None of these is a fault. Clicking without a flame that carries on once the cooktop has settled is worth a call.

Clicking with every knob turned off

The cause the manufacturers name is moisture in the spark system behind the knobs, from cleaning or a spill. Every burner shares the same spark system, so moisture in one place is enough to set all the burners clicking at once.

Clicking with the knobs off that goes on for days, or comes back after every cleaning, points to a part of the spark system that is failing, and that is service work. A clicking burner is making sparks, so it is not something to live with on a cooktop that may also leak gas.

Clicking while the flame is lit

Some cooktops relight a burner on their own. On models with automatic re-ignition, such as some Thermador and JennAir cooktops, the burner sparks whenever its flame goes out, from a spill, wind or a draft, and stops once the flame is back. Both makers name drafts as the trigger, and JennAir adds that occasional clicking can also happen on a low setting. On a cooktop with flame-sensing ignition, Whirlpool says a downdraft vent can push the flame away from the igniter and keep it sparking at a burner that is already lit. On Thermador's ExtraLow setting the flame cycles on and off on purpose, with a click about every 60 seconds.

A burner that keeps clicking under a steady flame in a still room needs its ignition tested, and that is our job.

What Southwest Florida adds

Three local conditions shape when these patterns show up.

Damp air. On a typical Florida summer day, the Florida Climate Center notes, relative humidity climbs over 90 percent at night as the air cools into the low 70s, and summer dew points typically run from 65°F to 75°F. Our Oven and stove repair page lists humidity, along with boil-overs, among the things that keep the spark system damp, and the manufacturers point to moisture both for clicking with the knobs off and for burners that click without lighting. That is why these calls cluster in the wet season.

Homes that sit closed. By Census Bureau estimates for 2020 to 2024, 49 percent of the housing units on Marco Island were vacant homes kept for seasonal, recreational or occasional use, 41 percent in the city of Naples and 30 percent in Bonita Springs. A cooktop left for months is the case Miele describes as one not used for an unusually long time, and Miele says such a cooktop should be checked by an expert before it is used again.

Storm season. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30. Every outage ends with the power coming back, which is when the burner lockouts and the one-off sparks show up on the models that have them. Our Oven and range repair in Bonita Springs page covers what the outage season does to a range.

A smell of gas

Peoples Gas, which supplies natural gas in the Fort Myers and Naples area, adds an odorant that gives its gas a rotten egg smell, and warns not to rely on smell alone. If you smell gas that does not clear, get everyone out and do not try to find or stop the leak. Do not do anything on the way that could make a spark, including switching lights, appliances or phones on or off; call 911 and the gas company once you are away from the building, and stay out until they give the all-clear. A clicking burner is making sparks, so do not stay at the cooktop trying to silence it. On propane, the call goes to the company that fills the tank.

Leave these to us

• Clicking that will not stop with the knobs off.

• Anything under the burner heads: the spark system carries high voltage.

• Pulling the range off its anti-tip bracket to reach the plug or the gas line.

• Converting a range between natural gas and propane.

• A gas smell that does not clear: leave and call from outside.

What our technician checks and fixes

We test the spark system from the knobs to the burners, and the power that feeds it, including the outlet: spark ignition needs steady voltage and correct wiring to spark reliably. We replace what failed and light every burner before we leave, and you hear the price after the diagnosis, before any work starts.

Questions about a clicking gas stove