What Causes a Dryer Ignitor Not to Ignite?

All the parts in your dryer, including the ignitor, need to work together to dry your clothes.


An electric current flows through a gas dryer’s ignitor. The ignitor then produces heat to ignite a gas flame inside the burner assembly. The flame heats the air that travels through the blower housing and into the dryer drum. Devices including thermostats, fuses, flame sensors, solenoids or coils all work together to generate the heat necessary to dry your clothes. When one or more of the devices fail, the ignitor will not ignite the gas.

Blown Thermostats or Thermal Fuses

Operating or cut-off thermostats, high-limit thermostats and thermal fuses monitor the heat generated by the dryer, either in the drum, blower housing or exhaust housing. When temperatures reach unsafe levels, the thermostats or fuses will blow and stop the flow of electricity to the sensor or stop the flow of gas to the burner assembly. If the ignitor fails to glow, check for a blown operating or cut-off thermostat. If the ignitor glows but fails to ignite a flame inside the burner assembly, check for a blown high-limit thermostat or thermal fuse.

Flame Sensor Failure

The flame sensor mounts on the side wall of the burner assembly, close to the ignitor. The flame sensor opens the gas valve once the ignitor glows hot enough to ignite the gas. If the flame dies inside the burner assembly, the sensor reacts by closing the gas valve. When the flame sensor fails, the ignitor may glow, but the gas valve will remain closed. A failed flame sensor could also interrupt the flow of electricity needed to heat the ignitor.

Burned-Out Ignitor

The ignitor mounts inside the burner assembly near the gas valve. When all parts of the dryer are operational, the ignitor will heat and begin to glow, producing enough heat to ignite the gas once the valve opens. Over time, the ignitor’s delicate metal can break because of the contact heat it generates, and it will no longer produce the necessary heat needed to ignite the gas inside the burner. The ignitor can also lose continuity. When this happens, the electricity no longer completes a circuit through the ignitor, and it no longer produces heat.

Gas Valve Coils/Solenoid or Gas Valve

When the thermostats, fuses, ignitor and flame sensor function correctly, they send a signal to the coils or solenoids attached to the top of the gas valve. These coils or solenoids open the valve and release the gas into the burner assembly. If the ignitor glows and does not ignite a flame after 90 seconds, one or more of the gas valve coils or solenoids have failed. If the ignitor still fails to ignite the flame after you replace the coils or solenoids, the gas valve may have failed, and you will need to call an appliance service technician to replace it.

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