How the thermopile works and is made.

If you are a homeowner looking to repair your own appliance, understand that the voltages can be lethal, the fuels are highly flammable and high pressures are used. Know your limits.

[kmisaac]

I learned a lot about thermopile and applications. Never knew it's used to open the propane valve on my fireplace. Great video.

[marksteven]

Very interesting. So a thermopile is just a pile of thermocouples, never realized that. All your teardowns are great ( esp liked the TXV's! )

[Chuffin_ell]

Easily the best channel on YouTube...
Thank you Gray

[UltraHydrophobiccoat]

Got several from Amazon, but all of them couldn't generate over 300mV on pilot light. If you heat only top part of the thermopile it wouldn't generate over 750mV even they claim 750mV thermopile. Only Honeywell Q313A can generate over 600mV to hold Pitco deep fryer gas valve open as I found so far.

[MagUidhirAD]

so each wire is a dual wire of different metals that act differently under heat to generate a current?

[bnice]

Hey gfm, why did they ever switch to the thermopile vs thermocouple?

[donburnside]

I have an ongoing problem with my empire wall heater in my work shop. Over the last 4 years i have had to replace the thermopile 4 times. I am at a loss as to why. Any ideas.

[marcosonacheatingllc]

The thermopile on a direct vent water heater keeps going off. I called tech support from State Selet and they don't seem to know what is the reading that I suppose to get out of those. Any suggestions on that would be appropriate. Thank you

[LoneMech]

How come some gas valves use both a thermocouple and a thermopile? And others use just a thermopile?

[johnloydancheta]

how many junction inside the thermopile

[jetich]

umm. how is that thermopile just floating vertically?

[Accumulator]

I have an RV stove/oven and the oven not come on anymore. It has no outside electricity to it. So I guess it is a thermopile, not couple? The pilot light can be lit and stays on as it has no thermo safety control. Only the valve setting. A thermo probe end is over the pilot light and runs to the oven control valve. Turn the valve on and nothing happens.

This happened after I hooked up a new propane tank load that I bought from a place I do not normally deal with. Being that, I first suspected some contamination in the gas somehow clogged that valve but do not know how to test that. First I going to check the thermopile? after seeing your videos on how to. Before I did not know how that worked.