I have a 3-burner Cramer hob in my van. One of the burners won't stay lit when I release the knob after lighting. Looking at the thermocouples on the three burners, it looks like the one with the problem is positioned slightly further from the burner compared to the other two. Does anyone know whether it is possible to adjust the position of the thermocouple without dismantling/removing the cooker?
I recently bought the van used, and the burner in question looks unused, suggesting it has had this problem since new.
Thanks Gary. It's the new-style 3-burner Cramer hob - like the one shown here (second one down). Do these hobs still have a gasket? The burner with the problem is the rear left (furthest from the sink, as it happens! ).
Probably not then, I'd no idea Cramer were still making hobs!
Make sure it's flame looks the same as the others, it should be blue and soft looking, not harsh and perhaps a bit noisier than the others?
Another possible is the cold end of the thermocouple where it screws into the gas valve, first check the gland nut is nipped tight, if still no go, unscrew it and clean tip, replace and try again.
I've got a very old Cramer hob with a similar problem, although mine doesn't have flame failure.
Sorry to hijack the thread. One of my burners makes a lot of noise on full. When it's cold you can adjust it, but once it's warmed up, if you try to turn it down it just pops & goes out.
The hob is a 4 burner, in my 1990 Lunar Clubman. It has air holes on the side, one next to each knob. These appear to be clear.
It's strange though, as I thought it would have flame failure in 1990, everything else on the van has.
The burners are indeed burning a bit 'fierce', so I got hold of a Torx screwdriver and removed the burner tops to take a look. It turns out there is a lot of soft pink residue blocking the burners which looks like either a sealant paste or possibly a disintegrated gasket.
Any ideas what this pink gunge is? Is it a high temperature sealant paste of some kind? It cleans off easily enough, so if I knew what to replace it with I could do it myself.
To add to my woes one of the Torx screws on one of the burner tops was so corroded that the top came clean off... Great quality for a 3-year old hob, eh! Thanks, Cramer/Dometic! Now I need to remove the burner and get that screw out...
Pink paste?...Brillo is the first thing that came to my mind?!
How long is the screw, if it's 50mm or more, I have a good supplier, I used to get mk1 Cramer screws of him. Seems crazy though, mk3's as they would be if indeed it still is Cramer?, fell in to the same trap again!!
Gary - I'll post a photo later. The pink gunk is right around the outer edge of the ring - you're probably right in implying it shouldn't be there! There's no reference to a gasket or sealant in the Cramer parts diagram.
The van is in storage, but next time I go back I'll check the length of the screws (they have a T6 Torx head).
It'd probably be worth me taking the burner rings off and giving them a good clean.
I cleaned the burners up and yes, the pink gunk almost certainly was Brillo soap!
Unfortunately it's made next to no difference, and the rear left burner still won't stay lit. The thermocouple is fine, as it works when I put a gas lighter to it.
I think I'm going to have to leave this one for a professional to sort out...
If anyone's still following this saga... here's my conclusion.
The problem is definitely caused by the position of the thermocouple. I wedged a small screwdriver behind the thermocouple tip to move it 1-2mm closer to the burner, and it then worked perfectly. So I intend to fix it by fitting some kind of spacer onto the edge of the hole that the thermocouple passes through, in order to push the tip a little closer to the flame. I just need to find (or fabricate) a suitable spacer that won't fall out in transit - a small metal spring clip might do the job.
yes I am and wrote something yesterday on the phone, however. it's not here?!
And NO, you don't wedge bits in to fix it, it might work for a bit, but won't for long.
To help me, I'd like another picture or two, one of after cleaning the above base, and one of the under side of the cap. One lit would be really useful as well
Can't quite made out how it's meant to work with all that pink gunk about
Just found this old thread via goggle , can anyone tell me what the measurement in mm refers to on Smev Thermocouples? I may need to order one .....and am wondering where to measure it to ensure correct part ?
Thanks