7 Common Problems With Gas Ovens

How to Fix the Ones You Can and Identify the Ones You Can’t

You’ve been waiting for an hour for your gas oven to come up to heat. It should have been ready 45 minutes ago. And still you wait.  “What’s the problem?” you curse under your breath. We’ve been here and we know exactly how you feel. (Although we hope it’s not the night before a bake sale when you encounter this.) Appliances don’t always work. Sometimes you run into a problem with your gas oven and you’ve got no idea what it is or why it’s happened.  

Why you chose might choose a gas oven 

When you were purchasing your brand new gas oven, it might have seemed like a fantastic idea at the time. When you compare the pros and cons, a gas oven comes out ahead for many people. You save money because gas ovens cost less to run than electric ovens, they heat up and cool down quicker, and they are more energy efficient. Or you might have chosen it because while an electric oven typically only lasts for 13 years, a gas oven can last up to 15 according to American Home Shield.  These are all reasons we looked into when it came to justifying our gas oven against the initial cost of purchasing one and installing the gas line. 

Common Problems With a Gas Oven 

However, like all appliances, there are times when things just go wrong and you don’t have a say in the matter. That’s when you need to be able to tell the difference between a problem you can fix and a problem we can fix. 

Before we dig in: Please make sure to take reasonable precautions before doing any of these. 

Something to look for with all of these issues is whether your oven is getting gas or not. Start by turning on the range burners if you have any. If the gas is flowing normally to the range burners, you know that the issues are within the oven itself. If they aren’t, you need to take a step back and make sure that you’re getting gas from your intake line, and your gas provider. (Sadly, we don’t have an in with any of them. We advise calling them once you’ve confirmed that an issue is with the gas supply rather than the oven itself.) 

Problems with Your Gas Oven that YOU Can Fix

Excessive Food Debris

Food debris can keep the burner from lighting, so your best bet is to clean it out regularly. But we all get busy, or have unintentional cooking mishaps, so here are the steps you need to go through when it’s built up. 

• Start by removing the grate over the burner. Either gently lift it off or loosen the screws that hold it in place. 

• Scrub off any food built up on the grate with a sponge soaked in warm soapy water. 

• Sweep out the cavity of the oven with a small hand brush or towel, paying attention to the corners.

• Check the burner tube(s) and ignition  to see if they have any food built up on them, carefully using scrubbing with an old toothbrush or a wire bristle brush. 

Inadequate Lighting

Sometimes the burners in your oven just won’t light completely. Even though you’ve got the dial cranked to high, you’re not getting a sufficient flame. This not only is going to affect your cooking, but also the efficiency of your oven. The most likely reasoning for this is that you have a cross-over port that’s restricted due to some type of blockage. Grab your old toothbrush and a wire brush and scrub carefully at all of the ports. With a bit of time you should be able to clear anything blocking the ports. 

Oven Burner Fails to Light

What about if the pilot light doesn’t light up after you’ve turned the oven on? You’ll know it hasn’t if you can open up the oven and don’t see a light at the back of the oven. If it’s not on, you might need to clean the electrode for the pilot. After you’ve taken your trust tools to it, you can relight the pilot with this article from Bob Villa. 

Problems with Your Gas Oven that WE Can Fix

Delayed Ignition

One of the benefits of a gas oven, and the reason many people choose them, is the rapid on-off time, the opposite of using electric ovens. However you can have times where even after you ignite the oven, it takes a long time before it operates. This can be caused by the ignition ports being blocked. Please note, this is different from having the cross-over ports blocked. A trained technician is your best choice in this case, rather than doing it yourself. They will be able to tell if it is the ignition port that is clogged and get it fixed. The reason we advise caution here is because a delayed ignition has the potential to cause a fire or explosion, causing damage to you, your oven or your home. 

Oven Fails to Heat 

If your oven won’t heat at all, it’s possible that the ignition is a problem. If you’ve made sure that both the gas supply is active and open, pop open the panel at the bottom of your oven. Here you’ll see your burner tube.  Turn on your oven to 350 and see if the igniter burns hot. If it does but the gas doesn’t ignite, there’s most likely a problem with the igniter, and it’ll need to be replaced. If the igniter doesn’t glow, the next step is checking it with a multimeter, which you can do on your own, or you can call us in. For more information on how this process works, check out this video. 

The Igniter is Glowing, But it Has NO Flame 

If you’re facing off against an oven that doesn’t have any flame, your first spot to look is the igniter. (Hm, that thing seems to be the potential spot for several problems doesn’t it?)  So, pull out the shields and check to see if it’s glowing. If there’s not flame and your igniter has been glowing for a long period of time, you need a new igniter. They can get old and worn out so that they can’t open the safety valve and bring gas into the burner tube. 

Gas Odor While Oven is Lit

If you’ve got your oven lit and you can smell the gas, you’ve got a problem. Start by turning off the oven. If left unchecked a gas leak can cause a fire, explosion or poisoning of anyone in the home. 

Now that we’ve got you safe, there are two possible causes for you smelling gas. The first is that the gas valves are opening up too soon before the ignition is reaching the right temperature. The second could be a hole or slit in the gas valves. Both of these need to be addressed by a professional as soon as possible after you notice it. 

Oven problems can happen to any homeowner. It’s not something you’ve done or not done, it’s just wear and tear on the parts. The good news is that half of these you can fix on your own. For the other half, Appliance Rescue Service is always here to help. If you’ve got questions about ovens (gas or electric) that we didn’t cover today, or just in general, let us know in the comments below or over on our Facebook page. If on the other hand you found us because you’re dealing with one of these problems, you can reach out to us on our webpage. So long as you live in Addison or the surrounding area, we’re here to help. 

Rock Your Weekend Lemon Berry Cake

When You Need a Conversation Stopper

Last time around, we did some breakfast food. This time, let's go all the way to the opposite end of the day and do a dessert!

We do hope you're not tired of blueberries yet, as they'll feature in this recipe too - this time as a supporting character instead of as a star.

Do you like berry lemonade? We think this is the best time of year for it, as the weather heats back up and the days get longer. The thing with berry lemonade, though, is that it gets awfully watered down in all the heat. But if you bake all the same flavors into a cake, there's no melting ice to ruin it. It's like six times as sticky, though, so maybe keep in mind the need for a plate and fork instead of a cup and straw.

Lemon Berry Cake

Ingredients:

1 box yellow cake mix (18 ounce, give or take a bit)

1 cup vanilla flavored Greek yogurt

4 extra large eggs (5 if using large or medium size)

1/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil or melted butter

3 Tablespoons lemon juice

2 Tablespoons poppy seeds

1 cup cherry pie filling

1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

1 Tablespoon strawberry syrup

1 teaspoon lemon extract

Tools:

Mixing bowl, spoon, measuring cups and spoons, blender or food processor, Bundt pan, non-stick spray, hand mixer (optional)

First off, pour that box of dry cake mix into the mixing bowl. Break up any large lumps you might find - it's easier to do this now, before adding any wet ingredients to it. 

Measure your yogurt and oil or butter into the bowl. Crack the eggs into it, and jab the yolks with the spoon to break them. Don't get too excited and start stirring it yet, though - we still haven't added the bulk of the wet ingredients.

Now is probably a good time to go wake the oven up (even though running the oven in warm weather is such a distasteful idea). You'll want to set it to preheat to 325. Look on the bright side: at least we're not making pizza or bread. We'd be telling you 450 for either of those!

Crack open your can of cherry pie filling (well, we always just use the canned stuff, but maybe your family is extra fancy and makes it from scratch. If you do make it yourself, we're jealous and would like to try some) and dump a cup of it into the blender or food processor, along with the blueberries, lemon juice, lemon extract and strawberry syrup. Blend it up until it's a purplish mixture about the consistency of a jar of store-bought jelly. Alternatively, you can choose to stop a little sooner and go for the consistency of preserves - lumps are fine, they just lend the cake more texture.

Take everything in the blender and pour it out into the bowl of cake mix, and then add your poppy seeds. If you intend to employ the hand mixer, give everything a once- or twice-over with the spoon before turning it on so it doesn't go "poof!" and give your kitchen a nice dusting of cake mix bits. If you're not using a mixer, stir gently by hand for about two minutes to make sure everything is all homogeneous.

Once you have your cake batter stirred smooth, grab your Bundt pan. Spray it lightly with the non-stick spray, making sure to get into all the little fluted nooks. Pay special attention to the center, also - we've discovered that if the cake is going to stick somewhere, it's there. Pour your cake batter into the pan - be sure to scrape the sides of the mixing bowl and get all the berries! - and smooth it over with the spoon.

Tuck it into the oven on a center rack and let it bake up for about 45 minutes. Sometimes the cake is set and ready to go after 45, but more often than not, it needs a few minutes longer than that. We think it varies based on the amount of syrup in the cup of pie filling.

It's ready to leave the oven when a toothpick poked into the deepest part of the cake comes out clean, and the edges have begun to pull away from the sides of the Bundt pan.

Allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before you make any attempt to remove it - moving it too soon can result in cake chunks, instead of a whole cake. Wiggle a butter knife gently around the edges and the center if it's still holding on after you've tried inverting the pan.

This cake's texture will be springy and soft, and sort of custard-y when you cut into it. You can see for yourself in the photos - we jabbed it with the blunt end of a knife, and the cake just dented instead of crumbling. It even returned to shape before we got around to drizzling glaze over it!

Don't worry, it's done; we promise it’s cooked all the way through. The softness is the result of using yogurt when most cakes use milk or water, and rounding out the wet ingredients with egg and semi-solid fruits.

The berry flavors on their own aren't overly sweet - they're more tangy - so we do recommend breaking out your favorite glaze recipe or melting some store bought frosting over it before serving. Don't disappoint the resident sweet tooth!

When you decide to make this cake we want to see! You’ve seen how ours turned out we’d love to see yours! Show us over on Facebook? 

If you live in The Colony and you need someone to take a look at your appliances, don’t forget to give us a call. We’re here to keep your home running smooth whether something has broken, or just if you think something is off. 

Phone: (214) 599-0055
Website: https://appliance-rescue-service.com/contact-us

Culinary Adventure: Sourdough Pancakes!

Get ready to taste the best pancakes you’ve ever had. 

This recipe is going to require a good bit of planning ahead. It's going to take at least a week of forethought. We know, that sounds like an awful lot - usually these are one-day recipes, or even just a few minutes. But that week of planning will lead you to the best and fluffiest pancakes, and it will make things like bread and tortillas easier in the future if you choose to keep it going.

You're about to embark upon a culinary adventure. And it starts with a science experiment.

Allow us to introduce you to sourdough.

There are two ways to get started with this. Three, if you happen to have a friend with a starter who's willing to share (which we can basically guarantee they will be - keeping a starter alive requires frequent discarding, which means a nice chunk of active starter is up for grabs each time). You could start your own; there are tutorials all over the internet for it. You could order some dehydrated starter from a business, and bring it back to life with a little flour and water. Or maybe you can ask that friend we mentioned earlier - it seems like, after quarantine, everyone knows someone with a little sourdough monster living in a jar in their kitchen.

A starter requires a little bit of attention each day, as well as some feeding and some culling. Basically, once it's alive, you toss out enough of it to get it back down to a manageable size, then add flour and water until you've reached a 1:1:1 flour to water to starter ratio. Give it a stir, put a lid on it, and let it sit until feeding time tomorrow. Or if you're likely to bake a bunch, skip the discard and add that much more flour and water. (In case you haven't guessed, we bake a bunch.) And when you don't plan to bake too much, or if you might have to leave town and no one will be around to feed it, you can put it into the fridge or freezer so that it goes dormant.

Once you have that starter ready to go (it'll smell strongly of yeast and it'll be visibly bubbly), you get to do the fun part: make a great big mess measuring it out!

It's squishy. It smells funny. It might be a food. Your dog will love it. Please be sure to keep it away from the fuzzy friends in the house - sourdough starter is no good for them, but they have no way to know that themselves.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup active sourdough starter

1/4 cup melted butter

3 eggs

1 1/4 cup milk

2 teaspoons almond extract

1 2/3 cup flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 cup fruit or chocolate chips (optional - we used blueberries for the example in the photos)

Double double… what? What do you mean it’s too early for that still?

Tools:

Mixing bowl, whisk, measuring cups and spoons, spatula, pan or griddle, non-stick spray. Optional: hand mixer.

Measure your liquid ingredients into the mixing bowl and whisk them all together. Try not to have too much of a difference in temperature between the eggs, milk and butter when you start mixing... because hot butter plus eggs plus milk is also the recipe for scrambled eggs.

Add your dry ingredients one at a time, holding the fruit or chocolate chips for last (if you've chosen to use them). Start gently so you don't wear the flour - but once you've got everything dampened, you can switch to using a hand mixer to speed things up if you prefer. Your batter will be thin, and possibly a little lumpy, but that's okay.

Start the heat under your pan or griddle and allow it to warm up to medium.

Fold your fruit or chocolate chips (again, assuming you've chosen to use them) into the batter. You should probably do this part by hand, as using a mixer can pulverize delicate fruit. Then again, pureed berries in the batter can dye the whole pancake vibrant colors. Maybe you're cooking for Rick Riordan fans who have been clamoring for blue pancakes. If that's the case, or if you want, say, pink or purple for a theme party, go ahead and smash all the berries you want.

Turn the heat under the pan or griddle down to low, spray with non-stick spray. Give the layer of spray a quick smear with the back of the spatula (this sounds weird, but it helps prevent the bubbly, uneven-looking cooking on the bottom) and pour a blob of pancake batter in.

Wait until you can see bubbles coming up to the uncooked top of the pancake most of the way into the middle, and the edges begin to look all set up. That usually takes a minute and a half to two minutes on our griddle, but you know your kitchen better than we know it, so make your own call here.

Slide the spatula under the pancake, lift and flip it all in one motion. Keep in mind, the more you drag it out, the more pancake batter drips you'll be stuck cleaning up later.

Cook for another minute on this side, lift an edge with the spatula and check for doneness. If it still looks pale, let it cook a little longer. If it's looking a bit scorched, lower the heat even more, and maybe feed that one to the family pet (cooked sourdough is fine!).

Once the pancake has reached the desired color on both sides, move it to a plate and start the process over again, repeating until you have enough pancakes or you run out of batter. We like to keep the plate of pancakes covered with another plate of the same size inverted over top to trap some of the heat, but be aware that it'll hold moisture too - and no one wants soggy pancakes unless they're drowning in syrup.

Now that you’ve got a stack of pancakes, let us know what you think over on Facebook! Is this going to be a regular breakfast addition for you? Would you rather try doing something else with your sourdough starter? (Hint: The internet has tons of ideas.) Or maybe you’d rather check out a different breakfast option entirely, something a little sweeter. For that we suggest checking out our Apple Oatcake, still just as good, if a little less work intensive.  

Now that we’ve helped you feed yourself, potentially for months if not years, it’s time to clean up the kitchen. What do you mean you’ve got a busted dishwasher? That’s ok, we can help with that too. If your dishwasher is busted and you live in The Colony or the surrounding area, we can help you. Dried out valves, peeling liners, flooding kitchens, we’ve seen them all and we’re here to keep your home running smoothly. Give us a call at ((214) 599-0055 ) or visit us at our website to set up an appointment today. 

Ovens, Ovens, Everywhere

Does It Matter Which I Pick?

Baking, boiling, steaming, roasting, if you want it, an oven can probably do it. After over 190 years we've made ovens that are capable of many different kinds of things. There are all sorts of shapes and sizes, there are even ones you can program with your phone! Which leads many of us to question, how do you choose the right oven for you? 

Let's start off with power sources. 

Gas ovens as the name implies use either natural gas or propane as the fuel source. While they are expensive up front if you have to install your gas line, they can save you money over time. Because of that upfront cost and the dangers that can occur, most new buildings won't install gas ovens. This is especially true for apartment buildings where leaks and hazards are more likely to occur. 

 However if you're willing to deal with the upfront cost gas ovens can be phenomenal at roasting meats and veggies. They heat quickly, retain moisture, and the open flame allows for more precise control of temperature. Many professional chefs swear by gas ovens. 

Your other option in terms of power is electricity. Electric ovens are cheaper to produce, but can be more expensive over time. They do take longer to heat up but once they are, they have a more consistent heat. They’re considered the ideal residential oven because they can handle almost any type of cooking you might want to use an oven for. If you’re looking to purchase a brand new oven, and you aren’t too picky about what it can handle, an electric is the way to go. 

We have to note, while there are products marketed as “dual fuel” ovens, they actually are an electric oven paired with a gas range. 

Next up let's take a look at size. 

Picture your ideal kitchen, how does it look? Do you have just one oven? Or do you want two? If you want two, are they together as one unit or two separate ones? All three of these are possible and the terms to go with them are pretty simple as well. 

Single oven - This is your standard “comes with most homes” combination oven and range unit. This term will also apply to single wall ovens. They come in a variety of sizes from 30 in to 36 in on average.  However, you can get them as small as 20 in or as large as 40 inches. 

Double oven - This is a single unit that contains two ovens that are the size of a standard oven when put together. They can be set to different temperatures and are ideal for cooking multiple things at once. You'll typically see these advertised around the holidays. 

Double wall oven - When you purchase this oven for slightly more than a mid-tier single oven, you get two separate ovens. Unlike the double oven, although these are stacked on top of each other they offer matching capacity. Why is this one called a double wall oven rather than something else? We don't know, we don't get it either. What we do get is that you're getting two full oven units for only a bit more.

Now… Where to put it? 

Have you decided on the size of your oven? Great! Now it's time to think about where you want it. Do you want it built into your wall? What about a cabinet? Or would you prefer having it as an island in the center of your kitchen? 

 Built-in Ovens - These are ovens that are slotted into your kitchen with the cabinetry then being built around it. It’s a very modern and sleek look that allows you to place your oven at any height for easy cooking. The downside here is that you’re going to have to have a separate range elsewhere within the kitchen. They’re also difficult to get at to repair if needed, and are tricky to move after installation. 

Freestanding Ovens - A freestanding oven is the all in one model. You’ll have an oven, a range and sometimes a grill, warming drawer or air fryer as well. The upside is that you can move them relatively easily, clean them (more) easily, and move around it as needed. 

Built-Under Ovens- These are very similar to the built-in oven, except they are meant to go under your countertops. Again you’ll need to purchase a separate range, but you’ll have an oven that blends more into your kitchen. 

Now now with all of that covered, what are you looking at getting? Is it a double gas free-standing oven? They do exist, although you'll have to find a specialty shop to custom make it. 

What type of oven are you thinking of getting? Do you want a built in? What about a double? We know we’ll be day-dreaming about a side by side double oven for a while. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below or over on our Facebook page! We’d love to hear from you. 

If you’re here not because you need  a new oven but instead because yours is giving you fits, we’re still here for you. Whether it’s got a weird burning smell, it’s not heating right or someone melted plastic in it, we can help. Reach out to us via our website or by phone ((214) 599-0055) to schedule your appointment today. At Appliance Rescue Service, whether you live in Allen or the surrounding area, we’re here to help you. 

It’s That 70s Decor!

It’s Come Back For Round Two, And We’re Not Surprised

Have you looked around the stores lately and thought “wow, I remember seeing some of these trends in the 70s!” Or maybe you’re wondering why so many people on Facebook & Instagram are proclaiming their love for the color mustard yellow suddenly. Decor, like fashion, goes in cycles. For the last one hundred years we’ve gone back and forth between very organic and inorganic fashions. From the hard angles of Art Deco vs the curves of Art Nouveau, and black and white of the Jet Age to the earthy tones of the 70s. The cycle repeats over and over, and after a year of white kitchens and living rooms, people are CRAVING color and texture. This week we’re taking a look at some of the decor trends from the 70s that have come back, and ones we hope stay firmly in the past.

Things That Have Come Back

These are the things that have come back that we're actually really excited to see again.

Retro Colors 

After last year being All White everything we are so excited to see color this vibrant and Rich back in our lives! Yes, a lot of these colors are earthy tones, but that doesn't mean you can't have them bright and welcoming. If you don't want to have the whole room dominated by hunter green, don't! Use that for the accent colors. Paint just one wall. Paint the molding and trim around the room. Or do like we've done for ages: keep the room a neutral shade and just use pillows, throws, and similar objects to bring in the colors you want.

Macrame

Did you learn how to make friendship bracelets as a kid? Macrame is the same thing. Lots and lots of knots. The great thing is that you can use it to add texture, and have it match colors already in your home, or use it to bring in entirely new colors. It can also be used to make all sorts of things, from clothes to furniture. 

Velvet

Soft and luxurious, velvet is back! Couches, pillows, chairs and curtains, we love seeing velvet around the home. Velvet is all about giving yourself somewhere soft to rest at the end of the day. 

Animal Prints

Animal prints have always been fashionable, but during the 70s you saw them everywhere and mixed together in all ways possible. This time around, don’t be afraid to mix and max prints with different patterns or colors than what you might have seen in the past. And you can even get them cruelty free! 

Fringe and Shag Rugs

Continuing on with the idea of comfort, imagine a thick, rich carpet under your bare feet. You sink into it, and it’s cloudlike underfoot. Shag rugs never really went out of style, so much as they were relegated to teens rooms. Now, we’re realizing just how comfy they are in the rest of the home. Fringes just add to the benefit of having a rug by adding texture to a room and extending the space of a rug further. 

Hanging Chairs

Remember when we said you could make your own furniture out of macrame? This is part of what we meant. While it’s not the only way to get a hanging chair, it is certainly a fun one. Hanging chairs give a room a sense of playfulness and motion that most furniture doesn’t have, and we love it. We’re happy to see hanging chairs making their way back inside the home, no longer relegated solely to the front porch. 

All the Rattan

Rattan, much like macrame, gives a room a very airy look. In the 70s it was explored as an alternative in color and cost to the heavier, darker woods of the previous eras. Made of willow or cane, even with a very dense weave, it has a very light feeling to it. You can use it for anything from shelving to chairs, tables to headboards. There are also a wide array of patterns that rattan can be worked into to give different looks.  

Terrazzo
Ahh terrazzo, what can we say about this strange material? It’s a composite mixture, made of chips of marble, glass, or quartz, when you want the sparkle, but not necessarily the cost. Less garish than metal fleck paint, and far more affordable for home decor. It can be bright and colorful, mixing many materials together, or you might have it in monotones. While it used to be that you would only see it as countertops and flooring, now it’s being used for all sorts of things again. 

Wallpaper

Big bold wallpapers are back, graphic patterns that capture the attention. This time though, we advise only doing one wall, and ensuring that you frame it with molding that matches the rest of the room. This way the wallpaper holds sway in the room, but it won’t dominate the way wallpaper did in the past. 

Things That We Hope Won’t Come Back 

That brings us to the trends we hope we don’t see come back. We admit, this is only our opinions on the matter, but we hope you’ll be able to see our reasoning. 

Fake Wood Paneling

Just. No. Out of all of the options for how to decorate your walls, please don’t do this. Not only does it make a room look dark and heavy, but the wood grain is an insult against proper design. This type of decoration only belongs on the front of an Atari console, not on the walls. We highly suggest shiplap instead. 

Floating Stairs

This one we dislike primarily as a safety measure. Even with the best of intentions and care, we’ve seen many people fall off these stairs, and no one wants that.

Floral Sofas

While we love the graphic patterns of our wallpapers, and even florals, there’s something to be said about floral sofas from the 70s. They were huge and overdone, no matter what you did about them.  And let’s not even go into the colors of the fabrics themselves. 

Colonial Furniture

Remember how we talked about wood paneling making a room seem too dark? Colonial furniture didn’t help. This heavy, turned wood was a staple in many homes, but it never seemed to quite fit in.  

Fondue Pots 

Especially in a Post-Covid society. Need we say more? 

Those are the things we’re excited to see again and a few we hope don’t make their way back. What about you? Do you agree with some that we don’t? Do you have tips for how to use some of the ones we showcased? Let us know in the comments below or over on our Facebook page, as always, we love to hear from you! 

If, on the other hand, you’re here to talk shop because your oven has popped, we can still help!

Reach out to us via our website or phone ((214) 599-0055) and we can figure it out. Wherever you live in Garland or the surrounding area, we are here to help.