Pilot Assemblies
Introduction
The pilot assembly has a pilot burner, thermocouple, and a mounting bracket. The one I picked up was from Amazon, though you can find them at HD or Lowes. Make sure that you get one that is long enough. Mine are 24” and one is pretty tight. In hindsight I should have gone with a 36” but I got it to work.
Prep work
Take the pilot assembly out of the package and check out the mounting bracket. You are going to need to fashion a bit of sheet metal to get the pilot to sit up to where it will ignite the burner flame when the gas is commanded on. You can take a look at what I did – you need to do something similar. I just cut a 1”ish wide strap of sheet metal about 12” long and bent it into shape, then riveted it to the windscreen and riveted the pilot assembly bracket to it. Plan out what you are going to do, then cut what you need to, bend it, and make sure it will fit.
Build out
If you go the route I did, first drill holes common to the pilot assembly bracket and the sheet metal strap. You should be able to back drill from the bracket into the strap. Then rivet the bracket to the strap. Next line it up with the windscreen and clamp it up. Ensure that the pilot burner sticks up far enough so that the flame will go into the burner gas flow. If not it will just blow gas for a bit before you get a big burst of flame when it finally ignites. Lastly, make sure that the pilot gas tube and thermocouple line can both reach and be connected to the valve. Once you’re sure you have it where you need it, drill thru the strap and the windscreen and rivet it together. Attach the pilot gas tube and the thermocouple to the valve and tighten them down. This is also a good time to attach the flex gas line to both the fitting previously installed on the valve and to the orifice assy on the burner. The flex gas line (both ends) and the pilot gas tube are both flared fittings, and don’t require Teflon tape, but feel free to use it on the threads if you want.
At this point your gas system is complete and ready to go. We will both leak check and test it later after building out the controller.
The pilot assembly has a pilot burner, thermocouple, and a mounting bracket. The one I picked up was from Amazon, though you can find them at HD or Lowes. Make sure that you get one that is long enough. Mine are 24” and one is pretty tight. In hindsight I should have gone with a 36” but I got it to work.
Prep work
Take the pilot assembly out of the package and check out the mounting bracket. You are going to need to fashion a bit of sheet metal to get the pilot to sit up to where it will ignite the burner flame when the gas is commanded on. You can take a look at what I did – you need to do something similar. I just cut a 1”ish wide strap of sheet metal about 12” long and bent it into shape, then riveted it to the windscreen and riveted the pilot assembly bracket to it. Plan out what you are going to do, then cut what you need to, bend it, and make sure it will fit.
Build out
If you go the route I did, first drill holes common to the pilot assembly bracket and the sheet metal strap. You should be able to back drill from the bracket into the strap. Then rivet the bracket to the strap. Next line it up with the windscreen and clamp it up. Ensure that the pilot burner sticks up far enough so that the flame will go into the burner gas flow. If not it will just blow gas for a bit before you get a big burst of flame when it finally ignites. Lastly, make sure that the pilot gas tube and thermocouple line can both reach and be connected to the valve. Once you’re sure you have it where you need it, drill thru the strap and the windscreen and rivet it together. Attach the pilot gas tube and the thermocouple to the valve and tighten them down. This is also a good time to attach the flex gas line to both the fitting previously installed on the valve and to the orifice assy on the burner. The flex gas line (both ends) and the pilot gas tube are both flared fittings, and don’t require Teflon tape, but feel free to use it on the threads if you want.
At this point your gas system is complete and ready to go. We will both leak check and test it later after building out the controller.
Here is how I mounted the pilot assembly to the burners. You can see where I riveted the assembly to the strap that I made and bent up. The pilot burner is on the left and the thermocouple on the right. The silver tube is the pilot gas line from the valve, the copper is the thermocouple line that goes to the valve.
Another view of the pilot assembly attachment.
This shows how the pilot gas supply line and thermocouple line are attached to the valve. The gas line is on the valve outlet side and the thermocouple goes to the gas inlet side. They are different sizes so they only go together one way. You can also see at the top of the valve the fitting that goes from the valve to the flex line. This fitting has a check valve on it, clearly noted by the green band with flow direction indicators marked on it.
This shows the flex line connected from the valve to the burner. The orifice fitting that comes with the burner has a 3/8" male flared connection, and the flex line has a 1/2" female flared connection. The flex line also comes with a fitting for this end that is 1/2" male flare to appliance thread. We don't need this fitting. Instead, here a 3/8" female flare x 1/2" male flare fitting. There are various fittings available, this uses a SAE 45 degree flare. Teflon tape isn't required on flare connections but won't hurt anything if you use it. Just make sure that the connections are tight and leak checked after assembly.