Should Rebekah buy a new oven? Or repair the one she has?
My husband and I are facing a frugal dilemma that I would love reader's input on. For the last couple of years our gas oven (also a gas range) has struggled to hold a steady temperature.It does not seem old but I've only lived in this house for three years. It's a GE "TrueTemp" oven (oh the irony).I know gas ovens should expect to have temperature fluctuations but this goes much beyond that. I thought it might be a thermostat issue because it "thinks" it is still at the temperature I set but the reality is that the temperature has dropped 100-150 degrees.However, the last time I tried to use the oven, it would not heat up a first. (After about an hour of switching in on and off it finally got up to temperature.)My husband and I have been advised to just buy new and not bother with repairs. We have been told that between to price of the service call, parts and install we will pay a LOT of money and in the end it might not be fixable. We really hate to just throw out the oven for environmental concerns but we do want to be frugal and wise.
My goodness, that sounds SO frustrating! It would not be the end of the world for something like a pot roast, but if you were trying to bake a cake or a crusty loaf of bread, that amount of temperature fluctuation would be a bit of a disaster.
So, I completely understand why you want to get this fixed or replaced.
When I make a decision like this, I try to consider things like:
- the age of the appliance (if it's very old, other things might go wrong soon too, and replacement parts might be hard to get)
- the cost of replacement (if the service call is going to add up to half the cost of a replacement, then that's an argument for not fixing the old one)
Remember when I cracked the glass top of the stove at my old house?
In that case, the new stovetop didn't make a lot of sense, especially given how old my oven was. You can read through my thinking on that in this post.
Luckily, I knew precisely what was wrong with my stove (ha!), so it was easy to figure out how much a replacement would cost.
In your case, there are more unknowns, so that makes it harder.
If we were chatting I'd ask you:
- Who advised you? If they're experienced and knowledgeable about repairing gas ovens, I'd take their advice seriously. When I cracked my stovetop, I called my trusty appliance repair guy to ask his opinion!
- How much is a service call in your area?
- Are parts readily available for your oven?
- How much would a new gas stove/oven be?
- Would the new gas stove have some better features that would be valuable to you?
Also, you've probably already done this, but I'd definitely google my oven's symptoms to see if I could get a vague idea of what the problem might be, because that might help me get a ballpark idea of what a repair would involve.
I am not at ALL a gas oven expert, though, so I'm gonna stop typing here and open the floor up for reader input.
I would search online for postings about that specific model and see what the issue could be. Then hit YouTube for videos to see how to fix it. (Well, my husband would do all that, while I stand by and cheer him on.) I know for my gas stove, there can be bits of debris that interfere with the ignitor, which can affect the temps. We go in and brush out the inner workings to improve the situation.
If the costs of parts to repair are under the costs of a new stove , my husband would repair it himself. However, he's skilled with his hands and doesn't mind putting in hours of work on appliances.
(He is very thrifty.)
I think you really need to decide if the costs of repair are worth it. If not, try selling the stove - someone out there might want it if they know how to repair things.
If you buy a new stove, get the simplest one you can with few digital parts. Much easier to fix than anything with elaborate control panels.
@mbmom11, IDK, I find just replacing a control panel much easier than other repairs. When my stove needed repair I had to call a pro in because I'm pretty useless at figuring out actual mechanical things as opposed to just slotting in a new computer board.
My stove is a pink 1959 gas range by Dixie and I don't care about anyone's fancy new induction without gas fumes. lalalalaala MINE'S PINK.
When I had to replace the heating element on the electric oven in my kitchen in the guest cottage, the electrician said, "Why don't you just get a new one?" I said, "This one's aqua." It's a 1959 Westinghouse Ambassador range. (NB it was pretty easy to just plug a new element in the oven.)
@Rose, This one is not mine, obvs, but looks just like it. Isn't the clock adorable? And it has the griddle.
https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/atq/d/burns-dixie-gas-range/7786314035.html
@Rose,
We had the aqua range in my childhood home.
@Bee, haha, I had this one trucked from Florida!
@Rose,
Sooooooo cute. I've always wanted a vintage kitchen.
Yes this is what we would do @mbmom11
Research and youtube the model and issue. We had a similar issue with our prior one. I forget the part my husband ended up replacing and it fixed the problem. But that somewhat depends on if you are handy and want to do it yourself. When we moved we had to get a new range. We went to Home Depot and asked what they had on sale. Found a decent one for $500. One of the most helpful things we did in researching new appliances was youtube on repair men who spoke on which ones they get the most and least repair calls for. This was helpful for brands and features to avoid. I love cooking on a gas stove. I would never choose electric.
What a cute oven! I would fix it too.
When I was a teen I lived in a house that was a "Sears Kit" bungalow. The range was an Estate brand. I loved using the middle griddle/ eye for cooking. It had a removable cover. When Mom downsized, the new owner was going to rehab, and was willing to give me the stove. Unfortunately I would have had to transport it from NY to GA and then wait 5 years years for the vintage stove experts to restore it. The oven was also an impractical size. It had 2 ovens, but our modern size pans didn't fit well.
The stove was white and a beautiful vintage piece. I still have fond memories of that vintage kitchen.
I would basically do what @mbmom11 would do- research to work out what I think the problem might be. Once diagnosed hit up you tube to work out if it's something I can relatively cheaply and easily do myself (I live on my own, but could ask other people for help if required). If I can replace it myself I generally will. If not I decide based on the age of the appliance if I think it's worth it. I try hard to keep things going for as long as possible but sometimes it's not worth it. I also think that sometimes it's ok to press the easy button as Kristen says. It might cost you more, but in the long run that can work better if you have other things going on in your life and need the easy fix. Being frugal takes time and we don't always have that available.
In a recent example I replaced the carbon brushes in my washing machine motor. I was fairly confident this was the issue as the machine was draining but the drum wasn't spinning. I watched a you tube video and worked out the brushes were fairly accessible and with the purchase of a set of torques I could probably do this myself.
It would have cost minimum £180 for someone to come and do it. A new machine would have been £500. The machine is about 7 years old. The carbon brushes were £18 delivered from ebay and the new screwdriver and set of torque heads was £20. It took me about 2 hours to fix it. I figured the machine should give me another 3 years at least so about £15 a year seemed ok to me.
If something happens again I may just replace it- it's an integrated machine in my kitchen (in the UK we are strange and have our washer/ dryer in the kitchen, especially in a smaller house) and it was very awkward to get back in place (those things are heavy!). The hassle factor will probably push me to pay someone to deal with it next time.
@Steph,
we just moved and were GLAD our washer was upstairs so we didn't mind that it was in the kitchen. 🙂
Don't be shy to spend a bit on an item as big as your oven. A few years ago, my husband spent his hard earned and well deserved bonus on a new Defy thermofan oven. 10+ years later I still get a little endorphin-kick every single time I use it (most days). Kudos if you choose to go the repair route, but if you decide to buy new, I doubt you will regret it.
I would definitely replace it. The time and frustration of something you use all of the time not working as it should, possibly wasting good food or making good food not good would be the breaking point. Its not a luxury, its a basic need for me to be able to cook food. I look at appliances as cost per use, and I use my oven all of the time.
I would not mess with DYI on a gas oven, I'm so afraid of leaks and fires.
Look to see if there's a tax advantage on an energy saving appliance. Where I live, there's no little access to good repair people, I buy my appliances at a store that employees repairmen with a good warranty. That has paid off for me.
@MommaJo, I agree! I'm not operating on a fixed income so I would see it as an investment in my home and my future self. Also, gas appliances are best left to the pros. When we converted from an electric cooktop to a gas one, we enlisted the help of a plumber who installed the gas hookup and knew how to connect the new cooktop safely.
First off, if Rebekah in SoCal means she is in Southern California rather than say, South Calacky, she should investigate tax credits and rebates she may have available to her for switching to electric/induction. I have no idea what’s out there on this front, but I do know that CA is trying to get people away from gas appliances.
Concurrently, she can do some Reddit and YouTube research. We replaced the motherboard on our gas range a few years and this fixed our temperature fluctuation issue bc I guess the thermometer is incorporated in the motherboard. This cost $100 for the part bc DH did it himself. A lot of appliance repairs you can handle yourself if you are the sort of person who can correctly assemble a Lego kit. Myself, I do everything backwards so I leave appliance repairs to DH. I understand if you read this and think: no way. Anyhow, if it otherwise still works, this is worth a shot.
The oven part of our 15 year old gas range has stopped working and it’s something we can’t repair this time. So we are planning to replace the whole thing, but we’re waiting for Black Friday deals at this point. I don’t know if that’s an option for Rebekah, but we have discovered that there is a whole lot you can just cook on the stovetop. We used the oven all the time, but sometimes it’s fun to give yourself challenges and limitations. Or at least, we keep telling ourselves that. We do plan to replace it with an induction model instead.
My oven faced similar issues a couple years ago, but it was from 1972, so we opted to replace it! Assuming yours isn't THAT old, I would probably call around and ask for service call prices and then make a decision. I did also keep my old oven and use it as a warming station if needed since it still kind of works. Not sure if that would be an option, but it might make you feel better about not just getting rid of it if you decide to replace!
mbmom11 has excellent trouble-shooting suggestions! If those don't pan out, I would suggest looking at vintage gas ovens, which are built like brick *#&# houses and often sold at the price of a service call and repair.
When the Frigidaire oven that came with the house crapped out on us earlier this year--same issue as yours, with a bonus fried electric control panel--we trouble-shot it and priced out a service call vs. a replacement. Once we had that information, we hit FB Marketplace to see what we could find for the price of a service call, which is how our 1950s Dixie brand oven came into our lives. For $250, we have a "new" oven of our vintage dreams! It has no electronics whatsoever (we get enough power blips in winter that this is a major bonus), is true to temperature, and works a dream despite its 70+ years. An HVAC friend did the installation for free, as he's "picky about my friend's gas hook ups."
If you do replace your oven, check for scrap metal hunters in your area so that the old oven has a second life. That's what we did when we replaced ours; the neighbor that took it for scrap was glad of the extra money, and we were glad to get the darn thing out of the way!
@N, For the record, we did replace the control panel on our old oven on our own, hoping that would also fix the oven temperature issue. It fixed the burners, but not the oven, which meant still more money trouble-shooting. We returned the control panel for a full refund and put that money toward our Dixie instead.
@N, Hey, I have a Dixie too! It was a lower-end appliance at the time but it's much better made, with good thick American steel, than anything you can get now.
@N,
Wow! Nice catch on the vintage oven! If you can find a vintage oven in my area, they want $$$ for it. A zillion years ago, when I was a kid, the house my parents bought had a AufDemKampe stove in it (at least, I think that's how you spell the brand name). That thing was a beast! Weighed a ton, solid as they come, and never caused any problems. It had a griddle in the middle between the two sets of gas burners, so my mom would use it to make pancakes and grilled cheese sandwiches.
@Liz B., My Dixie has a griddle between the sets of burners and I love it for pancakes etc. I usually make some bacon in a frying pan then grease the griddle with it. It's easy to take the griddle off and throw it in the dishwasher, too.
Sometimes it's the little things in life, you know? Making pancakes on a griddle instead of a frying pan or in my case using jarred minced garlic. I just loathe peeling and mincing garlic.
Also, come to think of it, my electric frying pan to make chicken cutlets. We eat them so often it's worth buying a separate appliance. I can get 7-8 cutlets in so I don't have to fry them in batches, the temperature is exact, and later on I pour the cooled oil through a strainer funnel and right back into the oil bottle. Then the frypan goes into the dishwasher.
So often I find that a certain thing makes such a difference for me. Granted I am super sensitive and crabby etc etc.
@Rose,
Yes, I love those little things that offer simple pleasures, or help avoid dreaded tasks. Same, I haaaaate peeling and chopping/mincing garlic. Jar garlic all the way.
@Rose, Our Dixie was bought from the house where it had been installed new, and the previous owner kept it meticulously. Ours doesn't have a griddle and, while it has all four burners, is very petite! The inside of the oven is 15" all around. The size was a major selling point since our 1890s house has dimensions to match. We actually moved the oven in the backseat of my husband's old Buick since we don't own a truck.
I agree with Googling to see if there is a known problem with this appliance. Maybe others have experience with this. If you can find out more about the problem it could lead you to a possible solution/decision.
Good luck!
I would replace it because gas stoves are shown to release more pollutants into the air than electric ranges and children who live in homes with gas stoves are more likely to have respiratory illnesses.
https://www.npr.org/2021/10/07/1015460605/gas-stove-emissions-climate-change-health-effects
Similar shoes a few years back.. Ours was a flat top electric and 2/4 of the burner coils died and the 3rd was starting to get unreliable. Husband was researching replacement/repair costs and it ended up cheaper long term to chuck it and buy a new gas stove( we had recently converted the house to gas). I would have no idea if the same choice would be made in this economy.
I have a gas range, only 2 years old. It will not come to temperature in the oven and hold it. It also does some strange things on the stove top which cannot be explained. Trying to light with no burner on, trying to light all burners when I am only lighting one. This is a $28oo.00 range. This started 3 days after being out of warranty. On the call to the manufacturer, they said it could be the motherboard. Which in itself is $500.00, but there has to be a service call to make sure.
The service call starts at $250.00, that's just to show up. After that it is $125.00 per hour. Once the issue is found, then parts will be ordered, then another service call.
We made it through the entire summer by grilling, using our smoker, using the blackstone... but now I have to do something. Winter is coming! I have decided purchasing a new range, AND an extended warranty, (like I have always done, except this appliance) is what makes the most sense to me. This is apparently a lemon, and I refuse to put more money into something that has so many issues in such a short time.
I would buy a new range if I was Rebekah, as she will probably spend at least half if not more to repair her older stove/range. Whatever she decides, do NOT buy a Samsung, I finally got rid of mine at age 4 years old for all kinds of issues, that service call after service call never fixed. (Extended warranty on it)
@Sheila,
Hang on to all the paperwork and issues you have with your fancy-but-won't work stove after you dump the stove. In my experience, several years down the road, after I've tossed all the paperwork/repair bills/etc., I get notice that there was a class-action suit about the appliance and if I submit my paperwork for repairs and parts, I'll get paid back. This has happened three times to me - you'd think I'd learn to hang on to the paperwork.
@Sheila, I'd order a motherboard online and replace it. If that's not the problem, return the part.
@Rose,
Not able to, but even if I was able to buy the motherboard online, my time is worth more to me than buying something that might not fix the issue.
Plus its gas, don't really want to install something, (if my husband is able to do it) it's not that easy on this range lots of parts and things to remove to get to it. I also don't want to get blown up. I am able to pay cash for what I buy, results of being frugal.
@JD,
I will, that is one thing I do have... paperwork. LOL
I wouldn't try to repair and would instead purchase a new electric stove. We have a gas stove that I'm saving up to replace due to the health concerns about the emissions.
If you opt to replace, you might consider an induction stove instead of gas. I always swore I'd never switch from gas because it's so much better to cook on, but I've gotten concerned about the pollution issue (which another commenter mentioned below). I bought a single burner induction cooktop to try out (an as-new return at Amazon) and I love it. I still use my gas oven when I bake but have basically decommissioned the burners. Yes, it does mean making sure your pans will hold a magnet, but I keep a small magnet in my change purse and have found great pans for next to nothing at yard sales.
Gas stoves do need to be recalibrated every now and then. Ours is a Kenmore and is a bit more than ten years old. A few years ago I noticed that baked goods were not turning out quite right and the cooking time had to be extended. We bought an oven thermometer at the hardware store and found it was 30 degrees too low.
The appliance repair guy was sure we did not know what we were talking about and was dismissive of our cheap thermometer, until he checked it with his gizmo and we were right. My husband said watching the guy eat crow was very satisfying. 😀 However, repair guy did fix it and it's worked like a champ ever since.
I am dedicated to repair over replace because new stoves are not as good and reckless consumption is killing the planet. We have run across some repair people who just want to collect the money from service calls to tell us to get rid of an appliance with a minor problem, without doing any work. Those folks go on our "never call again" list. If you like the stove and feel it does the job when working well, then a second opinion on the repair is a good spend.
My husband and I recently had the same problem with our gas oven. My husband 'YouTubed' the issue and thought it was probably the ignitor in the bottom on the oven. Sometimes it would work fine, other times it couldn't maintain or get up to temperature, and sometimes it wouldn't heat up at all. This got more and more frequent. We felt confident that if the ignitor was the issue we could replace it ourselves. The part was only about $20, so if it didn't work it wasn't a big investment. Our backup plan was to just replace the whole oven, but thankfully it worked! It wasn't difficult to replace, but it did take a little over an hour (maybe closer to two- I honestly don't remember) to just make sure everything was taken apart and put back together correctly. I'd say try and troubleshoot and try to DIY the repair. If you can't then you just have to determine whether you're willing to shell out a couple hundred to a repair person or just put that towards a new one. Thankfully our stovetop worked the whole time, so it was still pretty easy to cook at home when our oven was broken.
I had run into a similar experience as @Liz. My gas stove was slow coming up to temperature and wouldn't at time, so I replaced my ignitor. I debated if the work was worth it versus just buying a new stove, and for around $25 and a little bit of work, it is working as new.
I agree with another commentator if you are considering going to an electric oven, induction seems to be the way to go, and if I ever switched from gas that would be my choice.
@ElbowGrease, I agree. I had the same problem and the ignitor was the issue. I replaced it for a $30 part and an hour of labor and I am not handy but I really could not afford to replace it at that time. It lasted about 3 years before the problem happened again. I wouldn't have tried without Kristen's encouragement of "you don't need whiskers for that".
@Stacey, we had the same issue and it was the ignitor also. Ordered a replacement ignitor for about $30 on Amazon. It lasted another 3-4 years and then we had to replace the ignitor again. Very easy fix. We did it ourselves in less than an hour.
My oven doesn't hold temperature either. Parts are outrageous and there is no guarantee it will work. I wasn't ready to buy a new stove so I watched sales and bought a Ninja 12 in 1 countertop oven for $189. I can basically cook whole meals in it.
When I'm ready to replace, I'm looking at a stripped down, no frills, no MOTHERBOARD generic stove.
The manufacturer's web site might help you find out how old your range is. I would also visit some appliance stores and talk to the repair people about repairability and reliability. Newer appliances are built with short life spans and less reliability, also shorter warranties, but there is a path through the woods! I would check Consumer Reports and testing data from the Good Housekeeping Institute. Also look at Costco offerings; they offer a full refund for their goods and choose carefully what they sell. I back up my range with a large toaster oven (a Breville), which I love. It can handle a 9x13" pan, a pie, or a loaf of bread, and got me through a long period of a lemon of a range (oven and three burners died). I also use it as a second oven for busy periods in the kitchen, and as a heat saver in the summer. You might also check when appliances go on sale to make the most of your purchasing dollar, if you don't repair your range. Look at cooking web sites and blogs for discussions of ranges and consider auctions. One of my dear friends bought a marvelous high end range from a dent-and-scratch store. It had only cosmetic damage and works like a champ.
When you go looking, keep notes on what you like and don't like, and what appeals to you about particular models and features. That will help you decide on what is most important to you. I found the staff at a big appliance store helpful. Most of their business is in multiple sales, outfitting whole apartment buildings, for example, and they had helpful data on the benefits of simple design and reliable function. They also sold single units.
The cost of an unreliable range is high, in food and in your time and effort. It is an important basic tool in the kitchen, but there are ways to cope while you decide. Many world cuisines depend on stovetop cooking only--rice and curry, tortillas and stew, tagine and couscous. Pancakes and bacon!
we are going through the same thing but with our dishwasher! i believe it is from the early 2000's and it's been a beast up until recently. now the door for the detergent won't open. i've googled and i've looked up parts but because of it's age i can find nothing. now it's leaking during washes (not alot but enough that a towel needs to be tucked under it just incase) so i think we can tough it out until black friday when i can get a killer deal - but i was hoping to get more out of it....so i'll be reading suggestions too!
@amanda,
Our dishwasher leaked for the first time about 2 months ago. DH and I thought for sure we needed to replace it, but he checked online, watched a few YouTube videos, and decided it might be the door gasket. He bought a new gasket (I don't know how much it cost, but I'm sure it wasn't much), and replaced the old with the new - works great, and no leaks.
Obviously, if you can't solve the detergent door issue, you might not want to bother with the gasket. 🙂
We just replaced our electric stove with a gas stove. It cost more because of paying a plumber to run a gas line, but it was worth it when our power was out for over a week because of Helene.
This was the route we took: our electric oven was doing the same thing as your gas oven. We called in a repair guy ($125) and he told us that based on the age of the stove (he believed to be 30 years old, we didn't realize it was that old), it wouldn't be worth repairing. It would cost $500 to repair mostly because the control panel was not replaceable but had to be sent to a place that repairs control panels. Then we lived with the stove for a few months until it completely stopped working. Haha.
It's hard to know what to do but if the rest of your stove is working great, you might decide to gamble with a repair call. It might be worth it in the end if it is a simple repair. If not, it adds to the cost of replacement. Even though we didn't have our oven repaired, I was glad to get a professional's advice because you hate to go to the larger expense of replacement if a simple repair is all it will take.
First thing would be look up that model and get an idea of how old it is. If it's not old, then follow the steps already given by commenters. Also, is there a scrapper in your area who might buy the old stove off of you if you replace it?
Talk to more than one repair company, if possible. Tell them the issue and see if they have some idea of what it is and if it is worth it to fix it. This works for me in my area (small town) but not every repairman is going to be willing to attempt to diagnose from a distance.
On older models, availability of parts MAY be an issue, but not always.
If the stove isn't that old, I might try to get it repaired. In the meantime you might try this: when my whole stove died a few years ago, I used my two-burner drop-in stovetop that I had originally installed in the counter to use as extra burners when canning and making big holiday meals. To replace the oven itself, I used a crock pot, my stove-top pressure cooker, my enameled iron cookpot and our grill to get by until we got a new stove. Now I have a toaster oven, so that would help, too.
If you use or want to use the oven a lot I would replace.
Donate stove with info about oven. Someone might really want it for an extra stovetop for outside/ cottage kitchen. You never know!
Good luck.
I had the same problem, 2 years ago, with a 10 year-old gas oven. The temp gauge was broken. Cost me $200 in Glyndon, MD, to repair. And they had the necessary parts, so they could fix it right away. To add to a frugal decision factor, it matters if they still carry the parts of an older model. That's why I had to replace my dishwasher in January. The motherboard part was no longer made.
I wanted to share that Consumer Reports has an online tool that advises whether to repair or replace an appliance:
https://www.consumerreports.org/mycr/benefits/repair-replace-landing/
You may need to be a member to use it, but many local libraries offer access through your account.
I hope this helps.
If it was me, I would replace it but that might be because I'm just looking for an excuse to get rid of our gas stove. I know many people prefer them, but I hate it!
1) If you haven't already, use the serial number to find out how old your stove is. Then see if it's still under any sort of warranty. If it is, that increases the likelihood that fixing it will be cost-effective.
2) Price a new oven, then compare that to the cost of a service call. If the service call is more than about 1/3 the price of a new oven, then replace it. My theory here is that service call + repair would be more than half the cost of a new oven.
3) If not, then look up the durability, reliability, and average repair cost your current stove. If it's low reliability and/or durabilty, or repair costs tend to be high, then I'd lean toward replacing it.
Good luck. My 22 year old range needs a repair that's about half the cost of a new one. I shall be buying a new one.
@WilliamB, I just had another thought: there are some fantastically good countertop ovens available. Depending on how you use your oven and your kitchen set-up, consider buying one of these instead.
One example is the Breville Smart Oven. I've had mine for about 10 years without any problems. I use it for 90% of my oven needs. I made sure to get one one that fits a 9x13 pan with handles.
https://www.breville.com/en-us/product/bov900?sku=BOV900BSSUSC
Research the brand and make, see common problems and how to troubleshoot them. But the solution must be fast and easy . Cook 2/3 hot meals a day and bake our breads, cakes and such multiple times a week . To me an oven must function and is a very important component of my kitchen. I would look for a great quality second hand one.
We purchased our gas stove 10 yrs ago from a friend. She turned a house into a hair salon and didn't want the stove. It worked great until last year and then had same problem as yours. My husband talked to a couple repair guys that told him what 2 things it could be. Heat sensor or oven ignitor. Turns out ours was oven ignitor. They also told him he could replace it himself. He watched a few YouTube videos and did it himself. ( he is 75 yrs old) Our oven has worked perfect since. It heats up and maintains temp.
If your husband is handy try replacing the igniter. We’ve replaced 2 on our 14 year old oven and it is still going strong.
I had a very similar problem with a five year old gas stove, and in our case the ignitor was the part needing replacement. My husband and I are pretty handy around the home, but working on gas appliances is outside of our comfort zone. The biggest challenge was finding a repair service that still works on gas; many in our area no longer do so as their most skilled service technicians retire. The total cost for the repair was a little less than half the cost of a replacement, and I was advised that with heavy use, an ignitor tends to have a lifespan of about five years. I'm planning ahead/budgeting for a future stove, and will most likely replace next time instead of having more repairs done.
Shoddy parts, shoddy workmanship, and planned obsolescence are infuriating!
There is a company in San Luis Obispo, California, called ifixit, which is dedicated to helping people repair broken things. Their tagline is "Never take broken for an answer". They sell and give away parts, videos, and manuals. Here is the link: https://www.ifixit.com
Good luck, Rebekah! There are a ton of great suggestions here about learning your model# and finding answers. I commend you for not automatically junking the stove.
My dad was an appliance repair man for nearly 40 years. With a gas range, what you are describing could be one of two things, or both. The thermostat may need replacing, or the gas jets may need cleaning/replacing. Both are very fixable, and probably for less than the price of a comparable range.
We purchased a used, but very nice, large stove from Habitat for Humanity. Without knowing anything about it. The price was so good that we figured even if we needed to sink repairs in it, we'd be fine. Turns out that it wouldn't hold a temp. I needed to repair/replace two things on it: 1) The thermostat, and 2) the control panel. We bought an $80 thermostat. Installed it ourselves. No big. The control panel isn't made anymore, so we had to find a control panel repair place, mail it off, get it back, etc. I think it was $140.
Knowing that parts could cost you $250... is it worth replacing the entire thing? Or would it be worth the repair? If the replacement is under $800, it might just be worth replacing the entire thing and getting something you like. Our stove was a $2200 one, so $250 was an easy "repair" decision for us.
Really great suggestions in the comments here! I did not know about several people's rule of thumb of service + repair equaling half of cost of new, to just replace it. That makes a lot of sense to me. Does anyone have any similar rules for cars? We had several back-to-back repairs on our truck this year that were about $5000 for three different issues in three months. Truck is worth maybe $10k. We ended up keeping it. We figured the repairs were separate issues (just unfortunately timed) so each was worth it.
This has actually happened to me a couple of times. Once we did purchase a new oven, but this last time my husband replaced the ignitor on the oven which has taken care of the problem for over a year now.
In my own language since I don't understand how ovens work -- when you cook large pots of things on the back burner (broth, soup...) it heats something up which messes something up in the oven. I've been pulling whatever is simmering on the back burner a bit forward, and that has helped.
Frugal means simple and plain and costing little. So the frugal choice is easy. I would just use a toaster oven and be quite happy.
But you should do what you want. There is no frugal competition to win or lose.
Do what you want. Things be crazy.
I know next to nothing about gas ovens, but I had a bad experience with an electric one.
It was fairly new and I had "inherited" it from the former homeowner when I bought my house. It had digital dials and stuff. I found out that digital = computers. Computers -- or at least the circuitry inside them --cannot stand it if they get too hot. So every time I turned on the burners or oven, my stove's digital innards were getting too hot and malfunctioning. I had to get that sucker fixed numerous times. When the homeowner warranty ran out, I was advised to buy a two-year warranty so my repairs would be free. "And what happens after the two years?" I asked the appliance salesman. His face turned beet red. He tried to stammer an answer but none of his high-pressure sales spiels worked. I guess he wanted me to buy a new digital freestanding stove every two years. Not gonna happen!
So I went to Rent-A-Center and asked to see models of free-standing ranges and ovens -- the bottom-of-the-line landlord specials. Bought one that had mechanical dials, nothing digital, and that oven served me well and lasted until I moved away. For all I know, it's probably still working 15 years later. There's a reason landlords like these basic models.
My advice is to shun any kind of stove, range, oven, or other appliance that has computerized parts. Not sure if you can find any non-digital appliances these days, but if so, get it. I'd go with a tried-and-true American brand that is not so high-tech. I would call appliance repairmen who have independent shops (ie, not in the business of selling appliances) and ask them which brands/models are the best. Your natural gas utility company may also provide free information about such things. Ditto, your county extension service. All these folks aren't trying to sell you anything. Like the old saying goes, never ask a barber if you need a haircut.
Oh, after reading the other comments, maybe you should seek the advice of a plumber since those guys fix natural gas lines and stuff, too.
It sounds like it is the igniter. I have had the same thing happen on 2 ovens now! i would look into whether it’s easy to change the ingitor yourself. My husband has done it and it was fairly simple, although is fairly handy.
@Caitlie, I’ll also note that we have a gas range too! And I’m in so cal as well Rebekah!
Had similar problem with our 3 year old oven. Husband got this ERP IG9998 Universal Gas Range Oven Igniter from Amazon. He put it in and it works! We even got an extra igniter for back up.
We were told, by an old timer, to use a tiny piece of sandpaper and clean the corrosion off the lead wire to the thermostat and that should do the trick. Good luck! I think I'm telling you this correctly:)
@Patti,
We have an old kenmore that a repairman replaced the motherboard. After 40 days it started doing to same thing(oven not heating properly). He told us the motherboard was already out of warranty! Oh my!! I watched him do exactly what you described with sandpaper and the stove was miraculously repaired. We call that 700$ bill(with our ex repairman) our stupid tax
I am in what a reference to as a Secondhand Wasteland. Folks here are frugal and handy, so by the time something hits Marketplace or a Buy Nothing group, it's well past it's prime.
That being said, I used to live outside a high-income metropolis and was able to get amazing deals (free to cheap) on everything from appliances to flooring to furniture. Once, we got a set of brand new Pottery Barn dressers because the people didn't like the shade of brown they were in the house. I'm not joking.
I've gotten "used," basically new appliances because someone didn't measure their counter depth or decided they needed to have all one brand of appliances so they matched.
Being in SoCal, you may be in a similar area, so I propose a 3rd option: see if you can find a new "used" stove.
As far as your old one: list on Facebook or bring to a used appliance place or mom n pop that refurbishes them.
As someone who struggled for literally years with this issue with our oven, I would replace it. We had service out multiple times and in the end nearly every part of the oven was replaced and it still would not hold a temp. The aggravation was next level and I wish we had just thrown in the towel after the first two repairs and started over.
Buy a new one and get what you want. You will never feel bad about it. When I did some work in my kitchen I replaced the sink, faucet and counter and I spent a good chunk to get what I always wanted. 15 years later and if I had to redo a kitchen I would get the same thing. I love it and I am glad I spent the money.
I had this exact same thing happen with my gas oven a few years ago, and the starter needed replacement - basically it wasn't igniting correctly so wasn't able to maintain an accurate temperature. We had the oven repaired for $150 total, most of which was the cost of the service rather than the part. We haven't had a problem with it since then, and it also kept the stove out of the landfill?
Well I think it is time for you to get a new gas stove so you can cook and be happy. I would not waste the money on parts to fix the old one, just invest this money into a new stove!!
I would search the model number online--see how old it is--then decide about replacing. I couldn't find that on my fridge last year--so I had a service person come out from Angi's list--and got an honest opinion that my fridge was too old to be worth repairing. I was able to then get a new one--with a small warranty--and I could get a smaller one because I didn't need the one that came with my place.
I had the EXACT same issue with mt LG. They came out and "repaired" it 6 times in 5.years (under warranty). When the warranty expired, the next time it refused to stay at temp we just replaced it. Should have done so sooner. The stress of never knowing if I could cook or not was more than I realized at the time.
I wonder if the GE customer service number might be if some help?
Maybe they can have you check a few basic things to help troubleshoot the issue?
Hopefully the original owner registered the appliance when it was purchased. That’s always helpful. They can also tell from the serial number the year it was manufactured. Perhaps that will help you make sone decisions about repair versus replace.
Replace it. The heating element in our oven went out (been about five years ago or so). The cost of the new element was 1/2 to 2/3 the cost of the new one we purchased. Service call/installation would have added to the bill. We purchased the new stove from the appliance store we used at the time. They made the service call and that cost was deducted from the purchase price of the new stove.
We did buy a nicer stove - oven holds two standard cookie sheets on a rack. And this one has a self cleaning oven. Better half is good about no "overflow" but we've used it a couple of times. Keep warm option on the new stove is nice, we did not have that on the old one.
Stove and refrigerator are on my "list" to replace before I retire. Most definitely the refrigerator. New appliances also tend to be more energy efficient.
I don't know whether you should repair or replace, but if you do end up replacing, get an oven with a built in air fry feature. Every time we use it, we are so happy we got it because it's so much bigger than a standard air fryer.
Bite the bullet and buy a new one
I am currently spending $4,000 on a 2003 car because it belonged to my Mom who is dead and I am emotionally attached. Otherwise I would have trashed it
I’m in Texas. Recently my GE oven just stopped working. (The stovetop burners worked fine.) the stove is five years old. We called a repairman, who diagnosed the problem as a bad igniter. He quoted $300 to replace it. My husband said he’d let him know if we decided to have him replace it. ( he wanted to see if someone would do it for less). We looked on Amazon and found the part for $25, called to ask if they would install it for us and they said yes and for only $100! It literally took the man 10 minutes to replace the teeny tiny part.
I would try an appliance repair first. You can ask the cost of a service call up front so you know what you are getting into. We bought a new house a few years ago with a gas range already in it. I didn't recognize the brand at all and the burners didn't work. I was going to toss it (terrible, I know) but my realtor encouraged me to at least get a repair guy to come out and look at it. I live in a large metropolitan area of 2M+ people so I had several appliance repair services to choose from. I used Yelp to make my pick based on reviews. I picked a small business owner and had a guy show up in a rickety mini van with no business name on it (I was convinced was going to kidnap me). He ended up being the nicest guy and told me the only thing that was wrong with my $5K!!!!! blue star oven was that the burners needed to be cleaned. So for $75, the service call prevented me from throwing out a $5K stove. I have since used the same appliance repair service for several other appliance repairs.
My short answer is if you can get an appliance repair service call for $75 to $125, it may be worth at least getting an opinion on repair costs. Best of luck to you!!
I had the same problem with my gas oven a few months ago. It was a bad igniter. Looked at my oven's model number and ordered a new one off Amazon for approx $25. My son installed it, with no previous experience with the help of a You-tube video and my oven works as good as new!
Replace it. I just spent $600 on mine and should have started over.
We have this exact thing happening with our oven. We had a repair service come and test it out and troubleshoot the problem. There is a part that needs replaced ( I forget what it was called ) and when he looked it up online, the price of the part is as almost much as a new one. He advised us to buy a new one, and in fact he told us he would not repair that one even if we wanted to go that route.