Older Magic Chef oven won't stay stay fully lit after being ignited

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1victorianfarmhouse

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I have an older Magic Chef oven, Model 3468XTW. The oven and stove generally work fine, but now the oven has developed an issue where in the Bake setting, the igniter will ignite the gas, and the entire tube will emit flame as it's supposed to, then it will die out to just the igniter flame. I replaced the igniter with a new one, and it makes no difference; after the initial igniting on the Bake setting, the flame will still shrink back to the igniter. The Broil option works fine on the top of the oven. Any comments are greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

Vince
 
I am not sure I understand your question. Do you have an igniter that glows to light the gas, or do you have a pilot flame.

My confusion is when you say "igniter flame"

Do you have a flame sensor? Typically that would be a thin piece of metal that projects into the flame and generates a small current that keeps the gas valve open. If you have one, you can sometimes clean it by lightly rubbing it with sandpaper.

You may want to go to repairclinic.com and enter your model number. They have diagnostic steps to take.
 
Jeff, thanks for the reply! I have an igniter that glows to light the gas for the lower part of the oven (Bake). The igniter initially lights the flame at the back of the oven where the igniter is, and within a few seconds the flame travels toward the front of the oven. Then in another few seconds, the flame retreats back to the igniter, and the oven doesn't get hot enough to really cook anything. I've tried to chat with a tech on repairclinic, but he disappeared.
 
The chat people at repair clinic are really just parts sales people, for the most part. They used to have a "Repair Guru" who you could email, but they no longer have that.

Have you put your model number in, and then looked through the videos that come up? I am not an expert, but I do repairs at my rental properties, and it sounds to me like there is an issue with your gas valve. Does the same thing happen when you broil rather than bake?
 
nealtw said:
It likely has a thermocouple that indicates heat and if it not reading the heat, it shuts the gas off.
Click to expand...
Neal - that and/or a flame sensor occurred to me also. However, if that were the issue, wouldn't they cause the gas valve to close and thereby shut the flame down entirely? The OP stated that the flame retreats, but stays lit.
 
Last edited:
Hey, thanks, guys! I did get a reply from the chat guy, but it opened in a window that was behind the other windows so I didn't get to see it right away. The Broil function works fine, and he also mentioned it being a possible problem with the gas supply. I have attached a picture of the flame when it is full, a few seconds later the blue flame will recede back towards the igniter at the back of the picture. The hottest the oven will get in the Bake format is about 150, even if it's set at 350.
 

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    Magic Chef Gas.jpg
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Agaun, not an expert, but, if the broil function works normally, that would seem to rule out a problem with the gas valve.

Just as a test, try running the bake function at its highest temperature setting and see if it still does the same thing. I am beginning to suspect a problem with your thermostat.
 
Thanks, Jeff. I'll try that tomorrow and see how hot it gets. I did try it a couple of times with the new igniter and both times Bake never got above 150 even with the dial at 350.
 
There’s no flame sensor with that setup. Is that igniter the same part #? Not sure if there are different values between dryer, furnace and oven/broiler igniters but if it doesn’t produce enough mAmps it may not open the valve? Do you smell gas? Does the burner valve open and light within 30-60 seconds? You can try swapping igniters with the broiler to check also and it doesn’t cost you anything. Be careful not to touch the ceramic portion that glows.
 
Been meaning to find this thread and reply to maxdad's questions. But just tonight another problem raised it's head, and it's similar. So now I'm really anxious to track it down and fix it. Before, the lower gas tube (Bake) would ignite and and the flame would spread down the tube like it's supposed to after a few seconds. But, within a minute, the flame fades back to just the igniter and stays that way.

Now, the upper gas tube (Broil) is having the same exact problem.

So, does that narrow down the possible components that may be malfunctioning?

Thanks!
 
Thanks! Sorry to not reply sooner. The range is the only appliance having any issues with irregular gas supply. The burners on top work just fine. Something is causing the gas supply after the igniters start and the flame expands to shut off on an irregular basis, usually within a minute or so. This started originally with the lower burner (bake), but has now affected the upper burner (broil).
 
Ahh, for the love of a microwave....it's been a long time since I tried to do anything else on this oven. Recently, I got to talking with a retired appliance guy about how I had an oven that wouldn't heat up like it's supposed to. He asked if I had replaced the igniter and I told him it still has the problem even with a new igniter installed. Sometimes it will ignite but not get very warm, other times it won't even ignite. He then did some checking on his own and had me check the clock. The clock works intermittently, which indicates there is a problem within the clock assembly itself, as that is where the power for the igniter comes from. Apparently the clock is the "brains" of this oven. So, after some checking, it appears that a replacement clock isn't that easy to find. It is basically a Magic Chef oven, model 3468xtw. Problem is, the clock is also older and he isn't able to take it apart, and install a replacement. And new burner or clock clock isn't easy, either. I've tried Sears Parts Direct, but they weren't able to help with finding the correct parts. So, anybody got any great ideas short of buying a cheap new oven?

Thanks, Vince
 
There seems to be no such thing as a CHEAP new oven these days. I'm astounded at the price tags hanging off those things. However, MANY of the newer microwave ovens also include a CONVECTION OVEN for actual HEAT cooking. I have one in my motorhome and it seemed to work quite well, the ONE time we used it several years ago. I imagine you could find one like that that would come close to fitting in the space that your current oven occupies.
Steve
 
Thanks, Steve. I already have two microwaves in the house. Sadly, they are far too small to cook a turkey or roast in. Or a full size pizza. I too am amazed at the prices they are charging for a new oven that doesn't seem as well made as the older ones. That is why I would rather try to find the parts needed (or have the original ones repaired) to fix the existing oven which I've always kept nice and clean.
 
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