Troubleshooting Weak, Strong, or Uneven Gas Cooktop Flames

The flames on your gas cooktop should be blue, strong, and perfectly even. If even one of those things fails to be true about your gas stove, then you have a problem. However, aside from no flames at all, having an uneven flame is a common issue that can be caused by a number of different problems. The good news in all this is that it doesn’t always mean that your stove needs a repair, but rather might just need a readjustment in order to get back to working order.

No matter what sort of flame problem you have, we have the solution to it. However, you have to be able to note the symptoms in order to accurately diagnose your unique problem and get it fixed up fast.

The Flame is Higher on One Side

If one side of your burner is wildly too high and the other side looks very weak, it is an indicator of an improperly positioned burner cap. When you bump the burner or have taken off the cap to clean your stove, it can lead to a misaligned burner cap. What essentially happens is that the cap sits up higher on one side, letting out more gas and covers the burner holes on the other side, letting out less gas. This leads to uneven flames.

The fix is very easy and requires no repair. You simply need to turn off the burner and let it cool. Once that is done, you need to pick up the burner cap and realign it. It should sit firmly on the burner and should be perfectly level. If it wobbles or feels uneven, you need to continue to reposition it until you find the perfect fit. You may also need to check under the burner cap to see if there is any obstruction that is preventing it from sitting correctly.

The Flame is Missing in Some Spots

If you look at your burner and notice that there are gaps in your flame, what most likely is happening is that the burner holes are blocked. Once the gas is ignited on your cooktop, the flame is spread by the burner cap so that it comes out all the small holes in the burner head. Over time, food particles can become lodged in these holes. This is also likely if you have just cleaned around the burners. Pushing debris around with a sponge can easily see it pushed into burner holes.

What you need to do is let the burner cool down and clean the burner head slots. You can do this with a toothbrush, a piece of wire, or even a pin. You just want to get a thin object in there to essentially floss the debris out of those burner holes. You should, however, choose a sturdy object. Using something like a toothpick is not recommended as the tips can break off and become lodged in those holes.

The Flame is Too High

If you just had a new gas cooktop installed and the flame is crazy high, you may want to check to see if the installer connected your natural gas using the stove (as all models come fit for natural gas connection) to use liquid propane. LP comes at a higher pressure and your stove needs to be converted to use it. If not converted, the high pressure will send out huge flames.

If you do not have a new stove, far more likely is that your problem lies with the adjustment of the knobs. For example, if you can’t get your stove to go to a low enough setting in order to simmer food rather than boil and scorch it, you can adjust how strong the flames are via the knobs.

Start by turning the gas connection off to your stove for safety. As you will be adjusting the knobs, this has the potential to open a burner’s gas connection, and you don’t want any seeping into your home. Once done, you can pull the control knobs off the stove. You may want to consult your owner’s manual to discern how to make an adjustment for your specific stove model. Some models allow you to turn the actual knob connections while others have screws that need to be turned. Typically clockwise turns will adjust how much gas the flame gets on each setting, allowing you to manually lower how strong a flame gets.

The Flame is Too Weak

If you used the control knob adjustment above and it resulted in weak flames, then you simply need to reverse the process to fix it. However, more commonly, weak flames on a gas cooktop is not an issue with the control knobs. Instead, the burners are not getting enough gas to create accurately sized flames.

If there are no blockages in the burner head and the cap is sat evenly, it is mostly like a problem with the regulator in your stove that controls gas pressure. This will require replacement. It is located under your stove to where the gas line comes into the appliance. You will strongly want to consider having a professional make this repair as it deals directly with the gas line to the burner and you need to make sure it is properly sealed so no gas leaks out.

The Flame is Yellow

The final issue that can occur with the flame on your gas stove is that the flame will be yellow instead of blue. Usually, this is a problem that can be solved with cleaning. A blue flame on your stove means that it is just gas-producing it. However, when food or other debris burn up in a gas flame, it changes the color to yellow, orange, or red. Only blue is the color you want to see. Other colors mean that you will most likely need to let your burner cool down and extensively clean it. Furthermore, you want to make sure any cleaning products are rinsed away as well since this can cause the same issue.