Replacing old an old stove/heater with new unit

[Max Denning]

Hey all, just picked up a 3 family in Worcester, Massachusetts with some old appliances. The tenants are currently having issues with their old Caloric combo gas range/heater. It looks very similar to this style oven. Essentially none of the igniters are working on the stove top. I'd rather replace it than find someone willing to work on these things, they just seem like a headache.

My question is, can I just split the two apart by buying a new natural gas oven and putting something like this beside it? Anyone aware of any MA laws against doing something like this? Thanks!

[Mike Duran]

Hi @Max Denning,

     Those old stoves last forever and you could run into huge costs changing it for another system. As far as I know you cannot simply install a new style heater next to your new stove, I believe these old stoves and parlor heaters we see in Worcester are a grandfathered thing. You may end up needing to do a new HVAC system if you get rid of it. If you are sure you want to replace it I would suggest trying to find a decent refurbished or used gas on gas heat stove somewhere local(like on craigslist) and use taht, but at that point your probably better off fixing what you have. I have used ebay parts on the gas heat stoves in some of my rental units and they work fine. 

To address your specific issue what I have seen is these stoves have a standing pilot that is always lit, but the orifice the pilot is fed through becomes dirty or clogged over time, cleaning this out with the help of a pin or needle and relighting it can help. One the burners themselves there is usually a series of holes that direct the gas into a tube that travels to the pilot, cleaning those out well as well as cleaning out all the slits/holes on the burner itself and the supply lines/tubes should fix your problem. In essence just clean out everything thats caked on and could obstruct the gas flow. This type of work does not require someone skilled if you do not want to do it yourself, it shouldn't be too hard to find someone willing to do it in Worcester.