How long should a hot surface ignitor last?

[wayner]

My heater is a Jandy Lite2 (which I believe is actually made by Laars) that is about 10 years old. I have had to replace the hot surface ignitor several times - I replaced it pretty much exactly two years ago and I had to replace it again last weekend - it broke so that the long U is no longer connected.

How long should these last? Is two years about right? Is there anything I can do to prolong the life? The ignitor stays in the heater over the winter (I am in Canada) when the pool is shut, but I don't imagine that is nearly as much wear on the ignitor as being exposed to an open flame.

I would keep a spare one on hand but I am not sure if that makes sense if the entire heater might have to be replaced in a couple of years.

 

[Ted527]

Google the Honeywell Glowfly ignitor. It is a 120v universl replacement ignitor. We used them alot as replacement ignitors in furnaces and i never saw one go bad.

 

[wayner]

Thanks - have you used these in Jandy/Laars pool heaters as well? I believe with the Jandy that the Ignitor acts as a flame/heat sensor. Presumably the Honeywell can do that as well?

 

[Ted527]

Did HVAC for a living, never worked on a pool heater.
Figure for $28 it's worth a shot.

 

[wayner]

True - the Jandy cost me about $140 Canadian. The Honeywell well is sold at Amazon from a range of $31 to $210

The shape of the Honeywell one makes more sense like this:


The Jandy one looks like this and the loop tends to break in my experience:



You would have to crimp or solder connectors onto the Honeywell but I am willing to do that to save about $100.

I wish my system just had a pilot light as that would be much easier to deal with.

 

[danpik]

Hot surface igniters are a wear item and will have to be replaced occasionally. In the HVAC trade, I only do the heating side, I see igniters lasting from several months to several years. Most of this is based on the type of igniter and the frequency it is cycled. It is the constant heat cycling of these that eventually leads to failure. I keep several on hand as in about 3 months I will be getting calls for no heat from customers.

When installing these it is critical that you do not touch the ceramic element. Any oils, skin cells, etc will cause a hot spot on the element which will burn them out quicker. Obviously, design and size of the elements plays a large role in the life of these. Larger, more robust elements handle the heat cycling better.
Dan

 

[wayner]

My pool heater does tend to cycle. It will turn on, get to the target temp and then shut off. Often it will kick back on 5-10 minutes later. There should be some sort of improvement into the logic so that it heats up to target temp +1 or something to reduce cycling.

 

[Ted527]

If that honeywell will work with your control it should last a long time.
You could beat that ignitor against a table and not harm it.
The old style you have now is very fragile and prone to cracking.

 

[wayner]

The old style you have now is very fragile and prone to cracking.

That's exactly what I was thinking. Although the style may be old this is still a current part for the heater.

 

[Ted527]

Keeps the sale of replacement parts up.