ninesheds Posted May 11, 2022 Share Posted May 11, 2022 i have dometic 2 burner hob dating from 2016. One of the gas control valves will not turn. Dometic are saying a replacement gas control valve is no longer available for this model and i have tried lots of parts suppliers and i can't find any old stock. Before I give in and order a replacement hob - has anyone had a a similar problem or any suggestions for how I might be able fix it. I have tried lubricating oil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted May 11, 2022 Share Posted May 11, 2022 Hard to know how best to address this issue without removing the gas valve from the hob and investigating why the valve's knob will no longer turn. Dometic has produced several designs of 2-burner hob, including hob/sink combination units. With some of these units, removal of a gas valve might (in principle at least) be relatively straightforward. With others (example on following link) the task will be more challenging. https://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/gas-knob-leaking-on-dometic-hob/59250/ Have you tried these people? https://www.norfolkmarine.co.uk/smev-dometic-gas-control-valve-fits-most-hobs-1 (You'll need to identify the hob's reference number and which of the two valves has the problem.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted May 11, 2022 Share Posted May 11, 2022 Not sure offhand if our hob is Smev or Dometic, sometimes have trouble turning a knob, I use brute force turning it using grill handle as a lever! Using 'lubricating oil' can be a toss up as to if it makes the problem worse by swelling the seals, if all else fails I would try a silicon base lub, but that's no guarantee of working. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted May 11, 2022 Share Posted May 11, 2022 As you'll see from this link https://www.norfolkmarine.co.uk/smev_dometic Dometic has 'owned' the SMEV brand-name since 2007. As will be apparent from the results of this GOOGLE-search https://tinyurl.com/2t46ccew Dometic-SMEV 2-burner hobs come in many flavours and the gas control valves are not standardised. I'm doubtful that it's practicable to dribble/inject lubricant into the valve from above or below the hob with the valve in situ and (as you've advised) even if lubricant does enter the valve, using an unsuitable lubricant could just make matters worse. (I'd have tried WD-40 Dry PTFE spay myself, but I wouldn't have had much optimism for its effectiveness.) My Herald Templar motorhome (owned by me from 2000 t0 2004) had a SMEV hob/grill and the grill's burner unit fell apart. I contacted the UK SMEV importer who contacted the SMEV factory in Italy. A replacement burner was eventually sent to me (wrong part), then another burner unit (wrong part again) and I finally had the original burner welded up locally. Perhaps things got more efficient after Dometic took control... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted May 11, 2022 Share Posted May 11, 2022 Daft question but do you not have to push the knob in before it can be turned? Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted May 11, 2022 Share Posted May 11, 2022 Yes indeed, that's the standard method -- push knob then turn it. This link is to a Dometic hob-related document https://www.dometic.com/assets/26/50/installation_and_operating_manual_libr34rb_1_62650.pdf and Pages 39 and 40 advise "To generate the flame, fully press down the control knob ...and turn it to the large flame position". However, Simon's definitely not a motorcaravanning 'newbie' and I'm guessing that he's owned his present motorhome for at least 6 years. (Still might be worth trying pushing the knob REALLY firmly downwards before turning it, just in case that has a miraculous effect.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ninesheds Posted May 11, 2022 Author Share Posted May 11, 2022 Thanks to everyone for the responses. I had previously tried WD40 as well as lubricating oil. I have been pushing the button in as hard as possible and turning with pliers but it was completely stuck. Anyway - I saw a suggestion. on another site of trying boiling water. I poured boiling water into the recess for the two knobs. After turning with pliers it moved a bit and I was able to move it backwards forwards and gradually free it competely. The suggestion on the other bulletin board (otherwise not as good as this one of course!) was that it could be caused by over liberal use of kitchen cleaning fluid. Very happy to have avoided the cost of a new hob. Thanks for the suggestions Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted May 12, 2022 Share Posted May 12, 2022 I notice that the boiling-water ploy was suggested on the MHFun forum in 2021 https://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/forum/threads/dometic-gas-hob-control-stuck.242905/ and the problem was also discussed there in 2018 https://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/forum/threads/knob-stuck.181775/ Boiling water is often recommended for helping to unscrew tight jar lids https://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/11-ways-to-remove-jar-lids/ but I've not come across it being used to free up a gas knob before. To quote Elizabeth Gilbert "You take whatever works from wherever you can find it, and you keep moving towards the light." (I don't think she was referring to using boiling water to free up a stuck gas knob, but the advice seems to fit pretty well...) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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