Nothing ruins dinner plans faster than turning on the oven and realizing it never gets hot. In Woodbridge, Dumfries, and Montclair homes we see this problem daily with gas and electric ranges from Bosch, GE, Whirlpool, Samsung, Frigidaire, and every other major brand.
At All Year Appliance & HVAC Services, these are the exact steps our technicians follow to find the problem quickly and safely. Follow them in order and you will solve many issues without a service call.
Step 1 – Verify Power or Gas Supply First
Electric ovens
- Check that the oven clock/display is on. If completely blank, verify breakers (most ovens use a double 240 V breaker—both must be fully ON).
- Reset the breaker by turning fully OFF then ON once.
Gas ovens
- Confirm other gas appliances (stove top, water heater) are working.
- If you smell gas at any point, turn off the gas valve immediately and call from another location.
Step 2 – Check the Obvious Settings
- Make sure the control is set to BAKE (not BROIL or CLEAN).
- Verify the temperature knob or digital setting is above 350 °F.
- Cancel and clear any active Timer or Delayed-Start settings.
- If the door was recently slammed or a self-clean cycle was run, the door lock may still be engaged—wait 30–60 minutes or manually release the lock.
Step 3 – Electric Oven: Test the Heating Elements for Glow
- Set to BAKE at 400 °F.
- Open the door after 60 seconds and look at the bottom element (and top broil element if visible).
- Normal: bottom element should glow bright orange-red within 30–45 seconds.
- Problem: no glow at all → bad bake element or wiring.
- Problem: only top broil element glows → failed bake relay on control board.
Step 4 – Gas Oven: Listen and Watch for Ignition
- Set to BAKE at 350 °F.
- Within 30–60 seconds you should hear a loud click followed by the whoosh of the gas igniter glowing orange and the burner lighting.
- Normal: flame spreads evenly across the burner bar.
- Igniter glows but no flame after 90 seconds → weak hot-surface igniter (most common failure).
- No glow or clicks → bad spark module or glow-bar igniter.
Step 5 – Check the Temperature Sensor
The long metal probe inside the oven (usually upper rear wall) measures temperature.
- If the display shows strange codes (F1, F2, F3, E0, etc.) or the oven overheats/shuts off early, the sensor is usually the cause.
- A quick test: the sensor should read roughly 1,080–1,100 ohms at room temperature (technicians carry the chart).
Step 6 – Inspect Hidden Thermal Fuses and Safety Thermostats
Most ovens have non-resettable thermal fuses that blow during overheating (common after self-clean cycles). These are hidden behind the rear panel and require removal of the oven to test.
Step 7 – Control Board and Relay Issues (Electric Ovens)
If elements glow for a few seconds then shut off, or the oven never reaches temperature even though elements stay on, the electronic control board or relay has failed. This is increasingly common in 5–12-year-old ovens.
When to Stop DIY and Call a Professional
Call immediately if you notice:
- Burning plastic smell
- Sparks or smoke
- Gas odor
- Error codes that return after power reset
- Broken or cracked bake element
We carry 95 % of common oven parts on our vans for same-day repair in Woodbridge, Dumfries, Lake Ridge, Montclair, and all Northern Virginia.
Contact All Year Appliance & HVAC Services at 703-955-4135 any time—24 hours a day, 7 days a week—for fast, accurate diagnosis and repair.
All Year Appliance & HVAC Services Your trusted local experts for oven and appliance repair across Northern Virginia.