We ran out of propane a few days ago... tank is filled and all other appliances work fine. I have not been able to get the pilot on the hot water heater to light. I tried cleaning it off, and holding down the pilot knob in case there was air in the line. It won't light. There is a small crack in the pilot knob.. :confused: . Could that be causing an issue? Any suggestions?

Is propane even coming out?

Take a dish of very soapy water... using a brush or even your finger tip... cover the pilot hole so it forms a bubble (dont soak it but pretend you wer going to blow a bubble with it)

Does it blow a bubble? Do the same around the knob.. make sure its not leaking there.

(I am not an expert at this stuff, but it might help to at least let you know that some sort of air/gas is flowing)



(side note: this trick works well when trying to find the leak in a tire, or blow up toy :) )

If you ran your tank completely dry you will have soot build up on and in the pilot orifice. You will have to remove the pilot assembly to get it clean.