Viking appliance repair, Denver

Burner sparks over and over but never catches

Usually the igniter electrode or its lead rather than the spark module — a cracked ceramic keeps arcing to the burner base without ever lighting the gas.

Flames tip yellow and soot the bottom of the pans

An air-to-gas mixture problem. At this elevation it is most often sea-level orifices left in at installation, or air shutters closed up with grease.

Simmer will not hold a low flame without going out

The low setting is sitting under the burner’s stable range: partly blocked ports, a drifting valve, or manifold pressure set low.

Knob turns freely but no gas reaches the burner

A seized or stripped valve stem behind that one knob. Single valves are replaceable — the whole manifold rarely needs to be.

Fresh food section drifting warm while the freezer stays hard-frozen

Air is not moving between the compartments: evaporator fan, an iced duct, or a damper stuck shut. A failed sealed system would lose both sides at once.

Frost creeping over everything in the freezer drawer

Room air getting in and condensing — a torn gasket, a drawer sitting out of square, or a defrost circuit that never clears the coil.

Ice maker making nothing, or hollow and undersized cubes

Nothing at all points at harvest; hollow cubes point at fill volume — filter, inlet valve, or a fill tube narrowed by mineral scale.

Water beading along the door frame and the centre divider

The mullion heater that keeps that surface above dew point. In a house running evaporative cooling it shows up first and worst.

Cavity runs hotter or cooler than the temperature you set

Sensor drift or a calibration offset. The cavity should be measured through a full cycle before anyone talks about a control board.

Gas oven needs several attempts before it lights

A tired glow igniter drawing too little current to open the safety valve. It still glows, which is exactly what makes it look innocent.

Convection moves air with no heat behind it

The rear element has gone open circuit while the fan carries on. Bake usually still works, and that contrast is the giveaway.

Door stays locked shut after a clean cycle

A latch motor stalled on its cam, or a thermal switch still reading hot. Forcing the door bends the latch and adds a part to the bill.

Machine fills and hums but never actually washes

The circulation pump is turning against a jam or has lost its impeller. Glass fragments and grit are the usual culprits.

White scale film left on glassware every load

Mineral scale across the heater and the spray-arm holes, sometimes with a rinse-aid line that quietly stopped dosing.

Cycle stretches for hours, or stops before it finishes

A thermistor reading low leaves the machine waiting on water it already heated. A restricted drain produces the same stall from the other end.

Damp showing up under the toe kick

Check fittings before seals. The fill hose, the valve body and the pump gaskets all leak long before a door gasket does.