"My oven won't heat" covers a wide range of actual problems, and the fix looks pretty different depending on whether you have a gas or electric oven. Here's how we narrow it down on a service call.
Electric ovens: check the bake element first
On electric ovens, a visibly warped, blistered, or arcing bake element is the most common cause of a no-heat complaint, and it's usually easy to confirm — if the element doesn't glow orange within a minute or two of starting a bake cycle, it's likely failed. The broil element can fail independently, so an oven that bakes but won't broil (or vice versa) usually points to just one of the two elements.
Gas ovens: the igniter is the usual suspect
On gas ovens, a weak or failed igniter is the most common no-heat cause. The igniter has to draw enough current to open the gas safety valve before the burner will light — if it's weakening, you may notice the igniter glowing for a long time before (or without) the burner ever catching. A clicking sound with no flame usually points to the igniter or the safety valve rather than a gas supply issue.
When the oven heats, but not accurately
If the oven does heat but food consistently comes out under- or over-cooked at the correct setting, that's usually a drifting temperature sensor or thermostat rather than a full heating failure. We verify this with an independent probe thermometer against the display rather than trusting the oven's own reading.
Control board and door lock faults
Self-clean cycles rely on a door lock motor communicating correctly with the control board. When that communication fails, ovens can throw error codes, refuse to start a bake cycle, or in some cases get stuck in a locked state. This is a control-level fault rather than a heating-element problem, even though the symptom ("oven won't heat") can look the same from the outside.
- If you smell gas near the oven, don't attempt to light it — ventilate the area and call for service.
- Note whether bake, broil, or both have stopped working — it narrows the diagnosis significantly.
- Avoid running self-clean again if the door seems slow to unlock afterward.
- Have your model number ready; bake and broil elements are model-specific parts.