State Select Igniter Not Working
The Short Answer: A State Select that will not light is usually a hot-surface igniter that never glows, a control in lockout, or no 120 volts to the valve — not a rotten tank. Count the LED. One trial through the view port. Spark/glow with no flame is gas, not the igniter. Smell gas, leave. Do not keep cycling a dark burner.
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Search Intent & The Real Problem
The tank is cold. You expected a standing pilot and a red piezo. Most State Select gas tanks (GS6 and cousins, State / A.O. Smith FVIR) use an electronic control and a hot-surface igniter that glows orange, then the gas valve opens. Some older Selects still have a piezo pilot. Totally cold with no ignition attempt is this page. Tank-wide no-heat (electric too, mixing valve, dip tube) is State Select no hot water. Generic dark burner: burner not lighting.
What other guides get wrong
They sell a $12 thermocouple for a tank that has none. They treat a piezo click as a DSI board. They tell you to sand a 120-volt HSI with the gas on. And they skip the LED: six flashes on many State / A.O. Smith stickers is the igniter circuit. Guessing “bad gas valve” from an Amazon title is how you buy a $250 control for a cracked glow bar.
Step-by-Step Troubleshooting
Step 1: Prove which igniter you have
| What is on the tank | Spark / glow comes from | This page? |
|---|---|---|
| Electronic gas control, no standing pilot, view-port glow then flame | 120 V hot-surface igniter | Yes — HSI |
| Standing pilot, red/black push-button | Piezo crystal | Yes, but see piezo |
| Auto tick at the burner, RV cabinet | DSI board | No — Suburban gas |
| Status LED, “do not light with a match” | Control + HSI or spark module | Yes |
- What to look for: Jacket card. Rating plate GS vs ES (ES is electric — no igniter). Phone photo of the gas-control sticker.
- Required tools: Flashlight.
Step 2: Count the LED before you blame the ceramic
- What to look for: On many State / A.O. Smith / American electronic controls (verify your door sticker): 1 flash = normal; 4 = TCO/ECO open; 6 = igniter / HSI circuit; 7 = gas-valve circuit; 8 = flame sense; 0 = no 120 V to the control. One slow green blink with a hot tank is not an igniter fault — flashing green.
- Required tools: Watch, phone photo of the LED before you kill power.
No 120 V at the outlet or a tripped TCO will fake a dead igniter. Power-vent Selects also need the blower to prove — a dead blower is blower not working; do not fire the burner without it (CO).
Step 3: One look through the port — glow, spark, or dark
- What to look for: Cover on. One heat call (or follow the lighting card). HSI: orange glow for several seconds, then gas, then flame. No glow = open HSI, unplugged harness, control not sending 120 V. Glow, no flame = cock closed, empty LP, valve, or air after a relight. Brief flame, then lockout = flame sense, not the igniter. A bang is delayed ignition — shut it down.
- Required tools: Ears and eyes. One trial. Do not pull the FVIR burner door to “see better” if you cannot reseal it.
HSI bars crack. A gray hairline through the silicon nitride/carbide is a failed part. Do not ohm it live. A licensed tech will prove 120 V at the connector with the sequence, then replace the bar — not the whole valve — if voltage is there.
Step 4: Gas path without opening the pipe
- What to look for: Appliance shutoff parallel to the pipe. Other gas appliances lighting. LP bottles not empty; a frosted first-stage regulator on a 20°F morning will starve a tankless and a tank HSI sequence. 1/2” flex on a power-vent Select is less of a starvation story than a 199k tankless, but a closed cock is still a closed cock.
- Required tools: Eyes. No fittings wrenches.
Manifold pressure is licensed (NG often ~3.5–7 in. w.c. / LP ~10–11 in. w.c. — confirm the rating plate). Spark or glow with no flame is not a second igniter.
Step 5: FVIR, ECO, and one reset — then stop
- What to look for: Lint-packed flame-arrestor screen under the tank (dryer in the same closet) that soots the chamber and kills sense. TCO/ECO 4-flash after rollout or overheat — never jumper. Water in the combustion chamber or a rust ring at the burner: the tank is dead; shut gas. One power cycle after the obvious cause. Same lockout on the next call is the end of DIY.
- Required tools: Flashlight at the base, gas off. No paperclip in the control.
When DIY Ends: Calling a Licensed Pro
Stop at gas odor, delayed-ignition bangs, an FVIR door you would have to pull, a melted harness, a 4-flash TCO, and any gas-valve work. You may photograph the LED, confirm the shutoff, and watch one glow/spark trial through the port. HSI replacement inside an FVIR chamber, manometer work, and control swaps are licensed. A cracked glow bar is a parts job. Ten retries is how you glaze the next one and flood the closet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why is my State Select igniter not working? A: Open or cracked hot-surface igniter, no 120 V to the control, a lockout LED (often 6-flash on the State / A.O. Smith sticker), or a standing-pilot piezo that never sparks. Glow/spark with no flame is gas, not the igniter.
Q: Can I replace a State Select hot-surface igniter myself? A: The bar is a part, but it lives in an FVIR combustion chamber. If you cannot reseal that door, hire a licensed plumber. Do not jumper it. Do not keep cycling a dark burner.
Q: The igniter glows but the burner never lights. Is the igniter bad? A: No. Glow proved the igniter. Confirm the shutoff and stop — that is gas, the valve, or a licensed purge after a relight. Do not crack the union.