An electric stove burner may need replacing if it is no longer heating properly, is visibly damaged, or a coil/element is broken. Replacing just the burner itself is often much cheaper and easier than replacing the whole cooktop.
This guide covers:
- Essential safety warnings
- The tools/materials needed
- How to remove the old electric stove burner
- Installing the new burner
- Testing and troubleshooting
Follow these steps properly and you can save money by fixing this issue on your own rather than calling an appliance repair technician.
Before starting, ensure you:
- Know how to safely turn OFF the electrical supply to the stove
- Have the owner’s manual to refer to the proper removal procedure for your model
- Know local regulations for home electrical work
Safety Warnings
When dealing with any electrical appliance repair, safety should be your top priority.
Key precautions include:
- Turn off power supply at the circuit breaker before starting
- Verify power is off by checking with a non-contact voltage tester
- Allow heating elements time to cool completely before handling
- Take care to avoid injury from sharp metal edges
Failure to disconnect the power first can result in severe electric shock, burns, or even death.
Working Around a Hot Stove
If the burners have recently been in use, allow at least one hour for cooling before starting this repair.
Touching areas near heating elements before they’ve cooled can cause serious burns.
What You’ll Need
Gather the following tools/materials before getting started:
Tools:
- Protective work gloves
- Safety goggles
- Phillips and flathead screwdrivers
- Needle nose pliers
- Wire cutters/strippers
- Multimeter (to test element continuity)
- Non-contact voltage tester (to confirm power is off)
Replacement parts/materials:
- New burner element/coil
- Wire nuts
- Electrical tape
- Owner’s manual
Other essentials:
- A large work area to place removed stove parts
- Access to the electrical circuit breaker
Optional helpful items:
- Headlamp or work light
- Magnetic parts tray (to prevent losing small screws/parts)
Purchase an OEM spec replacement burner made specifically for your electric stove’s make and model. Generic or universal elements may not fit correctly.
How to Remove the Old Electric Stove Burner
With safety gear on and power disconnected, you’re ready to remove the faulty stove burner:
Now the old electric stove burner should be fully detached. Thoroughly clean the empty burner opening if needed using isopropyl alcohol, mild soap, and water.
Check that any insulation/gasket surrounding the opening is still intact. If damaged, contact the manufacturer to obtain a proper replacement gasket before reassembling.
Installing New Electric Stove Burner
You’ll follow basically the reverse set of steps to install a new electric range burner:
The new burner is now physically installed, but DO NOT reconnect stove power yet. Further electrical checks should be performed first.
Electrical Safety Checks
Before turning the power back on and testing operation, verify these key electrical safety points:
1. Check wire connections
- Inspect all wire splice points between the range and burner for secure connections with no exposed wire. Loops should be neatly tucked away.
2. Confirm no stray strands or debris
- Scan the burner socket again for any small stray wire strands or debris that could cause shorts.
3. Perform resistance check
- Using a multimeter on the continuity/resistance setting, check between the burner wires/terminals. You should get a flat zero or very low “short circuit” reading, indicating proper continuity.
4. Ensure insulation intact
- Verify that any fiberglass/mica insulation pads around the burner opening are still correctly positioned to prevent electric shorts.
5. Reconfirm power is disconnected
- Before reconnecting power, perform one final check with a non-contact voltage tester to double-check that power remains OFF.
Once these safety checks confirm proper electrical connections and no risk of shorts, it should be safe to restore power.
Keep all tools and replacement parts safely away and re-verify that the burner area is clear of debris before turning the electricity back on.
Reconnecting Power
You’ll want to test burner operation before completely reassembling the stove:
The final steps are to replace all the grates, catch trays, knobs, panels, or anything else that was removed from the stove before beginning.
IMPORTANT: Do NOT reinstall loose parts or panels while the burner is still hot and could potentially ignite plastic/combustible material.
Once fully reassembled and the newly replaced burner area has cooled completely, normal safe stove usage can resume.
Troubleshooting Guide
If the newly replaced electric stove burner fails to work properly upon testing, this guide covers the most common problems and solutions:
Burner not heating:
- Check that electrical power is correctly connected to the stove and outlet breaker is turned ON.
- Verify wire connections to burner are intact and secure inside the terminal block screws/nuts.
- Repeat multimeter checks to ensure burner has proper continuity between hot/neutral terminals and is not shorted or open. If meter readings are abnormal, the new coil may be defective and need replacement.
Burner glowing but not heating enough:
- Confirm cooktop control knob is set to a medium-high level during testing.
- Check if burner wiring is connected to the correct cooktop control switch/relay that activates that heating element. Wires may be crossed with another burner.
- Try adjusting higher heat settings. If problem persists, a voltage issue in the house wiring, relay, or coil could prevent the burner from reaching full temperature.
Burner overheating or sparking:
- Make sure the replacement burner unit exactly matches the specifications (wattage, diameter, number of turns, etc.) of the original burner that was installed by the manufacturer for your specific stove make and model. Any deviation from the original coil specs can lead to overheating issues.
- Inspect wire insulation and connections to the base terminals for damage that could be exposing wires to short out against each other or the stove’s metal housing.
- Check for stray strands of wire caught in the burner chamber that may be shorting against coil windings.
Noise issues (buzzing, humming):
- A defective coil may emit an audible buzzing or humming sound. Confirm the replacement burner exactly matches your model specs.
- Check for any stray wire strands touching coils.
- Ensure insulation barrier around chamber is positioned correctly, and wires/terminals are fully isolated from metal surfaces.
By methodically reviewing connections and specifications against the manufacturer’s original design, most electric stove burner issues can be successfully troubleshot.
When to Call an Appliance Repair Technician
While do-it-yourself repairs empower homeowners and build useful skills, not every issue can be easily addressed on your own. Call in an experienced appliance repair technician for assistance if:
- You cannot safely access or disconnect electrical power to the stove.
- Upon testing, the burner or wiring gets dangerously overheated, starts smoking/sparking heavily, or emits burning odors. Immediately stop testing and unplug the stove if this occurs. Something is critically wrong and poses serious fire/shock danger. Do not retry repairs yourself without help identifying the underlying problem.
- You noticed evidence of shorting or damaged insulation that requires disassembling major appliance components for further inspection.
- The issue keeps occurring even after replacing the burner with a properly rated OEM part. An unknown electrical malfunction likely exists in the stove’s power control boards, relay, or internal wiring harness, needing professional diagnosis/repair.
- You simply feel overwhelmed performing electrical repairs or don’t have the proper tools/meter for safe troubleshooting.
While burner issues tend to be straightforward fixes, never take chances with electric shock or fire hazards. Calling a technician may cost money, but electrically triggered fires cause nearly $300 million in U.S. property damage per year. Safety should be the top priority.
Conclusion
With the right safety precautions, replacement parts, and testing procedures, homeowners can conduct oven burner repairs themselves – often at substantial cost savings over calling an appliance repair company.
The most important thing is DO NOT take risks with electrical safety. Always confirm power is disconnected using proper meters before disassembly. And stop testing immediately if anything seems hazardous or overheated.
An electric stove that isn’t heating correctly certainly causes hassles in daily life. But other issues pose bigger dangers to your home or health. By carefully following the step-by-step guide in this article before attempting your own burner replacement, you can fix the stove problem while keeping risks low.
And remember, there’s no shame in calling a professional if you feel unsure about tackling electric appliance repairs safely.
We hope you found this DIY guide helpful. Please refer to your stove’s instruction manual for further model-specific information. Stay safe, save money, and keep cooking!