Gas Dryer No Heat: Igniter, Flame Sensor, or Valve Coils?
A gas dryer has no heating element. It has a burner, and the burner only lights when a chain of parts agrees: thermal fuse and thermostats permitting, an igniter glowing hot enough, a flame sensor confirming the glow, and solenoid coils opening the gas valve. A no-heat gas dryer is a broken link in that chain — and when it fails tells you which link.
Pattern A: never gets hot at all
Work the chain in order. All meter tests are unplugged, with the gas supply shut off before panels near the burner come open.
- Thermal fuse & thermostats. Continuity tests, same as electric: fuse or hi-limit reading OL has shut the whole burner circuit down. A blown fuse means it overheated — check the vent before anything else.
- Igniter. Watch through the burner peephole (many dryers have one low on the front): no glow at all points back up the chain. Resistance, cold: commonly cited at 50–400 ohms; OL means open and failed. Two cautions: an igniter can pass continuity yet glow too weakly to trigger the valve, so the glow itself is evidence; and igniters are fragile ceramic — handle by the base, never touch the dark element with bare fingers.
- Flame (radiant) sensor. Cold, it should show continuity — under 1 ohm. It opens when it senses the igniter's heat, which is the signal that lets the coils energize. OL when cold = failed sensor ($15–40).
Pattern B: starts hot, goes cold after about 10 minutes
This is the famous one, and it's the reason this guide exists. The dryer lights, dries beautifully for ten minutes or so, then the heat dies while the drum keeps tumbling. Leave it alone and it may work again — briefly — next load. That is the signature of gas valve coils failing as they heat up. The coils' resistance climbs out of spec when warm, the valve closes, and no flame follows the igniter's glow.
It's misdiagnosed constantly, because the coils often test fine on a cold meter: normal readings run between 300 and 2,000 ohms depending on the coil and terminals (common specs: about 1,365 and 560 ohms on the three-terminal coil, about 1,220 ohms on the two-terminal). Observation beats the meter here — late in the cycle, an igniter that glows and clicks off with no flame, on a dryer that lit fine at the start, is the coils confessing. Replace them as a complete set ($20–60 in parts).
Pattern C: heats, but weakly, with short burner cycles
Think airflow before burner parts. A restricted vent overheats the cabinet, the hi-limit keeps cutting the burner, and loads crawl. Start with the airflow checklist.
Safety, every time
Unplug the dryer before opening any panel or testing any part — every meter test in this guide is an unplugged test. On gas models, shut the gas supply before opening panels near the burner. Never bypass a thermal fuse, never work on a gas line or inside a sealed gas valve, and never treat live-voltage testing as a DIY step. Smell gas? Stop, leave, and call your gas utility or a licensed professional.
The pro-only line on gas dryers
Coils, igniter, and sensor are the DIY layer — they're electrical parts mounted on the valve. Anything beyond them is not: if new coils don't restore the flame, the gas valve itself has failed, and opening or replacing a sealed gas valve, or doing any gas-line work, is a licensed professional's job. If you ever smell gas, stop, leave the area, and call your gas utility or a pro — do not troubleshoot a gas smell.
Electric instead? Your tree is different — electric dryer no heat but runs. And the complete gas decision tree with every coil terminal value is in the DryVerdict Kit.
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