Gas Fireplace Thermocouple Vs Thermopile

A thermocouple is a device consisting of two different metals joined together usually by welding or brazing the voltage between the metals is dependent on the temperature.

Gas fireplace thermocouple vs thermopile.

A thermocouple is heated by the pilot light but it. A thermopile generates electricity from the heat of a pilot light. This entry was posted in diy and tagged diy gas fireplace gas valve pilot light thermocouple thermopile won t light on october 21 2012 by steve jenkins updated 2117 days ago disclaimer as with all my diy posts anything you decide to do as a result of reading this post you do so at your own risk. The main difference between thermocouple and thermopile is that the thermocouple is a thermoelectric device and thermopile is a device that converts thermal energy into electrical energy.

As the heat reaches the second junction of the thermocouple it generates electrical voltage. It is typically more sensitive than a single thermocouple. Gas fireplaces and fireplace inserts use thermocouples and thermopiles primarily to generate electricity. A thermopile is a series of thermocouples and are used typically when the difference in heat is hard to measure.

It generates about 750 mv that turns on the main gas valve to the fireplace.