I have a Valor Ultimate Turbochim. It is an open flame coal-effect gas fire. It has a built-in extraction fan system. Therefore you must switch on the extraction fan before it will let you switch on the gas. There are two switches to operate the fan, ie, an ON switch and an OFF switch.
The problem is, that pressing the ON switch doesn't always start the fan, even if you hold it down and wait a while (eg, 10 seconds or more). Sometimes you have to press it dozens of times before it will work - other times it just will not switch on, no matter how many times you try it. And yet other times it will switch on first time! There is no pattern to whether it switches on first time or not. Sometimes it will work fine for weeks. (Incidentally, the OFF switch always works first time). The fire has a red indicator light which comes on when the mains power supply is switched on, and goes off when the fan starts working, and comes on again when the OFF switch is pressed and the fan is stopped. This red indicator light is therefore working normally, according to the instruction booklet.
This problem has been ongoing for the last 4 winters or so, and the fire itself is about 5 years old (according to the people I bought the house from, as it was here when I moved in).
The instruction booklet details the following test for the ON switch: I connected an Ohm meter to the terminals at the back of the ON switch, and there was no reading, ie, very high resistance. When I press the switch, the meter shows very low resistance. I also tested the OFF switch in the same way, and the results were the same. So the ON and OFF switches do not appear to be faulty.
Can anybody offer any advice as to what may be causing this problem please?
The problem is, that pressing the ON switch doesn't always start the fan, even if you hold it down and wait a while (eg, 10 seconds or more). Sometimes you have to press it dozens of times before it will work - other times it just will not switch on, no matter how many times you try it. And yet other times it will switch on first time! There is no pattern to whether it switches on first time or not. Sometimes it will work fine for weeks. (Incidentally, the OFF switch always works first time). The fire has a red indicator light which comes on when the mains power supply is switched on, and goes off when the fan starts working, and comes on again when the OFF switch is pressed and the fan is stopped. This red indicator light is therefore working normally, according to the instruction booklet.
This problem has been ongoing for the last 4 winters or so, and the fire itself is about 5 years old (according to the people I bought the house from, as it was here when I moved in).
The instruction booklet details the following test for the ON switch: I connected an Ohm meter to the terminals at the back of the ON switch, and there was no reading, ie, very high resistance. When I press the switch, the meter shows very low resistance. I also tested the OFF switch in the same way, and the results were the same. So the ON and OFF switches do not appear to be faulty.
Can anybody offer any advice as to what may be causing this problem please?
