Stove
Burner Stays on High
One burner heats at full power whatever the knob says, glows red when it should be off, or keeps a big flame that turning the knob does not bring down.
Mon–Sat, 8am–8pm
- Gas, fire, sparks or a burner stuck on
- 5 questions that narrow it
- 5 causes, cheapest first
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If there is gas in the air, walk out first. Without gas, shut the stove's breaker off
A burner you cannot turn down or off is an emergency. Cut the power at the breaker on an electric stove, or close the gas shutoff only if it is within reach without going near the flame; otherwise leave and call the gas utility or 911 from outside. Keep the stove off until the repair.
What it
usually means.
On an electric coil stove each burner has a switch behind its knob that clicks the power on and off to keep the heat you chose. When the contacts inside that switch weld together, the burner gets full power all the time, and turning the knob to off may do nothing. On a glass stovetop with touch controls the same thing happens when a relay on the control board sticks closed. On a gas stove the cause is usually mechanical: a valve that no longer turns down, or a knob that spins on a worn shaft without moving the valve at all. Whatever the fuel, a burner that will not turn down or off can overheat a pan, scorch the counter beside the stove and start a fire, so the first job is to cut its heat at the source.
The 5 causes, cheapest first
Answer these first
Does the burner stay red or keep its flame even with the knob pointing at off?
Does the knob turn normally, spin loosely, or feel stiff and gritty?
Is it one burner, or more than one?
Is it a coil burner, a burner under smooth glass, an induction zone or a gas flame?
Did this start after a boil-over or after cleaning around the knobs?
Check these
before you book.
Stove burner stays on high: 5 checks, and none of them costs anything.
Do not lean over the burner; on an electric stove, switch off the stove's breaker at the main panel and watch from a step back until the glow fades.
On a gas stove, if the flame will not go out with the knob, close the shutoff behind the stove only if you can reach it without leaning over the flame; if you cannot, leave the house and call the gas utility from outside.
Keep towels, oven mitts, paper and plastic well away from the burner until it has cooled.
Also worth checking
- Once it is off and cold, move pans away and do not switch the breaker back on to use the other burners.
- When you book, tell us which burner it was and whether its knob turned normally or spun loosely.
The causes,
cheapest first.
5 things stove burner stays on high turns out to be, from knob loose on its shaft to gas valve that will not turn down.
The cost guide-
01 lowest
Knob loose on its shaft
A cracked knob can spin without turning the switch or valve behind it, so what the knob shows is not what the burner is doing. A new knob for your model fixes it once the switch behind it has been checked.
-
02 low to moderate
Burner switch stuck on
The contacts inside a coil burner's switch can fuse after years of clicking, often helped along by a spill running into the back panel. The switch must be replaced; the coil itself is usually fine.
-
03 moderate
Wires fused behind the control panel
Heat and old insulation can let two wires behind the knobs melt together, feeding a burner power that bypasses its switch. The wires and usually the switch are replaced together.
-
04 moderate
Stuck relay on the control board
On a glass stovetop with touch keys, or an induction stove, a relay on the board can stick closed and keep one element at full power. The display may still show the zone as off.
-
05 moderate
Gas valve that will not turn down
A worn or damaged burner valve can stay wide open or refuse to close fully, leaving a tall flame at every setting. Nobody should take a gas valve apart at home.
-
What it costs
Every repair on the site's cost scale, side by side
Open the cost guide
What else
it could be.
Most often confused with stove knob broken or loose, then stove smoking.
All problems
The makes
it happens on.
32 makes on this site; stove burner stays on high can show up on any of them. Each mark opens that make's own page.
All 32 brandsStove Burner Stays on High,
where we come out.
9 metros, each with its own page.
All service areasTampa BayFL · 31 areas
Miami / South FloridaFL · 47 areas
New York MetroNY · 75 areas
HoustonTX · 36 areas
ChicagoIL · 50 areas
Los AngelesCA · 95 areas
San DiegoCA · 31 areas
Questions about
stove burner stays on high.
Can I just leave the breaker off and use the stove now and then until the repair?
My glass stovetop still looks hot after I turned it off. Is it stuck on?
Why does my burner only work on high?
Can a child's knob covers cause this?
Back to your everyday
Still seeing stove burner stays on high?
Book with what you checked above — 5 answers save the technician the first part of the visit.