--- title: "Oven not heating" description: "Kenmore oven not heating: two answers cover most of these and they are cheap to tell apart." url: "https://kenmoremiami.support/symptoms/oven-not-heating/" date_modified: "2026-09-01" Appliance type: "Ranges, Wall ovens" --- # Kenmore oven not heating ### Look at the elements before anything else On an electric oven, look at both elements while they are cold. A bake element that has failed very often shows a blister, a break or a bright annealed spot. And an oven that browns the top of everything and never cooks it through is running on the broil element alone, which is a diagnosis you can make from the kitchen. ### What it usually means, by the company that built it Kenmore manufactures nothing, so the same behavior points at different things depending on who made the appliance. The three digits before the period on the rating plate are what tells them apart. - **790 Frigidaire** — F30 is Frigidaire's open probe and F31 is a shorted one — the two ways the oven temperature sensor circuit fails. F10 is their thermal runaway, which is the opposite problem and should not be left running. - **362 GE** — GE-built 362 ranges are a smaller part of this catalog and their tables are not published here yet. - **911 Roper** — Roper publishes no codes at all. A 911 range is diagnosed by symptom and by measurement, which is a real method and the only honest one here. ### Why an oven can be wrong and confident An oven holds temperature by comparing what its sensor reports against what you asked for. If the sensor reads low, the oven keeps heating past the setting; if it reads high, the oven stops short. In both cases the display shows what you asked for, because the display is reporting the request rather than the reality. That is why the first tool on this symptom is an independent thermometer. ### The weak igniter On a gas oven the igniter does two jobs: it glows hot enough to light the gas, and the current it draws is what opens the gas valve. As it ages it still glows — visibly, reassuringly — while drawing too little current to open the valve. So the classic complaint is an oven that glows and never lights, and the part that looks like it is working is the one that has failed. The bake element has failed Often visible, always testable, and an inexpensive part on a freestanding range. The oven temperature sensor It looks like nothing and reports the wrong number. An oven out by a consistent amount is this. Demonstration mode The panel works and the oven does not heat, on purpose. Worth ruling out on a floor-model purchase. The igniter, on a gas oven A weak igniter glows and never draws enough current to open the gas valve. That is the commonest gas oven failure. The relay board or control Where the element and the sensor both test good and nothing is switching them on. Electric or gas It decides the whole list. Look at both elements Cold, with the oven off. Blisters and breaks are visible. Measure with an oven thermometer Set 350 and see what it holds. A consistent offset is very different from no heat. On gas, watch the igniter Bright orange within a minute, and then flame. A dull glow that never produces a flame is the diagnosis. It will not reach temperature, or takes far too long What it usually means A bake element usually shows visible damage A sensor problem shows nothing at all A consistent offset is the sensor's signature Look at the elements before anything else On an electric oven, look at both elements while they are cold. A bake element that has failed very often shows a blister, a break or a bright annealed spot. And an oven that browns the top of everything and never cooks it through is running on the broil element alone, which is a diagnosis you can make from the kitchen. What it usually means, by the company that built it Kenmore manufactures nothing, so the same behavior points at different things depending on who made the appliance. The three digits before the period on the rating plate are what tells them apart. 790 Frigidaire — F30 is Frigidaire's open probe and F31 is a shorted one — the two ways the oven temperature sensor circuit fails. F10 is their thermal runaway, which is the opposite problem and should not be left running. 362 GE — GE-built 362 ranges are a smaller part of this catalog and their tables are not published here yet. 911 Roper — Roper publishes no codes at all. A 911 range is diagnosed by symptom and by measurement, which is a real method and the only honest one here. Why an oven can be wrong and confident An oven holds temperature by comparing what its sensor reports against what you asked for. If the sensor reads low, the oven keeps heating past the setting; if it reads high, the oven stops short. In both cases the display shows what you asked for, because the display is reporting the request rather than the reality. That is why the first tool on this symptom is an independent thermometer. The weak igniter On a gas oven the igniter does two jobs: it glows hot enough to light the gas, and the current it draws is what opens the gas valve. As it ages it still glows — visibly, reassuringly — while drawing too little current to open the valve. So the classic complaint is an oven that glows and never lights, and the part that looks like it is working is the one that has failed. ### It heats but everything burns on top. That is the bake element out and the broil element carrying the oven on its own. It is a definite diagnosis from the kitchen. ### My oven is 25 degrees out. Can that be adjusted? Usually yes — most of these have a calibration offset in the control. Where the error drifts rather than staying constant, calibrating over it only hides a failing sensor. ### It is a Kenmore, so who actually made it? The first three digits tell you. 790 is a Frigidaire, 362 is a GE, 911 is a Roper. It changes the parts and it changes whether there is a code table at all. --- **[Read full article: Oven not heating](https://kenmoremiami.support/symptoms/oven-not-heating/)**