Do All Furnaces Have Pilot Lights. All of these problems are not an issue when you have a modern furnace which uses electronic ignition instead of an old fashioned pilot light. There are two basic types of electronic igniters in modern furnaces. For many years furnaces used a small and continuously burning flame known as a pilot light to ignite the burners during every heating cycle.
If the pilot light goes out the furnace or water heater will not work. Intermittent pilots still use a pilot light however it isn t a standing pilot light that remains on all the time to ignite the burner whenever the gas turns on.
Newer gas furnaces since about 2010 do not have a traditional pilot light that burns all the time.
Most furnaces with electronic ignition have a device called a hot surface igniter. There are two basic types of electronic igniters in modern furnaces. If the pilot light goes out the furnace or water heater will not work. The small burning flame from the pilot light lights the main burners.
