one of the burners on my sterling cooktop clicks every few seconds all day long. I don't smell gas, but I'm wondering what this means. The burners all light when I turn them on. I don't have the model nbr off hand.

Laurie, March 2006

On my Sterling the holes in the black plastic pieces that fit over the gas valve stems had all been enlarged by use. You can see if this is case with your stove by pulling off the knobs, then turning the stem with your fingers. If the plastic piece does not turn with stem reliably in both directions operating the lever on the micro switch then you've got the same problem. Play with the mechanism a little bit and you will see how it is intended to work. The solution is to wrap the stem with a small piece of aluminum foil, about 10mm by 4mm, then force the hole in the plastic piece over the Al foil wrapped stem. This should tighten it up enough to work. If not, try again, or think up a better to make the hole smaller or the stem larger. Happy Trails

William Lee, October 2014

I suspect that moisture is the problem most of the time. My solution is to unplug the unit with all knobs removed and leave it that way overnight. In the morning, the clicking is either gone or much less frequent. A second night of open to the air seems always to fix it.
I love the look of the Sterling-after 20 years, the glass is perfect. Much better than the stainless steel that seems in vogue today.

John, July 2014

Answer by William Lee very useful. I took off control knob and the plastic tab beneath one of the knobs was sticking when depressed. I'm guessing the sticking was due to moisture and grease/gunk that got beneath the knob over time. This constant clicking problem started when it was first used after it was cleaned. I cleaned under and around the plastic tab as much as I could until the tab would spring back when depressed. The clicking stopped, at least the constant clicking. Now it is clicking once every few minutes. I'm hoping leaving the knob off and letting it air out for a while may dry it out if there is some moisture in there.

Mike, August 2012

Yes, liquid or moisture that gets in under the knobs will start this clicking. My experience also indicates that high levels of humidity will also cause the clicking. IN my area, summers are super humid. I can almost predict when the burners will start clicking by the amount of humidity I feel in the home.

Lady, September 2011

I have this clicking problem too. It just started last night. After reading these posts, I tried to remove the control knob by lifting straight up but, it doesn't want to budge and I'm afraid to force it.
Does anyone know - Should the control knob lift straight up? Should I just use more force?
Thank you!!
The clicking is really annoying.

Betsy, August 2011

Add me to the list of folks with clicking igniters on their Sterling cooktops. Any advice on how to remove the glass top (so I can attempt some of these fixes)?

Do I need to remove the screws in the bottom of the metal housing at the bottom of the unit - there are no obvious screws where the glass meets this metal housing.

reggie, July 2010

I was having this same problem. This happened after I had my house cleaned by a service. I pulled off the knob for the problem burner and a knob from a burner that was okay. I noticed that there was a wire that went straight across and touched against a circular metal part just below the plastic part. On the bad burner that was clicking, the plastic part had somehow turned and was between the wire and the circular metal part where on the good burner the plastic was on the opposite side of the wire. I turned the plastic part so that it was opposite the wire and the clicking stopped. Hope this helps someone.

Valeria, July 2010

My Sterling Stovetop was causing the same problem. The tab on the little plastic deal under the knob indeed did break off. Now I need to figure out how to fashion a tab. They made the tabs pretty flimsily ... oh well.

Pete, April 2010

the correct answer, is the first one (if you take off the knob of the burner in question, youl'll find a plastic piece that fits over the valve stem. if this is engaging the switch, it will cause this problem. the keyed portion has probably broke off. just pull a good one off and see if looks the same on the stem seat (hole). i have verified this. the fix, in the absence of spare parts is to wrap some soft shim metal like thin aluminum around the area where the plastic broke off. the other answers may work for different stove tops, but not the sterling. and sadly they are labor intensive. happy trails, william lee, california

William Lee, March 2010

IF YOU TAKE OFF THE KNOB OF THE BURNER IN QUESTION, YOUL'LL FIND A PLASTIC PIECE THAT FITS OVER THE VALVE STEM. IF THIS IS ENGAGING THE SWITCH, IT WILL CAUSE THIS PROBLEM. THE KEYED PORTION HAS PROBABLY BROKE OFF. JUST PULL A GOOD ONE OFF AND SEE IF LOOKS THE SAME ON THE STEM SEAT (HOLE).

RICKT43@COMCAST.NET, January 2009

The clicking made by the ignitor firing, is caused by liquid in one or more switches located on each burner valve. Only one switch need be shorted to allow all ignitors to fire. A shorted switch can be identified using an ohmmeter on the megohm scale observing high resistance with switch at rest or normally open position. Practical method to dry out switch isn't available. Replacement unavailable. Solution:removal

Chaz, November 2008

Sears/Kenmore used the same parts in at least one of their ranges. (Mother in law had one.) Problem, she replaced the range and threw out the owners manual. If I could get the model number I could cross ref. parts!

trappfarm, August 2008

Sterling GCT (Glass Cook-Top)

This isn't really an answer; only empathetic communication. I too have this brand with the same problem. It's original 1991 booklet names the appliance model numbers as either GCT 360, 361 or 362. And the address for them was New World Domestic Appliances LTD, New World House, Thelwall Lane, Warrington WA41NL Cheshire, U.K.

Laguna Hills, California resident, July 2008

Clean the cooktop thoroughly especially where the igniter anode is. Dry the area around the igniter anode completely with a hair dryer before re-assembling. If this doesn't work, unplug the cooktop and use a scripto (or any brand) utility lighter to ignite the burners. Lite the scripto and then turn on the gas. In that order!

Tim the you know, March 2008

Our Sterling cooktop central burner sparks when any other burner is turned on. I disconnected the wire from the control switch to the igniter module - which didn't help at all. Thus, fairly sure, the problem is crosstalk in the igniter. The igniter is a potted module so not practical to open up and repair. I hope, haven't given hope yet, that the igniter can be replaced with a generic igniter.

Bob Knepper, July 2007

The clicking is caused by a wet microswitch that's located under one of the control valves. The remedy is to take apart the cooktop to remove the glass top so you can get access to the microswitches. Remove the wire to each one to find out which switch is the culprit. Once located, remove the switch from the valve assembly. Shake the switch to remove the water, then try it again to see if that did the trick. You can also use a hair dryer in drying out the switch. Good luck !

Dennis, February 2007

It is bl**dy annoying - that's what it is!!! Mine does that too. The repairman said that it meant that a mechanism in the burner was shot, probably because someone was spilled on it. Unfortunately, Sterling is now out of business and the part was not available. The option is to find a cooktop to cannibalize - so far no luck. Recently (ours has been clicking for three years) another burner started clicking even when it is turned off. Mercifully that has stopped. If you get a line on Sterling parts, or another solution to this, I'd be really interested.

Cheers!

Phil

Phil, December 2006