Advice on antique gas stove

[Pelenaka]

I was offered a Detroit Jewel gas stove.
The person giving isn't the orginal/last to actually use it. I think it was a case of once she got it home she realized the stove wouldn't work for her. I'm waiting on her call later today so we can arrange to go see it tomarrow.
It's sitting in her dinning room so I doubt that she's let us drag it into the kitchen to do a test run. I have yet to ask if she was able to see it working.

Per the pics it appears in good condition. Burners are all on the left side with a lid that folds forward to cover. Would that mean that there's no need for a continual pilot light to be lite ? Or can the lid tolerate a pilot light ?
Would a stove this age need to have the oven manually lit ? What specific maintance should we do besides a good scrub down ?

The stove looks to be from around the mid to late 1930's to early 1940's.
Two drawers on the left under the burners, oven's on the right with a drawer under that. Box shaped but with short scooped style legs, horitzontal drawer & oven pulls. Burner knobs are vertical levers. I'll have DH post a pic later when he comes home.
No electrical not even an oven light a huge change from my 1949 Hotpoint.

Besides asking if the stove ran on propane what else should I be looking for ?
We use natural gas. It's been years scratch that, decades since I had a gas stove.
I'm pretty sad about junking the Hotpoint but I can't find anyone local that can rewire it. Got a quote last year from those guys down in Georgia for over 3grand to restore it (shipping back & forth a huge issue). Down to only one oven & the clocks/timers stopped working as did the lighted chrome hood. Several of the buttons stopped lighting up too. Ideally it should also be reinsulated.
The last time it was rewired (outlet on the work surface) was early 1980's. The phone number that was penciled in the front cover of the manual now belongs to a bank.

When we do move out to "the land" we are thinking that the Detroit Jewel stove could be converted to propane.


TIA,
~~ pelenaka ~~

[shawnlee]

If you get it.......

I would use a spray bottle with soapy water to check for leaks and preferably do it outside.

I think most of the older valves are metal to metal...probably no rubber gasketts to deteriorate in the valves.

Alot of that older stuff was made to last forever....


You should be able to check with the soap water in a spray bottle the entire run of pipes and valves and burners etc.....just some dishliquid in a spray bottle is all you need.


Ideally you would want to do a leak down test......where you put a fitting on where the gas line is and pump it up to pressure...This uses a fitting with a pressure guage and a valve stem like you air a tire up with.....you simply pump it up and watch the guage to see if the pressure goes down....then you would use the dishliquid spray bottle to find the leak.

That sort of testing is used alot in things you do not want to leak...good luck!

[Helena]

We have a stove around the same age at what you are looking at. Wish I once closer to you..we could take a look together at it. Now..my "old" stove is waiting for an antique restorer to send me info ...IF..they can fix the thermostat on my over. Used it for years with using it with about 50 degrees off the temperature but...my thermostat uses..mercury..and unless they have an actual one that will fit my stove...I'm out of luck. This would be my worry on this stove..How can you check the thermostat. If the cost isn't too much it will probably be worth the money to give it a try. Ours you light with a match and we did convert it to propane ..not a problem at all. Perhaps these people would allow you to buy it under the condition that if it doesn't work properly you may return it to them. It's worth a try. If it seems to be in good condition and clean...I would take the chance. Good Luck !!

[poorboy]

When i was a kid we had an old wood-n-gas combination, best i can remember the oven had no saftey thermocouple or pilot..I remember having to git down on your knees and light it every time you used the oven...Everyone in the family from grownups to the smallest were trained to glance at it when passing to make sure all knobs were turned off when not in use..we used the wood side about seven mo's of the year .Wished I had one now.

[RebelDigger]

I had one similar to what you are describing. It was in excellent condition, one owner. Notice I said "had". Lights with matches, not good and it was eating our sack lunch on gas (natural gas). Got rid of it. Now, don't get me wrong, if you can find someone to bring the guts up to modern standards, great but that is expensive. I love antiques, most of my furniture is antique. I find generally that antiques are better quality but, in this instance I had to bow to modern technology. The new gas stove we replaced it with burns about $50.00 a month less gas than the vintage stove did with the same amount of use. It would be cheaper in the long run, if you want that "look" to purchase a reproduction stove made to look like an antique stove but with modern technology in the elements (ie. Energy Star rated) and pilot lights with the safety features. As others have said, getting them restored and reworked is extremely expensive, more so than simply purchasing the repro. Just my .02 worth, your mileage may vary.

[Pelenaka]

Shawlee & Helena, thank you both for the advice. I'm still waiting for a call from the current owner. Hopefully it will be soon since it's hubby's day off and we want to combine the stove visit with a scrap metal run. As far as I understand the stove is a freebie but I am planning on giving her two rubber maid trash cans.

Thermostat isn't a deal breaker since my Hotpoint has been off since the day I bought it by 100 degrees. Broiler died on me a few years after but I really don't broil. I agree about old appliances gas more so than electric.
Our refridgerator is a Westinghouse early 1940's that belonged to my grandparents-in-laws. Set on the economy setting it's been known to freeze milk that is standing too close to the shoe box sized freezer.

I was planning on replacing that wavy gas line anyways.
We'll bring the tire pump, duct tape, and the spray bottle with soapy water and rig up a way to blow air up the pipes.
If it's just a case of a quart of elbow grease and the gas line connection hose then I suppose it will be a go. If not the last thing we need is another "project". I still need to start seeds & mud the new dry wall in the livingroom.

Just spoke with the current owner - never saw it working, apprently the orginal owner used it up until she moved into a trailer a few years ago. Been sitting in storage ever since. No clue about natural gas or propane. Going to go see it this afternoon.


~~ pelenaka ~~

RebelDigger, I truely hadn't thought about the gas useage. My Hotpoint is a bit of a power hog but come warmer weather I use my wood canning stove to cook on. But like I said I was thinking ahead to the future when we move out to "the land" and would hook the Jewel up to propane.
Now my second thoughts are having second thoughts.

[Pelenaka]

Update on the stove - it's in very good condition, very clean for having been in storage. Contact info on the orginal owner has been lost but it came out of a farmhouse here in Western NY. A few nicks in the enamel but overall in great shape. Handles are all prime except for teh oven dial which had a crack in the bakelite.
It wouldl need new gas couplins. I'm not writing this correctly but in it's current state the stove has a standing pilot light.

That said this is not the stove for me as I truely dislike gas. Yeah I know comming from someone who heats & cooks with wood. Also the last thing we need is another project.
Besides after hubby & I discussed it this stove wouldn't be a good option for our cabin. So I'll be posting the pics I have on the barter board & will forward an inquiries to the current owner.


~~ pelenaka ~~