Pool heater takes forever to start

My Hayward pool heater takes forever to kick in now. It used to start up in about a minute, but now it takes over 5 minutes just to try. If I leave and come back, I often find it showing Ignition Failure. I reset it and then wait again. Eventually, it starts up and works fine. I checked the gas valves, and there aren’t any spider webs or blockages. Any idea what else could be going on?

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Make sure a certified pool heater pro checks this out. Heaters that “don’t work right” can easily blow up.

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It’s probably time to replace your spark igniter.

Also, check your pump flow. If it’s taking forever to get to full flow, your system might not start up right away.

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The issue is that it’s a Hayward heater. When you’re fed up with it, just swap it out for a RayPak, also known as Rheem.

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@BreaststrokeBuff I agree. As basic as a unit, this is extremely unreliable, pricey, and has a brief trouble-free zone.

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@BreaststrokeBuff I’ve only experienced this for the first time in 17 years. Do RayPak and Rheem offer a longer warranty than that?

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@Umbrielle Nobody has a warranty that lasts 17 years or longer.

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Some things that come to mind are the gas valve, igniter, wiring, control board, or maybe a dirty or corroded heat exchanger.

But like someone else mentioned, don’t try to fix this yourself. A typical pool heater is as powerful as four home furnaces or eight grills. Messing up could cause a serious explosion.

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Is the heat pump an electric or gas one?

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@Gia It uses Natural Gas