Troubleshooting and Repair Tips - Symptom - Won't Broil

An electric range that won't broil could have a bad broil element or a bad control board. Testing the element is simply a matter of disconnecting the leads from it and using an ohmmeter to check for conductivity. If the element is good, your ohmmeter will usually give you some kind of reading - it makes little difference - because if the element is bad, you will normally have infinite resistance - meaning that the meter will not react at all. Below are one are more scenarios where ranges wouldn't broil and their resolutions.


No Broil - Standard GE Range with a visible bake element and either a smooth cooktop or traditional cooktop burners. The common part numbers for the broil elements in the GE electric ranges are WB44K10002 and wb44t10009 (Check the model number by the left leg of the range after pulling the bottom drawer out - to verify which bake element is required for your range.

-Pull the drawer out and unplug the range from underneath or cut off the breaker.
-Partially open the oven door until it stops - open about 6 inches.
-Lift the oven door straight up to remove.
-Using a 1/4" nut driver, remove the two screws holding the broil element in.
-Note any retainers for the broil element that may attach it to the ceiling of the oven and remove if necessary. -Pull the broil element out while carefully making sure that the wires do not come off.
-Remove the wires from the old broil element terminals while making sure that they don't fall back in to the opening at the back of the oven.
-Test the existing broil element with a multimeter on the X1 resistance (ohms) setting. It should read between 18 - 43 ohms.
-If the element is bad, it will likely read an infinite resistance.
-If the element is bad, Install the new element by connecting the wires to the terminals.
-Put the two screws back in that secure the element.
-Reconnect any retaining clips or screws that may have been present on the old element to attach it to the top of the oven. -Slide the oven door back on to the hinges, and close the door and test..
-Note: if the wires to the element slip into the hole in the back of the oven, you will need to pull the range out and take the back panel off.
-If needed, remove the small panel at the back of the range that covers the broil element terminals and reconnect the terminals. Reinstall the cover, slide the range back, and test.