A range igniter is the part that lights the gas in a gas range or oven. Most gas ovens use a hot surface igniter, a glow bar that must draw enough current before the gas safety valve opens. Cooktop burners use spark electrodes that click and spark at the burner when the knob is turned to light.
Why it matters to you
A weakening oven igniter can still glow orange yet never get hot enough to open the gas valve, so the oven takes longer and longer to heat and then stops lighting at all. Constant clicking on the cooktop usually points to moisture or a spark-switch fault.
Practical guidance
Keep burner caps seated correctly and dry after spills. If you smell gas, do not operate switches or appliances; leave the home and call your gas utility from outside.