---
title: "Rational Service 31.1: the core temperature probe is not reading"
description: "What Service 31.1 means on Rational Service 31.1: the core temperature probe is not readings, what to check before booking, and when it is not a failure at all."
url: "https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-31-1/"
---

# Rational Service 31.1: the core temperature probe is not reading

The core probe is the spike you push into food so the oven can cook to a target inside temperature.

## What Service 31.1 actually means.

The core probe is the spike you push into food so the oven can cook to a target inside temperature. Service 31.1 reports it as defective. Rational says cooking goes on, just without the probe.

Rational commercial appliance display · also shown as 31.1, Service 31.2

What to do when Service 31.1 shows on the commercial appliance

### Kind of code Sensors and probes

A probe is handing the controller a reading it cannot trust, or none at all: a box or coil sensor torn loose from its clip, a fryer probe coated in carbon from oil left too long between filterings, a combi core probe with a kinked cable, or a connector gone green from steam and cleaning chemicals. The unit then runs on, stops, or shuts the heat or the cooling off to protect itself. Letting it cool and restarting it as the manual describes is fair; a probe that still reads wrong sits behind a panel, and that is a visit.

### Usually leads to Commercial controls and board repair

Controllers, touch panels, relays, contactors and interlocks tested, and replaced only when the evidence says so.

### Shows up as Commercial Appliance Error Code on a Combi, Fryer, Dish Machine or Laundry Display

A commercial appliance error code appears as letters or numbers on a combi, fryer, reach-in controller, dish machine or laundry machine display, or as a flashing light or an alarm tone.

### Make Rational

A Rational visit is timed after the evening cleaning cycle, when the cabinet is cool and the display can be read without a load inside.

### Source RATIONAL iCombi Pro floor units 20-1/1 and 20-2/1, original instructions for use (US English)

Listed in the notification section of the iCombi Pro floor unit instructions (20-1/1 and 20-2/1, US English). Service 31.2 carries the same wording and the same remedy.

## Before you book, in this order.

Each step comes from Rational's own guidance for Service 31.1 on its commercial appliances. Follow it to the end: the last card says whether this is a visit.

01

Switch the recipe to a time-based setting so it no longer depends on the probe.

02

Check the probe cable for kinks, cuts or crushed spots from the door, and keep it inside the cabinet when the door closes.

03

Check doneness with a handheld thermometer until a technician has tested or replaced the probe; book a visit.

### Still there?

It usually turns into [commercial controls and board repair](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/services/commercial-controls-and-board-repair/). Book with the code and the model number.

### What not to do

Service 31.1 is not the fixed probe that reads cabinet air, which is Service 20.1 and stops cooking. It does not affect the steam or hot air heating at all.

## What you may notice with it.

The commercial appliance problems Service 31.1 tends to arrive with. Answer these at the commercial appliance before anyone is booked.

[All problems](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/problems/)

Before you call

### [Commercial Appliance Error Code on a Combi, Fryer, Dish Machine or Laundry Display](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/problems/commercial-error-code/)

[All 8 causes, cheapest first](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/problems/commercial-error-code/)

It also comes with

- [**Commercial Convection Oven Baking Unevenly Across the Racks**](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/problems/commercial-oven-uneven-bake/)

Problem

### Commercial Appliance Error Code on a Combi, Fryer, Dish Machine or Laundry Display

8 causes, cheapest first

Where Service 31.1 usually leads

## Commercial controls and board repair.

**Controller, touch panel, probe or sensor, relay, contactor, power supply, door switch or interlock, tested before anything is changed · moderate.**

Book a visit [What the job involves](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/services/commercial-controls-and-board-repair/)

## Rational commercial appliances.

A Rational visit is timed after the evening cleaning cycle, when the cabinet is cool and the display can be read without a load inside.

[Rational commercial appliance repair](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/brands/rational/)

More Rational codes

[Service 10](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-10/) [Service 11](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-11/) [Service 20.1](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-20-1/) [Service 25](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-25/) [Service 28.2](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-28-2/) [Service 29](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-29/) [Service 32.1](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-32-1/) [Service 40](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-40/) [Service 41](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-41/) [Service 42.1](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-42-1/) [Service 47.1](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-47-1/) [Service 50](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-50/)

[All 15 Rational codes](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/#codes-rational)

Sensors and probes on other makes

[Alto-Shaam E20](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/alto-shaam-e20/) [Beverage-Air E01](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/beverage-air-e01/) [Blodgett Cavity Probe Error](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/blodgett-cavity-probe-error/) [Continental Refrigerator E0](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/continental-refrigerator-e0/) [Delfield E01](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/delfield-e01/) [Dexter TEMP SENSOR SHORT](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/dexter-temp-sensor-short/) [Frymaster E13](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/frymaster-e13/) [Garland E21](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/garland-e21/)

[All 61 codes of this kind](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/#family-sensor)

Rational builds this

### Commercial cooking equipment

Fryers, griddles, charbroilers, restaurant ranges, convection and combi ovens, steamers, kettles, holding cabinets and toasters, on gas or electric, that make up the hot side of a kitchen line.

## In Rational's own words

> The core probe in the cooking cabinet is defective.

[RATIONAL iCombi Pro floor units 20-1/1 and 20-2/1, original instructions for use (US English)](https://hcms.rational-online.com/hcms/v1.7/entity/documents/155435/storage/MTU1NDM1LzAvbWFzdGVyLy8vMTAxNTcwMzIw/download/manual_original_instruction_icombi_pro_20-1_1,_20-2_1_english_usa.pdf) [RATIONAL iCombi Pro floor units 20-1/1 and 20-2/1, original instructions for use (US English)](https://hcms.rational-online.com/hcms/v1.7/entity/documents/155435/storage/MTU1NDM1LzAvbWFzdGVyLy8vMTAxNTcwMzIw/download/manual_original_instruction_icombi_pro_20-1_1,_20-2_1_english_usa.pdf)

Every code on this site is taken from the manufacturer's documentation, never from a forum or a parts listing. Listed in the notification section of the iCombi Pro floor unit instructions (20-1/1 and 20-2/1, US English). Service 31.2 carries the same wording and the same remedy.

## Rational Service 31.1 commercial appliance repair, where we come out.

The same visit in every metro below: the code, the model number, and a diagnosis before any part is ordered.

[All service areas](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/locations/)

[Tampa Bay](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/locations/tampa-bay/) FL · 31 areas

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For the heart of your home.

## Questions about Service 31.1.

### Can I clear Service 31.1 myself?

Switch the recipe to a time-based setting so it no longer depends on the probe. If it comes back, it needs a visit.

### Can I keep cooking on a Rational with Service 31.1?

Yes, but not by core temperature. Rational lists cooking as possible without the probe, so use time-based steps and check food with a separate thermometer.

### How does a Rational core probe get damaged?

A cable caught in the door, or a probe left hanging out during automatic cleaning, are both things Rational warns about. Heavy bending at the handle also wears the cable over time.

### Is Service 31.2 different from 31.1 on a Rational?

The manual gives both numbers the same cause and the same outcome. A technician will tell which part of the probe circuit is at issue.

---

**[Read on the site: Rational Service 31.1: the core temperature probe is not reading](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/error-codes/rational-service-31-1/)**

**[Book a visit with CommercialApplianceRepair.center](https://commercialappliancerepair.center/schedule/)**
