What is an Invalid or Non-Compliant temperature? 🌡️
An invalid or non-compliant temperature is when the pod or probe reports a temperature outside the defined set of rules for an appliance or a service.
For example, if you have defined a temperature rule for a Fridge from 0 degrees to 8 degrees (see image – Figure 1 - Temperature rule) as a ‘Success or Warning’, then any temperatures recorded outside of this range will be marked as Non-compliant/Invalid. The appliance tile (see image – Figure 2 - Invalid temperature) will flash red indicating that the temperature received is Non-compliant/Invalid as shown in the image below:
Figure 1 - Temperature Rule
Figure 2 - Figure 2 - Invalid temperature
Troubleshooting Non-compliant/Invalid pod temperatures 🌡️
There are many factors which would result in a non-compliant/invalid temperature to come through.
Step 1 - Check the Positioning of the Pods
The Pods need to be situated as centrally as possible inside of the appliance. It is best practice to place your Pod at the back of the appliance on the middle shelf as shown in the pictures below.
In a walk-in appliance, you need place the pod away from the fan and the door. It should be but should be located on one of the side walls as shown in the picture below:
In a chest fridge or freezer, the only option you may have, is to leave the pod inside at the bottom.
Once the pod(s) have been repositioned, monitor the temperature readings to see if they are within the configured compliant ranges. This may take some time as the pod temperature adjusts.
If this does not resolve the issue, please proceed to Step 2.
Step 2 - Is the pod reading out by 1 or 2 degrees?
If the pod reading is out by 1 or 2 degrees than the defined rule, then ideally its best to change the temperature rule. Please note that you should always have approval to change the temperature rules, especially when the appliance is storing high risk products. To do this is as follows:
Click on Settings (cog wheel – marked with a red box in the image below) for the appliance in question:
Scroll down to Temperature Rules section.
Adjust the Success temperature rule e.g., from 0 to 5 to 0 to 8.
Click on Submit.
Monitor the temperature readings to see if they are within the configured compliant ranges. This may take some time as the Pod temperature adjusts.
If this does not resolve the issue, or if the if pod reading is out by more than 2 degrees, please proceed to Step 3.
Step 3 - Are any appliance doors open, doors constantly being opened and closed or maintenance being carried out?
If any appliance doors are open, please close them.
If appliance doors are constantly being opened and closed during specific times such as Lunchtime, then it might be best to setup an Excluded Time frame as follows:
Click on Settings (cog wheel – marked with a red box in the image below) for the appliance in question:
Scroll down to ‘Excluded Time frames’ section and click on ‘+Add’.
Check all the ‘Days’ boxes in question.
Type in the Start Time and End Time.
You screen should look something like the one shown below:
Click on Submit.
Digital Food Safety (DFS) will stop recording any temperatures during the defined excluded timeframe. You will therefore not need to resolve any non-compliant temperatures for the period in question, during which any appliance doors are being opened. The same technique can be applied for regular maintenance and deliveries.
Monitor the temperature readings to see if they are within the configured compliant ranges. This may take some time as the Pod temperature adjusts.
If this does not resolve the issue, then please proceed to Step 4.
Step 4 - Does the Pod have enough ‘breathing room’ / air circulation?
When a pod takes a reading, other factors such as air circulation can impact the appliance temperatures.
Ensure there is nothing blocking the pod or too close to the pod.
Give at least 5cm of ‘breathing room’ for air circulation, etc.
Monitor the temperature readings to see if they are within the configured compliant ranges. This may take some time as the Pod temperature adjusts.
If this does not resolve the issue, then please proceed to Step 5.
Step 5 - Appliance going into defrosting mode.
Click on the graph icon for the appliance in question as shown in the picture below – marked with a red box:
Can you see a pattern at regular times where temperature is increasing - decreasing – increasing – like a wave? If so, this is a strong indication that the appliance is going into regular defrosting mode. Please check appliance manual to see if it can be turned off. If not, then it’s ideal to setup Excluded Time zone for those specific hours during which the appliance goes into defrost mode. See Step 2 as to how to setup Excluded Time zone rule.
If after defrosting mode is disabled or if Excluded Time Zone rule has been implemented, then monitor the temperature readings to see if they are within the configured compliant ranges. This may take some time as the Pod temperature adjusts.
If this does not resolve the issue, then please proceed to Step 6.
Step 6 - Fan issues
Is the appliance fan working as expected? If not, please contact your maintenance engineer.
If the fan is working, please proceed to Step 7.
Step 7 - Take temperature with a probe.
If all the above has been checked and you are still receiving non-compliant/invalid temperature, then please do the following:
Take temperature with a Navitas Smarprobe (without the needle):
Tap on ‘Goods in’.
Select who you are.
Select Supplier.
Select either ‘Frozen’ or ‘ambient’ – it does not matter which one you select.
Select any food item – again it does not matter which one you select.
Point the probe IR in the direction where the pod is and see what reading you get. (Don’t hit submit).
Is the probe reading same as the pod’s ‘invalid’ reading? If yes, then the appliance could be faulty – see next step below – non-Navitas probe. If no – then the pod is faulty and may need replacing. Please contact Navitas Support.
Take a temperature with non-Navitas probe. Is the temperature reading same as the pod’s ‘invalid’ reading? If yes, then the appliance could be faulty. Please contact your maintenance engineer. If not – then the pod is faulty and may need replacing. Please contact Navitas Support.
If, after the pod has been replaced or maintenance engineer has repaired the issue, you are still receiving non-complaint temperatures then please contact Navitas Safety Support by clicking on the Orange Speech Bubble at the bottom right of this page.