--- title: "Smeg LED 31 on the BCC12: descaling due or required" description: "What LED 31 means on Smeg LED 31 on the BCC12: descaling due or requireds, what to check before booking, and when it is not a failure at all." url: "https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-led-31/" --- # Smeg LED 31 on the BCC12: descaling due or required The BCC12 counts water by your hardness setting. ## What LED 31 actually means. The BCC12 counts water by your hardness setting. First LED 31 lights steadily and drinks still come for a limited time; if descaling is left too long, it flashes and the machine locks every function until the cycle is done. Smeg coffee machine display · also shown as descaling alarm, LED 31 flashing, LED 31 on What to do when LED 31 shows on the coffee machine ### Kind of code Mode, not a failure The machine is doing what it was set to do, not wearing out: a rinse that runs through the spouts at switch-on and switch-off, a descale or filter reminder counting the water that has passed through, an energy-save mode that darkens the screen after a quiet spell, or a demo mode left on from the showroom that lights the keys and pours nothing. No part is needed; finishing the cycle the display asks for, or a key sequence from the manual, ends it. ### Usually leads to No repair Fill the tank to MAX with water and a descaler Smeg recommends, place a container of at least 1.4 liters under the spout and steam wand, and select the White menu. ### Shows up as What a Coffee Machine Error Code or Warning Symbol Means A coffee machine error code may show as a short string of letters and numbers, a flashing symbol for water, grounds or the brew unit, a short sentence on a text display, or a machine that stops with one light blinking. ### Make Smeg A Smeg espresso machine is repaired at the owner's kitchen counter after a single test shot shows where the trouble begins. ### Source Smeg BCC12 bean to cup coffee machine user manual (linked from the US BCC12BLMUS page) Smeg BCC12 countertop bean-to-cup machine (US BCC12BLMUS). It has no text display: alarms are numbered LEDs on the control panel, and the number is the one printed in Smeg's manual. ## Before you book, in this order. Each step comes from Smeg's own guidance for LED 31 on its coffee machines. Follow it to the end: the last card says whether this is a visit. 01 Fill the tank to MAX with water and a descaler Smeg recommends, place a container of at least 1.4 liters under the spout and steam wand, and select the White menu. 02 Hold keys 26 and 24 together for 3 seconds and stay nearby for the roughly 30-minute cycle and the rinse that follows. 03 If LED 31 is still lit after the cycle and key 26 blinks white, run another descale; book a visit if it will not clear after that. ### Cleared? The message is gone, and the machine grinds, heats and pours a full cup again with no new part. If it comes back within the week, or the descale or filter reminder returns straight after a finished cycle, say so in the booking. ### What not to do A steady light is a recommendation, not a lockout. The flashing light is the one that stops the machine, and it is not a failure: it clears with a descale. ## What you may notice with it. The coffee machine problems LED 31 tends to arrive with. Answer these at the coffee machine before anyone is booked. [All problems](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/problems/) Before you call ### [What a Coffee Machine Error Code or Warning Symbol Means](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/problems/coffee-machine-error-code/) [All 7 causes, cheapest first](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/problems/coffee-machine-error-code/) It also comes with - [**Coffee Machine Descale Message Will Not Go Away**](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/problems/coffee-machine-descale-message-wont-clear/) Problem ### What a Coffee Machine Error Code or Warning Symbol Means 7 causes, cheapest first No repair indicated ## Nothing to repair. The machine is doing what it was set to do, not wearing out: a rinse that runs through the spouts at switch-on and switch-off, a descale or filter reminder counting the water that has passed through, an energy-save mode that darkens the screen after a quiet spell, or a demo mode left on from the showroom that lights the keys and pours nothing. No part is needed; finishing the cycle the display asks for, or a key sequence from the manual, ends it. [How to read what your coffee machine is telling you](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/problems/coffee-machine-error-code/) ## Smeg coffee machines. A Smeg espresso machine is repaired at the owner's kitchen counter after a single test shot shows where the trouble begins. [Smeg coffee machine repair](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/brands/smeg/) More Smeg codes [FILL WATER TANK WITH FRESH WATER](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-fill-water-tank-with-fresh-water/) [EMPTY GROUND CONTAINER](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-empty-ground-container/) [GROUND TOO FINE. ADJUST GRIND LEVEL 1 CLICK WHILE IN OPERATION](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-ground-too-fine/) [INSERT BREWING UNIT](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-insert-brewing-unit/) [WATER CIRCUIT EMPTY PRESS OK TO START FILLING PROCESS](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-water-circuit-empty/) [DESCALING NEEDED PRESS OK TO START (~45MIN)](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-descaling-needed/) [GENERAL ALARM: REFER TO USER MANUAL](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-general-alarm/) [CLEANING PLEASE WAIT](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-cleaning-please-wait/) [TURN THE MILK FROTH ADJUSTMENT KNOB TO START CLEANING](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-turn-milk-froth-knob-to-clean/) [LED 30](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-led-30/) [LED 29](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-led-29/) [All buttons flash simultaneously](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-all-buttons-flash/) [All 15 Smeg codes](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/#codes-smeg) Mode, not a failure on other makes [Bertazzoni Descaling needed. Press OK to start (~45min)](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/bertazzoni-descaling-needed/) [Bosch Please run Calc'nClean program!](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/bosch-please-run-calcnclean/) [Fisher & Paykel DESCALING NEEDED](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/fisher-and-paykel-descaling-needed/) [Fulgor Milano PLEASE DESCALE!](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/fulgor-milano-please-descale/) [Gaggenau Cleaning and descaling](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/gaggenau-cleaning-and-descaling/) [JennAir DESCALE!](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/jennair-descale/) [Jura Too hot](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/jura-too-hot/) [Miele Descale the appliance](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/miele-descale-the-appliance/) [All 23 codes of this kind](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/#family-mode) Smeg builds this ### Built-in coffee system The coffee machine set flush into a tall kitchen cabinet, filled from a water tank behind its front, grinding beans and brewing each cup on its own before sliding out on rails for service. Smeg builds this ### Countertop espresso machine The fully automatic bean-to-cup machine that stands on the counter, grinding, tamping, brewing and frothing at the touch of a key, with its tank, hopper and grounds drawer all reached from the top and the front. Smeg builds this ### Manual espresso machine The home espresso machine with a portafilter you fill and lock in by hand, a pump and a boiler or thermoblock inside, and a steam wand for milk you froth yourself. ## In Smeg's own words > If the LED (31) flashes, it means that a descaling cycle is mandatory to proceed with further dispensing of drinks. [Smeg BCC12 bean to cup coffee machine user manual (linked from the US BCC12BLMUS page)](https://doc.smeg.it/qr/91477A955/EN) [Smeg BCC12 bean to cup coffee machine user manual (linked from the US BCC12BLMUS page)](https://doc.smeg.it/qr/91477A955/EN) [Smeg BCC12 bean to cup coffee machine user manual (linked from the US BCC12BLMUS page)](https://doc.smeg.it/qr/91477A955/EN) Every code on this site is taken from the manufacturer's documentation, never from a forum or a parts listing. Smeg BCC12 countertop bean-to-cup machine (US BCC12BLMUS). It has no text display: alarms are numbered LEDs on the control panel, and the number is the one printed in Smeg's manual. ## Smeg LED 31 coffee machine 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. 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Fill the tank to MAX with water and a descaler Smeg recommends, place a container of at least 1.4 liters under the spout and steam wand, and select the White menu. ### Why is my Smeg BCC12 locked with a flashing light? A flashing LED 31 means descaling was put off past its limit. Run the descale cycle and the machine unlocks. ### Why does LED 31 stay on after I descaled my Smeg BCC12? If key 26 blinks white with LED 31 steady, Smeg says the descaler dose was too weak for a full clean. Run the cycle again with the correct amount. ### How big a container do I need to descale a Smeg BCC12? At least 1.4 liters, placed under both the coffee spout and the steam wand. --- **[Read on the site: Smeg LED 31 on the BCC12: descaling due or required](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/error-codes/smeg-led-31/)** **[Book a visit with CoffeeMachineRepair.center](https://coffeemachinerepair.center/schedule/)**