Smeg SHO status codewhat it means
Not a fault at all. The oven is in showroom mode, so the control panel works and no heating is possible. Smeg publish how to switch it off.
Before you start
What is the display doing?
The right answer depends on what you can see. Pick the one that matches.
Choose the option on the left that matches what your appliance is doing, and the answer for that case appears here.
What is the display doing?
That is showroom mode, and Smeg are unambiguous: no heating is possible while it is set. Nothing is broken and no engineer is needed.
Go into the secondary menu and switch showroom mode off. It takes about a minute and costs nothing.
What is the display doing?
Still worth checking the mode, because Smeg list it in their own troubleshooting for an oven that does not heat up, alongside a defective fuse and a function knob that has not been set.
Check the secondary menu first, then the function knob, then the fuse and the isolator, in that order of cost.
What is the display doing?
A different problem entirely. Showroom mode keeps the panel alive, so a dead display means power is not arriving rather than that a setting is on.
Smeg’s own checks are the mains supply and whether the omnipolar switch upstream of the appliance is in the on position.
What SHO means
If your Smeg oven lights up, accepts settings, shows the time and then never gets warm, read this before you book anybody. Smeg publish that when SHO or S is shown on the display, the oven is in showroom mode and no heating will be possible, and they publish how to turn it off. Showroom mode exists so that a retailer can put a working control panel on a shop floor without a live oven behind it. The manual describes it as being for exhibitors only, and says it deactivates all the heating elements while keeping the control panel active. That combination is exactly why it is so often mistaken for a serious fault. Nothing looks wrong. There is no fault code in the usual sense, the display behaves normally, the fan may run, and the oven simply does not heat. Anyone diagnosing it as a dead element or a failed thermostat is diagnosing a setting. It matters most for appliances bought ex-display, at a discount, or from a clearance sale, and for anything that came out of a showroom. Second on the list is a new installation where the mode was switched on to demonstrate the panel and never switched off.
Smeg reinforce the point in their own troubleshooting: among the causes they list for an oven that does not heat up are a defective fuse, a function knob that has not been set, and checking whether it has been set to showroom mode. Turning it off means going into the secondary menu, which is also worth knowing about for its own sake. Smeg’s published route is this: with the oven on standby, turn the far left control knob to activate the light, press and hold the control for at least five seconds, and the secondary menu options appear. Move through them by turning the dial to the right, press the dial in to select the option you want, and turn it right or left to switch that option on or off.
The Portofino manual describes the same menu with the two actions the other way round, turning the temperature knob to change a setting between on and off and pressing it to move to the next one, so if your panel does not respond to the first order, try the second. The same menu holds four other settings, three of which produce their own complaints. Child lock, which the manual says locks the controls automatically after one minute of normal operation without any intervention, and which can be released temporarily by holding the temperature knob down for five seconds. Eco-logic, or low power mode, which Smeg name as the reason cooking times can be longer than the tables say. Keep warm. And timed light, or eco-light, which the manual says switches the oven light off automatically one minute from the start of cooking, and which is harmless. If you have inherited an appliance whose settings you did not choose, it is worth walking through all five while you are in there.
What causes it
| Cause | What is actually happening | How likely |
|---|---|---|
| The appliance came from a showroom floor | The single commonest reason. An ex-display cooker sold on at a discount often reaches its new kitchen with the mode still switched on. | Common |
| The mode was demonstrated and left on | A retailer or installer showing off the control panel switches it on and forgets it, so the very first attempt at cooking fails. | Common |
| It was switched on accidentally in the secondary menu | The menu is reached by holding a control for five seconds and holds five settings, so it can be entered and altered without any intention. | Occasional |
| The function knob has not been set | Smeg list this separately as a cause of an oven that does not heat up, and it produces the same complaint without any code being shown. | Occasional |
| Eco-logic mode mistaken for no heat | Low power mode makes cooking take longer than the tables indicate, which reads as a weak oven rather than as a setting somebody chose. | Occasional |
What to try yourself
Look at the display for SHO or S. Smeg publish that either means showroom mode is on and no heating is possible.
With the oven on standby, turn the far left control knob to activate the light.
Press and hold the control for at least five seconds until the secondary menu options appear.
Turn the dial to the right to move through the options, press the dial in to select showroom mode, then turn it to switch the setting off. The Portofino manual gives the two actions the other way round — turn to change on or off, press to move to the next setting — so if the first order does nothing, try that.
While you are in the menu, check child lock, eco-logic, keep warm and timed light too, particularly on an appliance whose settings you did not choose.
Leave the menu and set the oven to heat. If it still does not, check the function knob is actually set and that the fuse and isolator are on.
Get a qualified appliance engineer to look at your Smeg SHO
We do not pass enquiries to a repair firm, so there is no form here. When you book a qualified appliance engineer, tell them the make, the model and the exact code or message on the display, and ask whether they carry parts for this make — that is what turns one visit into a repair rather than a quote.
What it costs to fix
Typical repair cost
£0
Time on site
5 minutes
Nothing whatsoever. This is a setting rather than a fault, and Smeg publish the sequence to turn it off. The only cost worth avoiding is the engineer visit somebody books before checking the display.
Typical UK prices including parts and labour, updated September 2026. Your quote may differ.
Own this appliance and had this code? . Nothing is published until a person has read it.
Related Smeg fault codes
- U400Get it checkedSmeg publish six words for this: wrong connection, connect the equipment properly. On a hardwired range cooker that means an electrician rather than anything you can do.Related: same brand
- E2Get it checkedOverheating of the inductor on the hob, but E2 is also in Smeg’s pyrolytic oven list. Which display it is on changes the answer completely.Related: same brand
- Er03Usually simple to fixA knob or button is being read as held on. On these knob-operated range cookers that usually means a knob kept turned to A too long. Release it, then clean the hob as Smeg say.Related: same brand
- E6Get it checkedPower failure to the power board. Smeg publish a timed remedy rather than a flick of the switch: turn the appliance off for a full five minutes.Related: same brand
- E5Get it checkedThe hob has judged the mains voltage signal invalid. Smeg say to check the supply voltage, which on a hardwired cooker is an electrician’s job rather than yours.Related: same brand
- EAGet it checkedA power circuit board error on the induction hob. Rangemaster publish an EA too, describing something different, so check which brand’s table you are reading.Related: same brand
Own a Smeg range cooker? Save it and its codes come first next time.
Related guides
Common questions about Smeg SHO
I bought this ex-display and it has never heated. Is it broken?
Check for SHO or S on the display before you assume anything. Showroom mode is designed for shop floors: it disables every heating element and leaves the control panel fully working, so an ex-display cooker behaves exactly like a dead oven with a healthy display. Smeg publish the mode and the route to switch it off, and switching it off costs nothing.
What else is in the secondary menu?
Five settings, and three of them cause complaints of their own. Child lock, which locks the controls automatically after a minute without input. Showroom mode. Low power or eco-logic mode, which Smeg name as the reason cooking times can exceed the tables. Keep warm. And timed light, or eco-light, which the manual says turns the oven light off a minute into cooking. On an inherited or second-hand appliance it is worth checking all five in one go.
My controls keep locking themselves. Is that showroom mode?
No, that sounds like the child lock, and Smeg publish that it engages automatically after one minute of normal operation without any intervention from the user. They also publish the temporary release: hold the temperature knob down for five seconds. A minute after your last setting it locks itself again, which is exactly why it feels like a fault.
Everything takes longer to cook than the recipe says.
Check eco-logic before you distrust the oven. Smeg list low power mode in their own troubleshooting as the answer to cooking times being longer than those indicated in the table, and it lives in the same secondary menu as showroom mode. It is a setting rather than a failing element, and it is switched off the same way.
Technical review
Not reviewed by an engineer
No engineer has read this page. Severity follows what the manufacturer publishes, and we would rather tell you that than let a byline imply a sign-off.
Sources and how we verified this
We establish the facts from the sources below and then write the explanation ourselves. We do not copy manufacturer wording and we do not host their manuals.
- Manufacturer support portal
- Manufacturer technical and service documentation
This page has not been reviewed by an engineer, and we would rather tell you that than imply otherwise. The severity rating follows what the manufacturer publishes: where they say isolate the appliance and call someone, so do we.