The short answer
Most unresponsive Icon control panels are not faulty panels. A spill or a film on the glass, an active control lock, or a thermal cut-out after heavy use accounts for the majority, and all three clear without tools. The control module itself is a real but much rarer verdict.
What you observe at the panel
- Pads respond to some taps and not others — Typical of a film or a residue on the glass rather than a dead panel.
- A lock indication is lit and nothing responds — The control lock is doing exactly what it is for; it is often set by a wipe-down.
- The panel went dead mid-cook and came back later — The thermal pattern: it works cold and refuses when hot.
- Display lit, elements never heat — Splits the fault: the panel is alive, so the question moves to the power module.
- An indication flashes and the cooktop refuses to start — The control has a verdict of its own and it is telling you.
- Not this fault: one element is dead while the panel behaves normally — That is an element or a power-module branch, not a control-panel one.
Ranked for this cooktop
- Liquid, grease film or an object on the touch area — First, and by a distance on built-in glass tops. The pad cannot tell a wet cloth from a fingertip.
- Control lock active — Second: easy to set by accident while cleaning, and it presents exactly like a dead panel.
- Thermal shutdown of the module under the glass — Third, and the reason a heavy cooking session precedes so many of these complaints. Blocked ventilation in the cabinet cut-out makes it routine.
- Supply interruption on one leg of a two-pole circuit — Fourth: the panel may light while the heating side has no supply, which looks like a control fault and is not.
- Ribbon or connector between panel and module unseated — Fifth, and typical after a countertop repair or an installation disturbance.
- Touch control module failed — Last. It happens, but it is the diagnosis you reach after the five above are clear.
The order that works here
- Clean and dry the whole glass surface, then retry — It removes the leading cause before you invest a minute in anything else.
- Look for a lock indication and clear it — Free, instant, and it explains a surprising share of dead panels.
- Let a hot cooktop cool completely and retry — Separates a thermal cut-out from a failure in one step.
- Check the breaker and both legs of the supply — A cooktop on a two-pole breaker can lose one leg and still light its display.
What the owner can do
- Wipe the glass with a cooktop cleaner and dry it completely — Grease films are invisible and read as a permanent fingertip.
Tools: cooktop cleaner, clothAbout 10 min
- Hold the lock pad for the length the panel legend describes — Clears an accidental lock without any disassembly.
About 5 min
- Leave the cooktop off and cool for an hour, then retry every pad — A panel that works cold has told you it was a thermal event.
About 60 min
- Switch the breaker off and on once, then retry — A single clean power cycle resolves a latched control state.
About 10 min
- Check the cabinet below for blocked ventilation or stored items against the underside — Restored clearance prevents the thermal cut-out from repeating.
About 20 min
- Stop before lifting the cooktop out of the countertop cut-out — The supply terminations are underneath, and that is service work.
Before touching anything under the counter
Safety
Switch off the breaker before any panel or the cooktop itself is disturbed. A capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. Do not run a glass cooktop with a cracked surface, and never pour water onto a hot glass top to cool it: thermal shock cracks the ceramic, and a cracked top over live terminals is both an electrical and a cut hazard.
When to call
Call when the glass is clean and dry, the lock is clear, the cooktop is cold and a pad still refuses; the remaining candidates sit under the surface. Call as well if the panel lights while no element heats, if the display shows an indication that returns after a power cycle, or if the glass is cracked or chipped anywhere. Cracked glass takes the cooktop out of service straight away.
Other pages for this cooktop
Where this page stops
It covers the cooktop class under this badge and not a single family or model. A family-specific or model-specific page, where one exists, holds the narrower answer and is linked below. Deliberately omitted: lock-hold durations by panel generation, the meaning of specific display indications, module part numbers and the differences between the induction, radiant and gas members of the range.
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
