When Alcove evaluates a formula in a model, it checks that all the fields it needs are present, filled in, and compatible. If something's off, the formula will display an error code instead of a result. This guide explains what each error code means and what to do about it.
How To Resolve a Formula Error
Find the field displaying an error code in your model.
Read the error code to identify the type of issue (see reference table below).
Follow the resolution steps for that error type.
Once the issue is fixed, the formula will automatically recalculate.
Error Code Reference
#REF! — Field No Longer Exists
The formula references an expected field that has been deleted from the document.
What happened: An expected field was deleted from a document or a template was updated and an expected field the formula relied on was removed.
What to do: Re-add the missing expected field to the document, or update the formula to reference a field that still exists.
#EMPTY! — Field Has No Value
The expected field exists in the document but hasn't been filled in yet.
What happened: The field is there, but no value has been entered — either manually or via data extraction.
What to do: Fill in the missing field. If the field should have been auto-populated by extraction, check that the source file was uploaded correctly and that extraction ran successfully.
#UNIT! — Unit Mismatch
The formula is trying to combine values with incompatible units.
What happened: For example, an emission factor (kgCO2e/kg) is being added to a weight (kg), or a date field is being used in a numeric calculation.
What to do: Review the fields being used in the formula and make sure their units are compatible for the operation. If you didn't set up the formula yourself, flag this to your project administrator, the formula may need to be corrected.
⚠️ Watch out for grouping in compound units. If a unit has multiple terms in the denominator, they must be wrapped in parentheses. For example, kgCO2e/t*km and kgCO2e/(t*km) are not the same. The first divides by t then multiplies by km, while the second divides by the product of t and km. Using the wrong format can cause a unit mismatch error even if the fields themselves look correct. When in doubt, add parentheses around any multi-term denominator.
#NULL! — Upstream Field Error
This field depends on another field that is itself in an error state.
What happened: Field B can't calculate because Field A — which it depends on — has its own error (like a #REF! or divide-by-zero issue).
What to do: Trace back to the source field causing the original error and resolve that first. Once the upstream field is fixed, downstream fields should recalculate automatically.
Important Notes
Error codes will clear automatically once the underlying issue is resolved. However, if they don't just perform a manual refresh.
If you see #NULL! on multiple fields, start with the field furthest "upstream" in the formula chain.