Reference

Common Pitfalls

Diagnose empty panes, pictures in the wrong place, colours that shift, drawings that disappear, and the runtime errors a render can raise.

Updated October 12, 2026Publisher Alien_AlgorithmsPine Script v6

Nothing appears

Cause	Fix
Every cell is transparent.	A new field starts at `na` or `-1`. Check that the cells are actually written before the draw call.
The draw call never runs.	Its guard is too strict, for example a `bar_index` check larger than the chart's history. Load more bars or reduce the columns.
A rolling source has fewer than two columns.	A scroll draws nothing until two columns were pushed. Check that `push()` runs on confirmed bars.
The opacity is 0.	A level with no opacity is not drawn. With `opacity(0, 100)` the weakest level is invisible by design.
Every value sits below the range.	With `valueRange()`, values at or under the minimum take the lowest level, which a heatmap preset draws faintly. Check the bounds against the data.
The picture is outside the visible scale.	In a separate pane, add invisible plots at the vertical bounds. On the price chart, the bounds must be prices.

Wrong place or orientation

The picture is upside down

Row 0 is the bottom row. Write the picture bottom-up, or call invertRows() on the Canvas.

The picture is mirrored in time

Column 0 is the oldest bar and the last column is the newest. When reading history with an offset, the offset for a column is columns - 1 - column.

A heatmap does not line up with price

The script must draw on the price chart, through overlay = true or forceOverlay(), and bottom and top must be the prices the first and last row cover. On a log-scaled chart, set logarithmicY() as well.

Cells sit between candles

A column spans from one bar to the next. That is how a grid placed on bar positions divides the time axis, and it is the same for every column.

Colour problems

Symptom	Explanation
Colours change from bar to bar.	Automatic scaling follows the data. Use `valueRange()` to keep a colour tied to a value.
A value field shows only two colours.	`newCanvas()` starts with one level per colour given. Add `colorLevels()`.
Weak values are invisible.	Lower `gamma()` below 1, or raise the first argument of `opacity()`.
The gradient looks banded.	Raise `colorLevels()`. More levels cost more geometry.
Overlapping shapes do not darken.	Same-colour shapes in one batch form a union. Use a second colour or a second Canvas.

Missing or replaced drawings

Symptom	Cause	Fix
Shapes vanish when the field draws.	Both were drawn by one Canvas, and each draw replaces the last.	Use one Canvas per layer.
An older layer disappears.	The script went past 100 polylines and TradingView removed the oldest.	Give each Canvas a `drawingLimit()` share and watch `polyline.all.size()`.
Only part of the script draws.	`max_polylines_count` was left at its default.	Set `max_polylines_count = 100` in the declaration.
Your own polylines disappear.	They share the same pool as every Canvas.	Count them in the budget.

Runtime errors

PineCanvas validates its input and stops the script with a short message when something cannot be drawn.

Message	Meaning
`lookback must be 0 or >=columns`	`drawLookback()` was given a lookback smaller than the field's column count.
`bar index is negative`	The left edge is before the first bar. Wait for more bars or draw fewer columns.
`X is >10000 bars back; use time`	The left edge is more than 10,000 bars back. Use `drawTime()`.
`X is >500 future bars`	The right edge is more than 500 bars ahead of the current bar.
`X span must be >=columns`	`draw()` was given fewer bars than the field has columns.
`yMax must exceed yMin`	`top` is not greater than `bottom`.
`log Y requires yMin>0`	`logarithmicY()` is on and `bottom` is zero or negative.
`need N drawings, above this Canvas's drawingLimit.`	The picture needs more polylines than its Canvas may use. Use fewer colours or less detail, or raise `drawingLimit()`.
`index must be -1 or 0..N.`	A palette field holds an index outside the palette.
`palettes needs 2..100 colors`	A palette or gradient has fewer than 2 or more than 100 colours.
`colorLevels must be 2..100`	A style value is out of range. The same form is used for opacity, gamma, and drawingLimit.
`valueRange requires max>min`	`valueRange()` was given a maximum that is not above the minimum.
`push size must equal scroll rows`	The array given to `push()` does not have exactly `rows` values.
`field cell out of bounds`	A row or column passed to `get()` or `set()` is outside the field.
`shape corners need from_time()`	A shape point was not created with `chart.point.from_time()`.
`shape queue >100000 vertices`	Too many vertices were queued before `drawShapes()`.
`shape colors exceed 100`	The queued shapes use more than 100 distinct fill colours.
`shapes exceed drawingLimit`	The queued shapes need more polylines than the Canvas may use.
`Canvas is na; use newCanvas()`	A method was called on a Canvas variable that was never assigned.

Codes such as E7

A message that is only a short code marks an internal consistency check that valid input should never reach. If you see one, note the field size and style that produced it and report it on the TradingView publication.

Timeouts

A loop that runs longer than 500 milliseconds on one bar stops the script. Find out first whether the time goes into your own loops or into the render, using the Pine Profiler. Then lower the colour levels, add a transparent floor, and spread the filling of the source across bars. Performance & Large Images walks through each step.