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Fold down step sheared in half: VERY dangerous


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#1 kifo4173

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Posted 21 March 2017 - 09:31 PM

Today I was clearing snow off the roof of my Fleet flatbed-one hand on my yakima rack, one foot on my fold down step. I loaded my weight onto the step and 'ping!'. The step broke in half. 

 

It broke directly on the rung itself, not at the bracket or the fold-down mechanism. Pictures to come. 

 

I've contacted FWC and they were shocked. Awaiting a follow-up call from them. I see this as a SERIOUS manufacturing flaw. We all weight our steps to access the roof, and failure could easily result in serious injury. If I hadn't had a good grip on the roof, I would have fallen onto my back from way up the side of my camper. And, like many of you, I use these when I'm miles from cell service and often alone. 

 

Anyone else have this happen before? I've had my camper for 10 months, and cared for it meticulously. This is its third day in the snow. Temperatures around 30, I weigh 165. 

 

Curious to hear community thoughts on this. Will post pictures soon.


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#2 Happyjax

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Posted 21 March 2017 - 10:08 PM

Glad you are okay! Hope it was a fluke....


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#3 longhorn1

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Posted 21 March 2017 - 10:18 PM

Wow, I would have landed with a big thud. Glad you didn't fall. jd
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#4 RicoV

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Posted 21 March 2017 - 11:32 PM

Your pics of this incident could be worth a thousand words in making sense of what happened.  I'm glad you came away more or less unscathed.  Thanks for this alert, and i'll be following your thread very closely, and taking more caution with my own set of steps.

Rico


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#5 BillTheHiker

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Posted 22 March 2017 - 12:01 AM

Is it the Plastic Rubbermaid Portable Entry Step  listed on the options sheet?

 

I just bought one from Walmart so will not use it until I find out.

 

A quick Google search found two reported incidents with the step breaking:

https://www.saferpro...&pcid=442&srt=0


Edited by BillTheHiker, 22 March 2017 - 12:19 AM.

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#6 nikonron

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Posted 22 March 2017 - 12:31 AM

I'm sure that they have a weight rating. :P   Ron


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#7 BillTheHiker

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Posted 22 March 2017 - 12:48 AM

I just read the warning label:

"For indoor use only"

"For use up to 300 lbs"

 

I wonder why the indoor use restriction, given that it is plastic. Maybe because plastic can become brittle in the cold?

 

kifo -how cold was it?


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#8 kifo4173

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Posted 22 March 2017 - 01:44 AM

57F9AC2D BAE0 4DD6 8CD6 2577DB164F1B

 

 

Not a plastic step. Steel. Any ideas? Anyone have this happen before? 


Edited by kifo4173, 22 March 2017 - 01:47 AM.

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#9 The Unshaven

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Posted 22 March 2017 - 02:13 AM

Is that rust (corrosion) on the inner part of the step? Was it there when the step failed or did it develop after it broke? If it was there at the time of failure it may indicate that the step had a crack or some other problem that created a weak point(s) that lead to the incident...
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#10 PaulT

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Posted 22 March 2017 - 05:14 AM

With rust internally, it would appear that a crack allowed water to enter long enough in the past to allow that corrosion to develop. The other shear surface doesn't appear to exhibit any corrosion.

Good luck that you had a grip on the roof.

Paul
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