Communities

Writing
Writing
Codidact Meta
Codidact Meta
The Great Outdoors
The Great Outdoors
Photography & Video
Photography & Video
Scientific Speculation
Scientific Speculation
Cooking
Cooking
Electrical Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Judaism
Judaism
Languages & Linguistics
Languages & Linguistics
Software Development
Software Development
Mathematics
Mathematics
Christianity
Christianity
Code Golf
Code Golf
Music
Music
Physics
Physics
Linux Systems
Linux Systems
Power Users
Power Users
Tabletop RPGs
Tabletop RPGs
Community Proposals
Community Proposals
tag:snake search within a tag
answers:0 unanswered questions
user:xxxx search by author id
score:0.5 posts with 0.5+ score
"snake oil" exact phrase
votes:4 posts with 4+ votes
created:<1w created < 1 week ago
post_type:xxxx type of post
Search help
Notifications
Mark all as read See all your notifications »
Q&A

When should a belay device be replaced?

+0
−0

I'm about to purchase my first belay device, and am wondering how long I might expect it to last. What signs should I be looking at to determine when a belay device eventually needs to be replaced?

History
Why does this post require attention from curators or moderators?
You might want to add some details to your flag.
Why should this post be closed?

This post was sourced from https://outdoors.stackexchange.com/q/8325. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

0 comment threads

2 answers

You are accessing this answer with a direct link, so it's being shown above all other answers regardless of its score. You can return to the normal view.

+1
−0

Couple of red lines for me:

  • As soon as there is anything resembling a sharp edge on any point of the equipment, this can cut your rope.
  • If any part of it is broken, visibly cracked or obviously heavily worn
  • If it's been dropped form a great height (though the whole micro cracks thing is a little contentious, better safe than sorry)
  • If any kind of "groove" starts to form (wether that is where the rope attaches of where the belay device interacts with a carbiners)

Like Fred says, if your in doubt bin it. Why take the risk, they're typically cheap to replace.

History
Why does this post require attention from curators or moderators?
You might want to add some details to your flag.

This post was sourced from https://outdoors.stackexchange.com/a/8331. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

0 comment threads

+1
−0

The minute you have any doubt about it.

There really is no other way to answer this question. There are so many different devices with different levels of mechanical complexity and different use and wear patterns, that it's impossible to describe what to look for in each one.

Having said that, most recreational climbers would have a very hard time climbing enough to wear out a belay device in less than 5 years. Generally they are only replaced when dropped from height or something newer/better comes along.

The primary way belay devices get worn out is using them to rappel. Rappeling will wear a device much faster than belaying. The more mud, dirt and bad weather the device sees the sooner it will need replacing.

History
Why does this post require attention from curators or moderators?
You might want to add some details to your flag.

This post was sourced from https://outdoors.stackexchange.com/a/8327. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

0 comment threads

Sign up to answer this question »