Entry Steps

Choosing an RV entry step or the part to fix yours

Most people land here for one of two reasons: the electric step quit, or the old fold-out is rickety and they want something solid. Both are covered, but the fix-it path is usually cheaper than you'd guess — a Kwikee step that won't deploy is often a dead jamb switch or a worn motor, not a lost cause.

• Electric vs. manual. Electric Kwikee and Lippert steps deploy when you open the door and retract when you close it. Manual steps like the Lippert Solid Step Triple Step fold down by hand — no motor to fail, and the 400-lb capacity ones feel like house stairs. If you're tired of chasing electrical gremlins, a manual solid step is the upgrade.
• Capacity and material. Check the rating: the Camco folding stool holds 200 lb, the Phoenix USA stainless folding step and Lippert Solid Step run to 400 lb. Stainless and galvanized steel shrug off road spray better than plain steel.
• Repair parts by series. Kwikee and Lippert sell motors, jamb switches, and wet-bolt kits by generation — pre-IMGL and IMGL motors aren't the same, and the A-linkage series has its own conversion kit. Read your existing unit before ordering.
• Step width and stack. Match the new step's width and number of treads to your door height off the ground so the rise feels natural — a 30-inch triple step suits a taller rig, a single or double a lower one.

Once the step itself is sorted, a wrap-around step rug or non-skid tread keeps the mud out of the rig and the footing safe in the wet. If you're also chasing roof access at the back of the coach, the RV ladders are one category over.