Step is not working

[Ajhamby]

Our power step has stopped working, don’t hear the motor at all.

[kb0zke]

Welcome. The normal procedure for troubleshooting an electrical problem is to start at one end and work toward the other. In your case, you can start at the fuse or breaker panel and work toward the motor, or you can start at the motor and work toward the fuse/breaker panel. Going from the fuse toward the motor you are looking for a spot that has power and then the next spot doesn't. Going the other way, of course, you are looking for a spot that doesn't have power and the next one does.


I'd probably start at the fuse or breaker and make sure that it hasn't blown or tripped. If anything else is on that circuit, that's an easy check. Assuming that the fuse or breaker is fine, follow the wires toward the motor, checking every connection for power and tightness. Eventually you will come to the motor. At that point you are also checking for a good ground connection.


When you run into an intermittent electrical problem it is often caused by a poor ground connection, so many people start there. Since your step has completely stopped working, I'm guessing that you have either a blown fuse/tripped circuit breaker, a broken/disconnected connection, or a burnt out motor.


If you don't already have a multimeter you need to get one and learn how to use it. You can afford to buy a really good one for what it will cost you to pay someone to troubleshoot your problem. Fortunately, you don't need a really good one - a reasonably good one will do. Once you get comfortable with it, though, a better one will start to look good. Beware! <grin>

[orlik]

Originally Posted by Ajhamby

Our power step has stopped working, don’t hear the motor at all.

It could be the magnetic switch. Take a magnet and run it across the switch. You should here the click of the relay. If you don't hear the click and the step does not come out then the switch may need to be replaced. That would be a simple fix. Everything else associated with the step is a pain (excluding fuse or breaker). I've had to remove my step and replace the motor and its fairly involved so you to have some technical skills and lots of patience.

[Grandpa B]

I have a 2017 AI GT EXT step that just started failing to retract when the side door was closed. I did several tests to determine just what was the problem such as
1) close the side door and start the engine - the automatic retract of the step worked so I knew that the motor was working and the step was not jammed. 2) I tried using a magnet on the door mounted switch but I guess mine wasn’t strong enough so nothing happened 3) I thumped the magnetic switch with a screwdriver and woohoo! The step retracted so I can confirm what orlik said that I had a failing magnetic switch. I had a spare in my parts box so the fix took all of 15 minutes. There are several threads on the forum about that dang step and steps you can take to find out what your problem is if not the magnetic switch. The switch is inexpensive to order from Amazon. Best of luck

[Scottmarto]

Where is the magnet on the door. Mine is doing exactly the same thing
Thanks

[orlik]

Originally Posted by Scottmarto

Where is the magnet on the door. Mine is doing exactly the same thing
Thanks

If you open the sliding door all the way you will see the magnetic reed switch at the bottom left, attached with two small screws to the door sill. It's black, about 1.25 inches long and about .25 inches wide. The magnet is is attached to the left bottom edge of the door. With the door open you can wave a magnet across the reed switch and the step will extend or retract if its working properly. I've had to replace the switch twice already. I'm still having some intermittent problems so I keep a magnet handy in case I need it when the step does not retract or extend. I'm not 100% sure but I think the relay is behind the rear base of the sink cabinet. The reed switch wires run underneath the fixed screen to the relay I assume. I have never had to mess with the relay. But if you think you have to get access to it you will have to remove both screens. Not too hard but a bit of a pain. Hope this helps.