Built to Last? The Hidden Dangers Of Climbing Bolts

http://www.climbing.com/climber/built-to-last/

I found this online and thought I should share it with all you would be Sport Climbers.This article highlights the dangers of using permanent protection. Protection that is placed by someone else may not be necesarily trustworthy. Bolts may be loose, corroded, or have a mix of corrosion and stress known as Stress Corrosion Cracking (SCC). Anyone can place bolt on a mountain but not everyone can place it correctly. This can lead to loose bolts that can pull out of the wall. Different combinations of metals can also lead to corrosion. For instance, using a stainless steel hanger with a carbon steel bolt can cause an electric current that alters the chemical structure of the bolt. Not everyone knows about this and since anyone can place a bolt we have no way of knowing if that bolt is structurally sound. Bolts can also break due to corrosion and stress. After corroding for awhile bolts cannot withstand the same amount of stress that they use to be able to hold. The combination of the corrosion paired with the stress of arresting a fall can cause the bolt to break. This article explains in greater detail the dangers of bolts and the issues they pose for safety.