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Help!! Constant v-belt squeak

Cntymnty77

Cntymnty77

1/2 ton status
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Location
Missouri
I’ve had this truck for a year now and up until now, I’ve never had a problem with a squeaky belt(s). Last week I had one start squeaking and then it broke and I had to limp it off the interstate and to the parts store. Got a new one, threw it on and was good to go.

Now today, I started it up to go to the dr and it warmed up fine and as soon as it got warm, it started squeaking again. I quickly looked at it and I think it’s the same belt (crank, alt, water pump). It looks like it all lines up (but maybe rubbing on the front part of the crank pully a hair).

I’d get out there to look at it further but I’ve got the flu right now and don’t want to be out in below freezing temps while it sleets.

Has anyone else had this problem? And maybe a quick fix (but not belt dressing)?
 
Pulley is probably glazed, or the belt is a little loose.
 
tRustyK5 said:
Pulley is probably glazed, or the belt is a little loose.
Click to expand...
Is there any good way to clean it? I feel like I’ve got it as tight as I can but I’ll double check. That’s the only bitch about it, pulling on the alt as I tighten the bolt. I may have to recruit someone to help.
 
I’ve pulled the belts and cleaned the pulleys with carb cleaner

Past that it’s the obvious; good belts, proper alignment, proper tension

Good luck with the cold and the hand
 
A scuff in the groove of the pulley with some 100 grit will help the belt bite a bit better...
 
Happened to me recently crank
Pulley was glazed and pitted
Swapped to a used one in better shape and that worked
 
Agree on the pulley condition,and to tighten alt use a bar through the hole in the mounting bracket to gain leverage,tighten bolts with other hand.
 
Chevy305 said:
New belts stretch as they break in.
Click to expand...
That just came to me today. Started feeling better and went out a little bit ago and checked the belt.. lots of slack.. I tightened it up at the alt but due to the time of night, I’ll start it up tomorrow and see if that works.
Recon 78 said:
Happened to me recently crank
Pulley was glazed and pitted
Swapped to a used one in better shape and that worked
Click to expand...
It sounds like it is coming from the crank pulley but I’m not 100% sure.
 
Some belts just like to squeal....
One on my parent's caravan A/C pump would start chirping every time it was damp or rainy out for some reason,then silence after several miles of driving,if you hit a puddle or shut it off for awhile,it would squeak and chirp again until it dried out again..never did figure out if it was the pulley getting rust on it when it was damp out,or just the belt itself..I put a Gates belt on it and it chirped worse,and decided to just crank the radio up louder..

My 6.2 in my '85 Suburban has the alternator belt howl and screech like hell for a good 5+ minutes after a cold start,and its a good Gates belt and tight enough,all the pulleys look OK too...it has a NAPA rebuilt alternator on it ,but it doesn't overcharge,the volt meter stays at 14 volts after a cold start--the belt finally stops squealing after the injector pump fast idle solenoid kicks down and the batteries have recovered the charge they lost during cranking..

I tried a different belt I had that was a fractional HP one that was 1/2" wide instead of the stock 3/8 or 7/16 width belt and it was silent as a church mouse after a cold start--but the belt didn't sit deep enough in the alternator pulley and it wore the "V" portion down enough to let the cover peel off the belt and it shredded..if I see a pulley with a wider sheave on a bigger truck at a boneyard I'm going to see if I can get it and swap it on and run the thicker belt...

Weird thing is the belt on my pickup's 6.2 never makes a peep,and its the exact same belt and setup as far as the pulleys..
I would not put belt dressing on the belt,that only works for a few minutes and usually makes it worse shortly afterwards..

My friend has had cars at his shop that had brand new belts squeal like a stabbed pig,a Mazda 626 was the worst,he tried a Gates,Dayco,and Goodyear belt on it and they all screeched,the customer wanted it quiet--in desparation he went to a Mazda dealer and got an oem belt and it was silent...we never figured out why,all the belts looked identical,and none of the pulleys had any issues..all we could figure was some of the belts had stiffer rubber or cords or something..
 
I got out today and tightened that belt up and tried it out. Started up good but then after it got warm, it started back up. But now I’m confused.. I can’t tell if it’s a belt or a bearing.
 
Take the belt off and spin the pulleys by hand. Sounds like the wp to me, but a balancer ring can walk back and rub the timing cover and it'll make the same sound.
 
See if the water pump has side play by grabbing the fan at 3 and 9 o'clock and move it in a back & forth motion--if it has any play its about to fail....it sounds like the bearing in the water pump is "dry"...it may weep at the pee hole in the casting if the bearing in it is failing or the seal is failing..

It does sound more like a bearing or mechanical noise than belt squeal,but I've heard belts make the same noise too..
 
Lucky you caught it before it decided to grenade, or lock the pump up..

There is a 94 Blazer (full size) on CL for sale that had its water pump fail,and the fan trashed the radiator,then fell down under the truck and got wedged under the truck and took out the transmission case!..:eek:
--and the price is about what a good driving truck would cost not needing all that work..:screwy:..
 
diesel4me said:
Lucky you caught it before it decided to grenade, or lock the pump up..

There is a 94 Blazer (full size) on CL for sale that had its water pump fail,and the fan trashed the radiator,then fell down under the truck and got wedged under the truck and took out the transmission case!..:eek:
--and the price is about what a good driving truck would cost not needing all that work..:screwy:..
Click to expand...
No kidding! That sounds like something that would happen to me!
 
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