Belt squealing

[Kodiak45]

Before starting it, spray a bit of water on the belt. Once you start it, see if the squealing is still there, or not.
If still there, it,s a bearing, If it goes away, it,s the belt has been glazed.

good to know. I'll try that. Thanks!

 

[flyerdan]

1" is still quite a bit of deflection, unless the pulleys are about two feet apart. Most books call for belt deflections of .125" - .475", depending on the span. Running as loose as possible is good for bearings and belt life, but you don't want to have to fuss with it a couple times a week, either.
Also, if this belt also drives the water pump it's even more critical to keep things turning.

 

[DieselBound]

As noted, be careful that the belt noise isn't due to a troubled accessory component. (on older VW TDIs an exploded, shredded belt, usually due to some component (AC, alternator or accessory belt tensioner) that has froze up or is horribly impaired, has been known to toss itself into the crank pulley area and effectively create a timing belt failure on top of it all!)

I've used sandpaper as well as bar soap. Dangerous operation, though.

 

[Kodiak45]

1" is still quite a bit of deflection, unless the pulleys are about two feet apart. Most books call for belt deflections of .125" - .475", depending on the span. Running as loose as possible is good for bearings and belt life, but you don't want to have to fuss with it a couple times a week, either.
Also, if this belt also drives the water pump it's even more critical to keep things turning.

Then the belt was definitely very loose before I tightened it and it must be stretched quite a bit as there isn't much adjustment left in the bracket after adjusting to 1". I'll go ahead and get a new belt and set it at about .5"