AnotherOldJeepGuy Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 I have read several time, and I thought at least once on this forum that you can use a small amount of dielectric grease to treat squeaky belts. I even thought I had followed a thread that mentioned it, and maybe even participated, but although I can't seem to find it today. My belt does squeak. Not all the time, but often. If I hit it with a little water the squeak changes and that I also have read is a sign the squeak is a more likely the belt itself rather than some other part. So since I can't find this info again, I guess I need to start this thread and risk repeats. If someone knows the link to the post(s) that already cover this, just direct me to it! Otherwise, if using a bit of dielectric grease can be useful here, about how much and where should I apply it? Groove side only, flat side only, or both? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghetdjc320 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Why not a bit of belt dressing? It worth it though to remove the belt and clean out the grooves on all your pulleys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnotherOldJeepGuy Posted February 5 Author Share Posted February 5 3 minutes ago, ghetdjc320 said: Why not a bit of belt dressing The only why not at the moment is that I have dielectric grease and I don't have belt dressing. So if there is precedent in using that, I might as well go that way first. I'll put the version of remove and clean on the to-do list. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghetdjc320 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Seems like using a touch can help . It’s mostly silicone so it may condition the belt somewhat but will increase slipping if you have too much on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
89 MJ Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 I’ve heard that deodorant works to quiet a noisy belt too. But how old is your belt? If it’s getting cracks, it might be due for replacement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnotherOldJeepGuy Posted February 5 Author Share Posted February 5 15 minutes ago, 89 MJ said: But how old is your belt? New water pump and belt in Aug 2021, so about 3.5 years. I put on a very small amount of dielectric grease in 2 places on rib side and 2 on flat side. Actually got a bit worse. I then did the water spray test and it went quiet for about a minute then I shut down, I'm sure that is very temporary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinnakerblue89 Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 2 hours ago, 89 MJ said: I’ve heard that deodorant works to quiet a noisy belt too. But how old is your belt? If it’s getting cracks, it might be due for replacement. Not endorsing the idea outright, but, I did use Arm & Hammer deodorant on my 2004 Mustang GT serpentine belt and it eliminated a chirp for a little while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pizzaman09 Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 Silicone based products like dielectric grease are a bad idea, they are extremely, extremely difficult to clean off and will definitely reduce the friction on the pulleys. That said silicone will at least not damage the belt like hydrocarbon based oils would, so from that perspective it's not the worst choice. Why not just replace the belt? I haven't priced them out but I have to imagine a serpentine belt can be had for under $20. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnotherOldJeepGuy Posted February 7 Author Share Posted February 7 20 hours ago, pizzaman09 said: Why not just replace the belt? Yeah that's on the ever growing to-do list, was looking for a quick short term solution. No squeaking at the moment.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PIKE Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 My belt would squeak when it was not at the proper tension. https://www.gates.com/gb/en/power-transmission/power-transmission-tools-and-merchandisers/power-transmission-tools.p.7401-000000-000003.v.7401-00072.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnotherOldJeepGuy Posted February 8 Author Share Posted February 8 14 hours ago, PIKE said: My belt would squeak when it was not at the proper tension. Interesting looking gadget. I looked at the website but didn't see any how-to-use info. Anyway, could this be a case of "If it was a snake it would have bit me"?! It does seem my belt probably could be tighter. I can push down (using my existing belt tension check tool) just above the pulley in front of the water pump to it touching the belt as it crosses that pulley. That distance is about a 3/4" depression and it did not take much force to get it there. I am guessing that might be a bit too loose! About how far at the same point should I easily be able to depress the belt? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pizzaman09 Posted February 8 Share Posted February 8 You could definitely stand to tighten the belt some. If I remember the adjustment is on the power steering pump. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZJeff Posted February 8 Share Posted February 8 1 hour ago, AnotherOldJeepGuy said: Interesting looking gadget. I looked at the website but didn't see any how-to-use info. Anyway, could this be a case of "If it was a snake it would have bit me"?! It does seem my belt probably could be tighter. I can push down (using my existing belt tension check tool) just above the pulley in front of the water pump to it touching the belt as it crosses that pulley. That distance is about a 3/4" depression and it did not take much force to get it there. I am guessing that might be a bit too loose! About how far at the same point should I easily be able to depress the belt? That is WAY too loose for a 4.0 belt. That engine/belt routing requires an ungodly amount of tension to not slip, so such so that it does not deflect hardly at all with manual testing. placing silicone on a serpentine belt is a bad idea, for reasons mentioned previously. Now you have contaminated the belt AND the PULLEYS with that stuff. You need to get a new belt and, before installing it, get the silicone off the pulleys with generous amounts of brake cleaner an a toothbrush in the grooves of each pulley. (Silicone tends to migrate every wear, and it’s not easy to remove completely.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnotherOldJeepGuy Posted February 8 Author Share Posted February 8 (edited) It was a tiny amount of dielectric grease, in the neighborhood of a large teardrop on each side, but I hear what you are saying. I tightened the belt this morning pretty snug and it got worse, then I backed it off just a hair and it stopped (for now). When I do get to replacing it, I think I need to see if the local parts store loaner tools include something to identify the proper belt tension. I looked over the area in expectation of putting on a new belt, and it looks like the same bolts are all you need to loosen to get the slack for a new belt. Getting it over the fan seems like the hard part, is it necessary to remove the primary fan to put on the belt? Edited February 8 by AnotherOldJeepGuy typo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnotherOldJeepGuy Posted February 8 Author Share Posted February 8 Ah this pic shows that you don't need to take the fan off, you only have to get to the top|!. Much better! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fiatslug87 Posted February 8 Share Posted February 8 I got that little click gauge at NAPA, has worked well for me. From the FSM: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pizzaman09 Posted February 9 Share Posted February 9 9 hours ago, AZJeff said: That is WAY too loose for a 4.0 belt. That engine/belt routing requires an ungodly amount of tension to not slip, so such so that it does not deflect hardly at all with manual testing. placing silicone on a serpentine belt is a bad idea, for reasons mentioned previously. Now you have contaminated the belt AND the PULLEYS with that stuff. You need to get a new belt and, before installing it, get the silicone off the pulleys with generous amounts of brake cleaner an a toothbrush in the grooves of each pulley. (Silicone tends to migrate every wear, and it’s not easy to remove completely.) Brake clean won't do much to remove silicone oil. At work we use silicon oil in some products, MEK and Acetone work well to remove it. Isopropyl alcohol doesn't touch it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZJeff Posted February 9 Share Posted February 9 4 minutes ago, pizzaman09 said: Brake clean won't do much to remove silicone oil. At work we use silicon oil in some products, MEK and Acetone work well to remove it. Isopropyl alcohol doesn't touch it. MEK is gonna take paint off of anything it touches, and may be harmful to the phenolic resin PS pump pulley. Acetone would be the best choice. Soap and water and a toothbrush will also clean the grooves in serpentine belts of any silicone residues, and won’t hurt any plastics or paint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghetdjc320 Posted February 9 Share Posted February 9 Seems like moral of the story is, don't use dielectric grease on your belt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZJeff Posted February 9 Share Posted February 9 4 hours ago, ghetdjc320 said: Seems like moral of the story is, don't use dielectric grease on your belt Quoted for posterity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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