Belt tension frustration - solved - defective belt

I just swapped out my crankshaft pulley, so I installed new accessory belts. I don’t have the ac belt, so just the alt & ps pump. I keep getting a little squeal on startup & the steering wheel balks/catches/slips when I turn it at idle or as I am starting to move whilst turning. I have slowly worked on adjusting it, yet it does not seem to improve. Both alt & ps pulleys seem ok (not wobbling)
1. Could it be too tight? Although it seemed worse & then improved as I tightened & now I am in a weirdness zone. Yesterday it slipped when turning to the left. I tightened it this morning & now it’s slipping left & right. Slight squeal on both start ups.
2. Would the tension on the alt belt affect the steering? Maybe I am now focusing on the wrong belt.
3. Do belt tensioner tools really work? In other words, is it worth investing in one?

 

Some belt squeals come from the pulleys not being in line w/ ea. other.
Causing the belt to jump or chirp as it comes around a pulley.

 

Tires and belts need a break in period.
I'd recommend some Belt Dressing, it's easy to use and extends the life of the belt.
I'd never overtighten a belt nor a chain.

 

Like he said, above me - belts stretch go easy keep em snugged up but not overtightened. As for misalignment of belts snap a photo to post I'm sure you will recieve helpful feedback. Shouldn't the pulleys line up?

 

So I haven’t messed with the belt since I started this thread. What’s happening now, is as the truck warms up, the slippage decreases & once fully warmed up, the slippage is gone.
I suppose I could take this to mean it’s ok? Or is this still indicative of a potential pulley issue?

 

I find the longest stretch of belt and push down in the center.
You should be able to get 1/8-1/4" of play out of it.
similar to this photo.
You don't want banjo tight.

I wouldn't want any slippage.

 

Thank you.
It’s not my 1st rodeo. & I don’t mean that in a snotty way as far as your post. I mean it as far as the frustration. There’s almost always some tweaking, but not this much.

So what’s different this time?
1. New belts
2. New crankshaft pulley

& is my thinking correct in that it seems counterintuitive that a belt that’s too loose would improve as the engine heated up? In other words, doesn’t that in essence, slightly loosen the belt?

I did take some pics of the pulleys. I’m not sure what good that will do, but I’ll post them. My ps pulley is new used. Alt is about 1yr young. I have cleaned up the fan pulley, however that may be the weak spot especially now with all the others being new-ish…. The fan pulley bracket/bearing seemed fine.

I have to head out today. Something most of us in my area have been avoiding these days as the feels like temp has been extremely low. Right now it’s 18. I’ll see if I can stand it long enough to take a vid or two.

Belt dressing was mentioned. Is this an bandaid?, which I guess is ok in the event this can’t be figured out. Any particular brand?

 

Ya. I get it.
When I peeked in yesterday the comments about snug but not loose, didn't seem sufficient.

It could be the belt and pulley. New parts aren't always correct.
i.e. new belt could be just enough wider to cause issues.

Things swell as the heat up and contract when cool.
To me, it makes sense that it quits after it's warm.....If the belt was loose.

Could be the skew of the photo but does the alternator pulley look out of line with the fan?
(exaggerated orange lines to show direction).

As far as belt dressing, I've been informed by multiple sources I trust. "Don't use it"
So I don't.

 

Shot a couple of vids. I’ll load em up when I get back from my errands. As far as the belt tightness thus far, I’ll check it again. I used to use the twist it 90 degree method, at least for the ps belt. Seemed to work ok. The alt belt is supposed to have a bit more give being that the space in between pulleys is longer.

 

Could be the p/s belt.
Could be the bearings in the new pulley.
There doesn't seem to be an a/c belt. So, can rule that out.

 

nnnnoooooooooooo!!!!!!!
belt dressing is for hacks...
not needed, doesnt do anything for you but cause problems..

 

do you still have your old belt?
your belt is too lose still or you installed the wrong length belt & its too long...
remove the belt & compare the length of your new & old belt by pulling the 2 tight together...
You may have not noticed the belt that they gave you was 1/2" longer, especially if aftermarket....
Belt could have also mis-packed.
Just cuz they pulled the correct belt off the shelf doesnt mean the correct belt was in the package...

 

im unfamiliar with the tensioner design, you adjust or is it spring loaded / auto adjust?
most ring loaded tensioners have a clocking tab on the backside where they mount, the tab must be inserted into a specific hole. If ignored they can still be tightened but not correct...

 

pushing down on the belt, should have no more the 1/2" deflection, if youre adjusting the tension.

 

This 1st one is a cold (very cold) start & I asked someone to turn the steering wheel side to side.

https://youtu.be/BInhL3nnpm8?feature=shared

about 3/4 of the way through this one there’s a weird hum that is audible to me without the vid (there’s also a little interference noise at one point, so that’s not it)

https://youtube.com/shorts/y6VBFZbVzgk?feature=share

https://youtube.com/shorts/R71AYWuF9Aw?feature=share

& it’s hard to tell with all the background noise. Do I hear marbles? Rattling?

 

I do have the old belt. I double/triple checked it. It fit fine & was a tight (but not too tight) squeeze over the pulley with tensioner fully extended,

 

I adjust.

 

cell phone videos are a bad idea when it comes to noise, a perfectly good engine will sound like it ready to come apart.
did you have the noise before you did this?
is it the reason you replaced the belt & tensioner?
if so, stethescope other parts, like the water pump.....
the marble sound could be coming from a worn out wp...

 

At this point, it’s less than 1/2in. I believe it’s supposed to be 1/4 for the ps belt & it’s less than that. It was squealing on startup. Last time I tightened it, that stopped. I guess I could keep tightening. It just seems like it’d be too much. I’ll go check where it’s at measurement wise.

 

im not hearing what I would normally hear from a loose belt, its usually a loud squeak from belt slipping.
you have another car laying around , any car, so you can get a better feel to how tight a belt should be?
compare that belt tension to yours....
would give you an idea if its loose...
like I said, you should be able to just push down on belt pretty firmly & get no more the 1/2" movement, they need to be pretty tight but not overly tight.