Tightening quealing serpentine belt question.

[Fox4744]

I recently had my mechanic put on a new serpentine belt and water pump and since then, the serpentine belt has been squealing every time I turn the A/C on. Come to find out, nimrod mechanic didn't check the idler pulley or even bolt it all the way back on. So I had a friend of mine slap on a new idler pulley and put the belt back on and everything was great. The belt was in pretty crappy shape after being driven a couple hundred miles on a worn out and wobbly idler pulley so I asked nimrod mechanic to put a fresh serpentine belt on it. Big mistake. Now it squeals when I start it and when I turn on the A/C. Since it worked fine when my friend fixed it, I'm pretty sure the belt just needs to be tightened. At this point i want to keep the mechanic's hands off my jeep so I'm doing it myself. Unfortunately I've gotten several different answers on whether or not I need to loosen the idler pulley bolt a bit before I tighten the adjustment bolt and really how to tighten it in general (one tutorial even said something about the water pump. Calling BS on that one unless someone tells me different). I was hoping you guys could give me a consensus.

[Mudderoy]

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Gates-91107-Belt-Tension-Tester/dp/B000MUTAGS"]Amazon.com: Gates 91107 Belt Tension Tester: Automotive@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31pvKGIxD7L.@@AMEPARAM@@31pvKGIxD7L[/ame]

Look it up to be sure, but I believe you want to tighten the belt to 110 lbs.

[Fox4744]

Ha! I asked the guys at O'Reilly's about that and they told me they didn't exist. Jokes on them. Thanks! Also, do you happen to know the answer to the million dollar idler pulley question?

[4.3LXJ]

Just did this a few days ago. If you have a 96 and up engine, you loosen the bolt on the idler pulley just enough to allow it to slide. If it is loosened a bit more, it doesn't matter really. Adjust it to where it needs to be. You will notice that when you tighten up the idler pulley bolt the pulley will have sagged a little and straighten up making the belt tighter. This is normal. The bottom line is that if you use the belt tension tool on it you will be able to have it right anyway.

[Fox4744]

Awesome! Thanks guys!

[Poorboy]

I could have used that a couple days ago after my waterpump fiasco.

[4.3LXJ]

Sorry Pete, but you can always use it in the future. We are always here if you need us

[Poorboy]

I'll be picking one up next payday. For now, the old finger push method will do.

[Fox4744]

Heads up on that gauge. The listing posted doesn't say in the description anywhere but I got it in the mail today and it's a v-belt tension gauge so I'd try a different seller if you're looking to buy one. I'm gonna see if I can make it work until the correct one comes in.

[Fox4744]

Here's the right one: [ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000CRDLZM/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1428095896&sr=8-1&keywords=gates+91132"]Amazon.com: Gates 91132 Belt Tension Tester: Automotive@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41eGTT4TPML.@@AMEPARAM@@41eGTT4TPML[/ame]
Amazon needs to get it together. Thankfully the boyfriend has a v-belt on his car so this thing is still semi useful.

[Fox4744]

Wound up having to pull the e-fan to get to the idler pulley bolt since I was stupid and bought one with a recessed bolt but I managed to get the belt tightened. The gauge was really helpful, I highly recommend it so thanks to Mudderoy for the tip. So far no squealing. The sweet sound of silence... Well, it still sounds like a UPS truck, but you get the idea.

[Poorboy]

I had to pull my e fan as well to get to my tensioner. It's an XJ thing....

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[Fox4744]

They really didn't waste any space did they? Kinda put the hose to the coolant reservoir in an awkward place too. Someone even clipped it to one of the fan bolts. Or maybe it came from the factory that way. Either way, pretty clever

[Poorboy]

OE hose placement is attachment is clipped to the fan bolts.

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[Fox4744]

Ah ok. I guess Chrysler does have good ideas sometimes 😂