• Disassemble the v-belt drive
• Identify v-belt drive assembly components
• Remove the belt drive assembly
• Inspect parts for non-conformances
• Clean parts
• Assemble the belt drive assembly and components
• Apply appropriate safety practices during the process

• Ensure belt drive is electrical end mechanical isolated - See isolation
• Slack motor base bolts and nuts so that motor pulley can move closer to machine pulley
• The slack must be sufficient for the belt to easily roll of by hand
• Note: Never use crowbar or any other tools to remove belt as it is dangerous and can also damage belt and pulleys

During disassembly check for undue wear and misalignment.

• Look for cracks, fraying, or splits on the top cover.  This is normally due to belt age or excessive heat
• Look for signs of glazing on the belt's sides. Glazed or slick belts can slip, overheat or crack
• Twist a serpentine belt to look for separating layers, cracks, or missing chunks of the grooves on the underside
• Check for belt swelling due to belt contamination by oil, grease and other chemicals

Clean parts

The following should never be done when maintaining or installing belt drives:

• On a multi belt drive, never install new belt with old belts as this will result in uneven belt tension
• Do not mix different type of belts on the same drive
• If possible, do not mix different manufacturers belts, even if the sizes are the same
• Never put belt dressing on an EPDM-made serpentine belt. Belt dressing, and other oils and solvents, may quieten the belt noise when first applied, but these oils will actually cause the belt's rib surface to become more aggressive once they dry out, leading to even more belt noise issue

Belt drive tension

Correct belt tension is vital important for an effective drive.

Tension to low can lead to the following: Leads to inefficient power transmission Belt wear Belt failure Possible premature motor failure Wear on pulleys Heat build up in belt drive and pulley

Tension to high in belt drive can lead to the following: Excess strain on the belts cause stretch that can lead to premature belt failure Premature belt wear Excessive pulley wear Excess bearings and shafts pressure causes premature wear of these components

Adjusting tension on belt drives - Video and Additional website Force belt deflection method 1 This tensioning method relies on a Pencil Gauge Tool (Browning tension gauge) and the mathematical standards laid out in this V-belt tensioning table. Measure the span length “K” of your drive (See Figure 1) Slide the large O-ring to the recommended deflection distance on the scale and slide the small O-ring up against the barrel of the gauge as shown in Figure 2. Place the large end of the tool onto the belt at the centre of the span. Apply a sufficient force to deflect the belt until the large O-ring is in-line with the other belts. If this is a single-belt drive, use a straight-edge or taught string for a “starting point” reference Then, release the pressure and read the deflection force from the position of the small O-ring on the plunger scale as shown in Figure 2 Compare this force with the value given in the V-belt tensioning table. If the force is below the recommended value, increase the drive centre distance to provide greater belt tension. Reduce the centre distance if there is too much force For example, for a 1000 mm span, the deflection would be 16 mm or approximately, PROS: Inexpensive ─ Precise CONS: Time-Consuming ─ Tedious Figure 1 Browning tension tool Figure 2     Force belt deflection method 2 Using the thumb method tensioning belt drive. The best way to do this method? Don’t. We mention the “thumb test” method (using your hand or thumb to apply pressure to the belt as a way to judge whether or not it has the correct amount of tension) because many traditional businesses still practice this style of V-belt tensioning. When it comes to getting the most life out of your belts and maximizing the operational efficiency of your business, we do not recommend that anyone rely on anything less than the precision tensioning tools mentioned above in methods 1 While the “pros” of this method include the initial money and time savings gained from this simple procedure, as opposed to investing in a tensioning tool, the cost build-up of having to replace your belts frequently will ultimately overshadow this, consequently increasing downtime from belt failure. PROS: Inexpensive Initial Cost ─ Fast ─ Easy CONS: Unreliable ─ Inaccurate     Car engine alternator belt tension adjustment

• From the table it will be seen that a new belt's tension is higher than a used belt.
• When fitting new belts, set the tension to table for new belt.  Run belt for 15 minutes under load. Reset the tension to correct setting.

NB. New and old belt should not be used on the same drive.