Maytag Neptune belt problem?

[pulsator]

Is this just a stretched belt or is there something else I should adjust before replacing the belt? It's done this to some degree ever since I got it a couple weeks ago but now it's getting really bad...

It's an MAH3000, didn't these use a different belt?

 

[coldspot66]

That's called "belt squawk". Replace the belt and isolators. Part # is 12001788.

 

[pulsator]

Ummm... What's happening here?

Okay, I bought the part and pulled the old belt off and the motor out. I replaced the old isolators (black rubber, the new ones are clear plastic) and remounted the motor. This being a first generation Maytag, it has the belt tension adjustor. Kind of wishing I had just increased the tension on the old belt now as it was on the lowest tension setting.

First, the new belt was a complete B*TCH to get on! It's about 2 inches shorter in circumference than the old belt! Second, as soon as I get it on, I rotate the tub like it says to do and before it's completed half a revolution, the new belt slides off of the drum pulley between the pulley and outer drum. It's perfectly centered on the drum pulley and in the the back 6 ridges of the motor pulley like the instructions say and it still falls off. When putting the new belt on, it looks as though the belt is so tight that it is actually bending the drum pulley and allowing the belt to slide off. I tried one set of ridges further on the motor pulley and the exact same problem. I tried the next and furthest set of ridges and it manages to stay on but the drum is harder to turn now and it squeaks which it certainly didn't do before....

Am I doing something wrong? Is there a trick I should be doing?

 

[Iowegian]

I've never worked on the subject washer, but:

Are you sure they gave you the correct part number(s)?

Are the motor pulley and the drum pulley in the same plane? Belts tend not to try to want to escape pulleys at hand-rotating speeds unless things are out of alignment. Do you have enough torque on the motor mounting bolt(s) to compress the isolators enough to make sure the motor pulley is aligned with the drum pulley?

Might want to put a straightedge on the drum pulley and make sure the motor pulley is lined up.

My 2 pesos.

 

[cfz2882]

stretchy belts

try giving the belt some time to stretch to size-when i had my frigilux apart for bearing repair,the belt relaxed to a smaller diameter and seemed strangely too short when i tried to put it back on;got it back on with some effort and it stretched back to size and worked normally.(more rigid cast aluminum pulley on the frigilux)Also,on the neptune motor pulley,check that the grooves are free of rubber deposits.

 

[pulsator]

Well, I decided to put the old belt back on and just increasing the tension since the adjuster was set to the lowest tension setting. It doesn't slip anymore but the drum pulley does squeak. Not sure what to make of it. I'm almost certain it's not the belt because the drum only squeaks in one specific spot during a rotation of the drum and the belt never hits the same spot on the drum pulley if you get what I mean...

Is there somewhere I should put lithium grease? Are my bearings going? They feel silky smooth and the machine spins very quietly with no rumble or squeaking once it gets going faster than a tumbling speed...

 

[redcarpetdrew]

The new belt is supposed to be tight. It's not all stretched out like the old but it will break in. You don't mess with the tension adjustment anymore. As a matter of fact, the later models did away with it and use a plain metal washer to space the motor.

RCD

 

[tecnopolis]

I watched your video and from the sound of it, you may also have a bad winding in your motor. It's supposed to be silent when tumbling. All you should here is sloshing liquid noises, not growling.

 

[combo52]

Squeaking Neptune FL Washer

Jamie your motor is fine, the motors in the earlier machines had a little higher sound level, it will not run properly with a bad winding. Andy is correct about the belt, it goes on very tight, the first one I ever tried to change on a Frigidaire FL washer was so tight that I swear that I had the wrong belt. You can either install the new belt if you  want the squeak gone or keep using it with the cool squeak, many early MT NTs sound like yours and keep on washing just fine.