Possibly my water pump squeals at high RPM?

[Evolution1980]

For a while, I've had some squealing coming from under the hood when I get up to 3500 RPM (no load) and 4000 RPM (w/load).
A little later, my alternator failed so I assumed that was probably the squeal I was hearing. Alternator has been replaced and the squeal is still there.
I popped open the hood and manually revved it at the carb. I think the sound is coming from my water pump, but I'm not entirely certain. The water pump was replaced probably around 20-25yrs when I dropped in the crate engine.

Further troubleshooting? Suggestions? Next Steps?

 

[bill81vette]

take the belt off and see if there is a little wiggle.or if its getting wet....if so then....
probably time for a new one .
good luck!!

 

[Evolution1980]

So yeah, about that...
I have redundant belts on my water pump because when I first got this engine, my driving habits lead to me spinning off the single belt.
It's been a very long time since I turned a wrench on my engine. Is there an 'easy' way to remove the redundant belt just so I can check for any play in the pump?

 

[Tom Bryant]

That just goes around the water pump and the crank , right? If you can get your hand inside the shroud to loosen the fan bolts the pulley should come off without having to remove it from inside the shroud. If it won't go far enough away from the engine to get your hand on that water pump shaft it might drop down enough to get the belt out of the grove then you could remount the pulley back onto the pump and use it to move the shaft up and down to check for slop.

 

[Evolution1980]

That just goes around the water pump and the crank , right? If you can get your hand inside the shroud to loosen the fan bolts the pulley should come off without having to remove it from inside the shroud. If it won't go far enough away from the engine to get your hand on that water pump shaft it might drop down enough to get the belt out of the grove then you could remount the pulley back onto the pump and use it to move the shaft up and down to check for slop.

Good call, Tom. I'll give that a shot!