How To Replace the Drive Belt on Husqvarna HU700H Lawnmower

[@craighall8762]

You DO NOT HAVE TO FORCE THE BELT AROUND THE GUARDS. The pulley comes off very easy. Grab the shaft behind the pulley with pliers (Channel Locks Best), put a socket wrench on the nut on top of the pulley and turn (counterclockwise). The whole pulley unscrews, once off, wrap belt around, screw the pulley back and on, re-tighten pulley. Super easy. Takes 2 seconds.... Thank you for the video, very helpful

[@riehlrenegade]

Thank you! This little nugget was invaluable for me!

[@ScottT109]

Nope. You don’t need to undo the pulley. There are two 1/4 hex head screws that hold that belt guard in place. Fiddly but easy to unfasten in 2 minutes.

[@raleighbeersingh1501]

Thanks John. The tip about removing the wire from the spark plug was a wise idea. Safety always make sense. Not doing that could potentially be catastrophic. You are the only one to mention that in all the videos I've watch so far..thanks again man..

[@YardworkWithJohn]

We tend to think of starting an engine as a special, unique function we are doing to them. But lawn mowers, cars, truck, boats, in all of them, all you are doing to start them is manually spinning them.

[@TomRyan24065]

I'm the kind of guy who has trouble figuring out how to screw in a lightbulb. (I exaggerate, but only slightly.) I would never have attempted this without this video and, even though I'm having trouble believing it myself...it worked! You are The Man, John! (Oh...and thanks for the update above about the spring. That was the only place I got a bit lost in the process.)

[@bmichael103]

OMFG....Thank you so much. I was about to buy a new mower because my RWD system failed. I flip my mower over, and the som' bitch belt was completely off. I had noticed it was getting weak for a few years but thought it was just dieing. Then last week it (the self propulsion) just quit completely. After seeing how you put your belt on, I looked at mine and noticed first that it was completely off the thing that holds the blade. I reassembled after attaching it to that thing that holds the blade, and tried starting it, it had a lot more oomph. Then I watched your video, and noticed that "idler pulley" i guess it was, it needed to be attached to belt too. I put mine back on and viola, the som' bitch is running like it was back in 2016. Thinking of buying a new belt so that when this year is complete and I do the maintenance on it, I will replace that belt as well.

[@leonardallen8754]

Thanks for the tutorial. Here’s a tip. When you get to the pulley on the tranny, get vice grips and grab onto the stem that comes out of the tranny and unscrew the whole wheel. Theirs just enough room to get the vice grips in there. It’s a whole lot easier

[@mikewestrum3167]

Thanks for this info and the video. Very helpful.

[@louisdearaujo3897]

Sometimes it is the drive cable that needs an adjustment to tighten. In time the cable will stretch resulting in not enough tension on the drive pully. Thanks for the video.

[@YardworkWithJohn]

Yes it definitely can be the cable. All steel cables will stretch over time and need to be tightened from time to time. Just like shifters on a bicycle.

[@maynardplaster119]

Thanks, very. Helpful.

[@carlospineda6140]

Excellent, thanks for making the video.

[@shabadoo24]

I changed the belt on my AWD Husqvarna mower. I nearly had to scrap the machine to change a belt

[@philliphall5198]

I keep all old belts and connect to geather for tow strap 😊

[@YardworkWithJohn]

Hah I guess that could work. I wouldn't want to be nearby when it snaps though :D

[@hoagjay]

So, I just changed my belt. I have the same mower. Everything here is perfect except for one item. The gear case belt keeper actually is designed to come off so you can get the belt on the pulley. There are two screws on the keeper that can be removed with a nut driver. I was really struggling to get the new belt on your way. Way more simple when you remove the keeper arms.

[@YardworkWithJohn]

Do you have a picture of where these screws are located? I didn't see them back when I made this video. Also yeah some people seem to have a lot of trouble squeezing the belt on my way, some get it right on no problem. Each mower probably has slightly different tolerances.

[@dws248]

Very Helpful, Thx!

[@jonnywright4639]

Great video. Is the idler pulley supposed to completely spin freely? I’m getting a very loud grinding/scraping noise when engaged, and this pulley has very limited movement

[@YardworkWithJohn]

Are you referring to the tensioner pulley? That one should spin freely yes. The other pulley connects to the wheels so won't spin freely, and the OTHER other one connects to the motors driveshaft. If your tensioning pulley won't spin well, you should replace it for sure.

[@michaelanderson4395]

The drive pulley comes off. Hold the shaft behind it with some channel locks and un-thread the pulley from the shaft. The you can wrap the belt around the pulley and easily insert between the belt guides.

[@craighall8762]

OMG OMG OMG This needs to be TOP Comment. You saved me so much frustration. Thank YOU

[@michaelanderson4395]

@@craighall8762 👍

[@paulwithrow6615]

What size belt? I can't find the exact serial number anywhere

[@YardworkWithJohn]

Try looking up your mower's model number on the husqvarna website and see if you can find a part number for your belt there.

[@johnrodriquez8447]

Where does the spring attach once you get it in the hole? It looks like you left it loose...

[@YardworkWithJohn]

Hi, if you look for my Pinned comment at the top of these comments, I link to a very short video where I zoom way in to the spring so you can see where it connects. One side goes to the metal bracket, the other side connects to a hold in the plastic baffle.

[@GabeGomez-zm8hq]

Where does the spring connect to on the frame??

[@YardworkWithJohn]

The spring connects the movable pulley to one of the plastic baffles.

[@Springfield98]

I didn't see a hole anywhere, so I just hooked it to the bottom of the frame just below the transmission. Seems to work great, but I don't like that design because that spring is gonna rust quickly. Guess that's why mine had trouble backing up last few years. Works great now, no drag backing up either.

[@YardworkWithJohn]

@@Springfield98 If you check the pinned comment at the top of this comment section, I just added a very short video that shows a zoomed in view of the installed spring so you can see exactly where to connect both ends of the spring. Let me know if that helps!

[@Springfield98]

@@YardworkWithJohn Thanks John, very helpful! I now see the small hole in the baffle near the edge, where the other end of the spring goes.

[@marksousa6424]

Replaced belt and cable still don’t pull up hills like when new! Lot of these after market parts aren’t exact!!

[@YardworkWithJohn]

I wonder if your pulleys might just be dirty and not gripping? Might be worth taking the belt back off and trying to scrub up all the belt contact points on the pulleys.

[@tommyddemps5211]

My mower can’t start without squeezing the starter bar closed

[@YardworkWithJohn]

What is the starter bar?

[@DRoach-m4t]

What is the length of the belt?

[@YardworkWithJohn]

I don't know the length, but I ordered by part number specific to my machine, so the length and profile of the belt is just right. Try googling your mower's model number, or looking up the model number on parts lookup sites.

[@kennywoodyard4819]

Appreciate the help brother

[@stealinghome4247]

Thanks for the video. My spring popped off. The video shows where one end goes, but not the other. If anyone can explain, that would be great! Thanks in advance!

[@YardworkWithJohn]

Hi. Please check the pinned comment at the top of this comment section. I added a short video that zooms in and shows where the spring connects. Let me know if that helps.

[@JoseyWales156]

Good video. Thanks.

[@TheErikgiles]

Great Video- I have the AWD model and the only addition that was easy to figure out. Remove four screws on the plastic Baffle in Front, then you fish the belt through.

[@YardworkWithJohn]

I thought about getting the AWD model too but in the end, I felt like the larger rear wheels would be a bigger benefit to me. My yard is pretty bumpy. Plus twice the belts to replace :D

[@Treya527]

Thx

[@YardworkWithJohn]

Hey all! There is some confusion in the comments about where exactly you connect the belt spring when reassembling the unit. I made a very short video zooming in on the spring so you can see where it connects to the metal bracket on one side and the plastic baffle on the other side. I hope this clears it up! kzbin.info/www/bejne/eXq0aHyXfc14itk

[@Springfield98]

Very helpful video - Thanks! You may also want to change your idler pulley at the same time as the drive belt. Mine had a bad bearing and put a real drag on the system. Replaced it and now have much more powerful drive. Also, the spring attaches between a hole on the trans and just the bottom lip of the metal deck.

[@DRoach-m4t]

What is the length of the belt?

[@wild8757]

After reconnecting the spring to the plastic piece and to the clutch, does the spring hang on the outside of the clutch engagement cable or on the inside? Regardless of what side the spring hangs on, it seems to have the cable that engages the clutch running right through the spring. Probably should’ve took a picture of it before I disconnected it

[@YardworkWithJohn]

It's hard to know without seeing a picture of your setup, but it shouldn't touch the cable. Try both options and see if one position works without interfering with the cable

[@wild8757]

@@YardworkWithJohn I hung the spring on the outside of the drive cable which it still touches the cable but not as bad as hanging it on the inside of the cable

[@YardworkWithJohn]

@@wild8757 If you check the pinned comment at the top of this comment section, I just added a very short video showing a zoomed in view of the installed tension spring. To my eye, it looks like the spring can only be installed one way, does yours look very different from that?

[@mikederry2839]

You tell about the spring and don't show how it goes.

[@YardworkWithJohn]

Check the pinned comment to see a closeup of exactly where the spring goes!

[@mikederry2839]

I took the chute off and see it connects to it. The picture is a little obscure but I see now. Thanks

[@YardworkWithJohn]

@@mikederry2839 Did you look on the short supplemental video? It's pretty clear on that video, I zoom way in so you can see exactly where it connects on both ends.

[@jaredrossiter1361]

Should link the correct belt to the model

[@YardworkWithJohn]

Well there's a million different similar models so probably best to just look up your exact model number manually.

[@jaredrossiter1361]

True, mine is this exact model. Also, there are 2 quarter inch screws that hold the guards on the transmission and it makes it super easy to get the belt on and off if you remove them.

[@YardworkWithJohn]

@@jaredrossiter1361 Oh? where are those screws? I didn't see anything like that.

[@jaredrossiter1361]

@@YardworkWithJohn on the top, just below the pulley. I tried your trick but was not having much success and that's when I saw them.