Normally you would look at the old blade, get a number from it and order it online. Since the mower is a Troy-Bilt and was used when you got it, it may not have had the original blade. I made a mistake above - somehow I got it in my head that it was a Toro. You'll have to get the model number off the mower and look up a blade at one of the on-line vendors. Your mower was actually made by the MTD Corp. which owns that brand along with many others. Their site may be of some help in researching the blade. Now. With all that, the new blade you bought should still work. The main thing is to find out if its on right. If the starter pull cord comes off the right-hand side of the engine, the blade is said to turn 'clockwise'. When you pick up one side of the mower to work on it, keep this in mind, as it will be 'counter-clockwise' from underneath. BTW, always pick up the side with the air filter to keep oil from running into the intake tract. Disconnect the spark plug any time you put your hands under the deck to raise it up. Look at the blade and see if the sharp edge is pointing in the direction of rotation and the airfoil on the top of each blade end is 'up' toward the engine. Now check the blade for proper tightness - put the wrench on it while you block it at the bottom with a piece of wood under your foot. Look at the ends of the blade and see how close they are to the inside of the deck - should be about 1/4" clearance. The old blade was a mulching blade if it was the original, because you have a mulching mower. I still have not figured out why the self-propel went out at the same time as the blade change.

Hi, and welcome to the Forum! It's a very good thing that you're thinking this through as thoroughly as you are. Putting up a gh that meets your needs, as well as your expectations, is half the battle! Also, it will require an enormous amount of designing and planning...even if you go with a Harbor Freight model. Unfortunately, you're not going to be able to provide a significant amount of fresh vegetables for your family in a HFGH. You'll have something special to put in a salad once in a while as a treat, but nothing on a regular basis -- unless your expectations aren't high. You could grow enough herbs and vegetables for "flavoring," etc., so, if that were the extent of your expectations, then it would be a success. Some vegetables can produce quite well in a small space, such as onions, radishes, and lettuce. Others, such as green beans and peas are notoriously space-inefficient. Another issue you may have with growing densely-packed vegetables are pests, such as whitefly and aphids. If I had to make a wild guess as to the size necessary to feed a family with quantity and variety, I'd say something on the order of 18x30. Simply utilizing floor space would not be enough -- you'd have to use staggered growing trays. And finally, don't forget to weigh the heating needs of such a structure. It's very satisfying to grow your own, but does it make economic sense? Perhaps an HFGH would be enough to be a seed-starter, which would extend your season by several weeks. I totally understand the covenants you're trying to stay within. Frustrating that others don't seem to care, and aren't reprimanded. I think you would have the most peace of mind if you investigated things to your satisfaction before you began. That way, you won't always be wondering what that knock on your door is for! Good luck! -Bruce

BTW, I'm no expert, but I'll answer anyway :-) I think you will be much happier with fluorescent lights in a small indoor setup. I think the sodium lights are only meant for big open spaces, but with fluorescent lights the plants can often even touch the lights without burning. Dormancy - in their native habitat, average temperatures in January are a high of 13C and a low of 1C. The other winter months are a bit warmer than this. So the closer you can create those conditions the better. At an average high of 13C (55F) even in the coldest month, the plants may still photosynthesize and grow, but slowly and with much smaller traps than in summer. So you need to give them some light, or they will suffer (but they don't need to eat, and probably best not to feed them then). The fridge method is really only for severe situations when you can't give them any kind of winter rest, so instead put them into deep hibernation just a few degrees above freezing... in this case they don't need light since they are in deep hibernation. But this is really a last resort. Your new plants have probably been growing actively in some greenhouse somewhere, so you could make your setup and let them continue to grow for a couple months before doing the dormancy thing. If you put them to bed now, they are going to want to wake up in about 3 months, which will be late December, just about the time they would be very dormant in their native habitat. So I'd be tempted to let them grow for awhile now. And in your situation, it's probably easier to put them dormant in real winter, when you can move them to your windowsill and let the draft cool them down a bit to aid dormancy. Some thoughts anyway. There are some links on flytrap dormancy you should read at the International Carnivorous Plant Society website... there's a bunch of articles there, I'll give you one below to get you to the website, then you can browse around it for other relevant information. I think you have to copy this into your search engine, as I haven't figured out how to post clickable links here. http://www.sarracenia.com/faq/faq2460.html Good luck, -Don

At least you have snow! The little we had, was melted the moment it hit the ground. LOL I'm not even concerned about landscaping. If I can just get the cement poured and the brick steps and front complete, that will add so much to the house. Heck, I'm not above putting in some fakes temporarily. LOL