Consider a different strategy of planting a few extras and pulling all during the first harvest. Derby, Tema, Bronco, Strike and many others tend to set most of their beans uniformly. I find that I can sit on a cart and pull and pick 2 rows making much better progress than if I try to just find beans on the inground plant. Always have a backup planting to move onto and you will avoid those overmature missed beans and poorer followup pickings from the same plants. The ease of picking is the greatest benefit from pulling plants. If you hold the plant on its side most of the beans will hang unobstructed so you gan grab a handfull at once. Then by twirling the stem the remainder of beans are easy to access. It's so easy that I do the vast majority of my bean picking after dark with a headlamp. My harvest rate is better than during daylight hours and beans are more crisp.

I really enjoyed reading this post! I'm probably guilty of buying ALL THE PLANTZ!! I started with a couple then a few more... Because I'm lucky to find so many different types in my area at reasonable prices I take risks in buying ones that may or may not do well here. I figure it's worth the risk. I had no idea how lucky I am to find such a variety, but it's rare to find a big established plant. Although I just passed on a 5 foot (on trellis) multi flowering carnosa because I couldn't fit it in the car... I have a couple of Graveyard hoyas, most I've replaced and trying again. (Or will if I find another one for sale) I don't think I'll get another lauterbachii again even though they turn up all the time. Mine grew fast and tall but died. Not sure if it was underwatering or the cold but as I since found out it grows huge with next to no chance of me ever seeing flowers here I really cant be bothered buying it again. Since joining this group and learning "if in doubt, unpot and check roots and/or chop" I haven't lost many plants, except poor polyneura that got cooked in the last heatwave :( (I bought a new one in case my cuttings didn't take but they did!)

Yeah that's R22 and while that is a builder grade Trane unit that is probably out of warranty by now... typically those were sold with 5 year parts warranty. Because R22 Freon was already obsolete by 2013. With that said, this condenser 'could' last another 10 years, provided the coil repair work is done appropriately. The replacement coil needs to be a coil suitable for R22 / any coil can be retro fitted to work, but skill is required in choosing the coil. Typically home warranty companies are known for tom foolery. If the condenser was a dry condenser (nitrogen gas) it would say it was on the data plate in some manner. That's the down side in anything Trane or American Standard because they were one of the last manufacture's to switch over to R410a refrigerant. The R22 conundrum only effects you if there is a leak... otherwise it doesn't matter much. While the cost for it will only go up now that production has ceased, it's serviceable life is still around another 10 years or so. Without United Technologies Corporation heavy investment in R410a AC equipment development we would be no where near where we are today. R410a equipment has been available now for almost 20 years if you can imagine that.

I'm really hesitant to step between the gunfire on frontload vs topload but after reading the last couple posts, a couple things come to mind. I have no real experience using a frontloader but am considering one to replace my 29 year old toploader if and when the time comes it needs replacement. Now as far as cleaning efficiency being the same, I'm not sure I'd agree. "Efficiency" would take in a number of criteria and not to get overly longwinded on it suffice to say that the efficiency of the tumble action seems to be better, and certainly a heater to bring up the water temp to help clean whites is a demonstrated advantage and using less electricity and water are undoubtedly advantageous and certainly leans toward saying that many FLs are more efficient than TLs. I'm a bit hesitant on a frontload when it comes to cleaning pet hair given the probable advantage of the deep rinse, however there's a lot of FL owners who have pets, so it probably is more hype than reality, just as the claim of topload agitator machines being so hard on clothes. Fer cryin out loud, I have clothes I've been washing for over 20 years that are still in serviceable shape and I don't believe a frontloader would make them last longer so that "clothes shredding" contention is dubious to me, and not the case here. Will I recoup costs on water and electrical savings by buying a FL instead of a TL? I doubt it. But I think that the heater and faster spin speeds would be nice features to have available for certain applications. Will I buy a front loader? I don't know. The price is a factor. The longer cycle times on a FL are a concern, but not a big one since I don't do that much laundry. After all, I generally wait until the load is dry before putting in another washload anyway so I'm thinking that might not be a real concern. Another factor is the ease of loading and unloading a top loader. My physical problems would require a rather high pedestal for a FL or use a TL. I decided against the TL dryer based on cost and went with a homemade pedestal to raise the dryer for ease of loading and unloading. So, was I a betting man, I'd say the odds are 60/40 in favor of me going with another topload machine (which could include a Fisher & Paykel, Harmony or Cabrio) but I'm intrigued by the possibility of a FL. So in the end, there's pros and cons to each style. There's radical views on each side with near-hysterical claims that need to be sorted out. Each person and their need is different and contrary to what some claim, both styles will clean my clothes just fine. I need to decide what's the best value for me and give me the features I need most. There's nothing wrong with getting what you're comfortable with and what you want, as long as you can afford it.