Riding Mower driving belt replacement (Craftsman)

[stryped]

I have a Craftsman 48 inch cut riding lawn mover. Last year, the belt that drives the tranmission had a tendancy to sometimes slip off when I would puch the clutch in to change years or stop.

Last week that belt broke. I bought a new one and had a terrible terrible time putting it on last night. I finally thought I had it on. I started it and put it in reverse and nothing happeened. I noticed the belt had come off. So, either I did not have the blet on right or there is some other problem. It seems like a simple system, it goes around the engine pulley, around an idler and around one that is attached to the clutch then aound the transmssion pulley. There does not seep to be a tensioner per se, just the clutch pulley.

What can I do to adjust or fix this?

Also is there an easier way to put this belt on? I had a terrible time reaching under there with my hands. There is not alot of room and those wire rods that I guess help keep the belt on the pulley were hard to get around.

[<cmply]

Sounds like maybe you are missing the belt guides. My Riding mower has the thick little rods somewhat like smooth bolts mounted around the pulleys. These guides keep the belts in place. There is a tremendous amount of slack and tension thats put onto a belt when it's engaged. Be sure to check if all of your guides are in place.. And yep, it's a pain in the arse..

[<cmply]

WE/My roomate got a notice about building without a permit. We haven't been building anything, So we ignored the notice. Then, BAM! We Must tear down the Carport cover which is made with steal beams 14ft tall and 40ft long. It came with the house when she bought the house. It turns out that it is no where near code and was not permitted therefore we have to remove it..

SAY WHAT??? That's Crap. It's already there when the house was sold. If there is a problem shouldn't the city have dealt with that when previous owners constructed it? Definately it should not have been allowed to sell. The house was sold under the prentenses of being legal. What do we do?

[G Henslee]

building anything,

which is made

bought the house.

have to remove it..

there is a problem shouldn't

it should not have

Contact your realtor and perhaps attorney regarding the disclosure laws in your state. As for the city's involvement they don't have to deal with anything until it comes to their attention, be that by complaint or they happen to see a violation on their own. They will only deal with the current owner(s).

I suggest you contact the building or code enforcement dept. that sent the notice and explain the situation to them. See what other options they offer, such as applying for a permit, bringing the structure to code, etc. In most cases they will work with the property owner, however if you give them 'tude they tend to reciprocate sometimes and can be hard to work with.

Hopefully the carport can be saved.

[Robert Allison]

building anything,

which is made

bought the house.

have to remove it..

there is a problem shouldn't

it should not have

Generally speaking, once a house is sold, it is "grandfathered". The city cannot come a tell you that something needs to be torn down, unless it is a danger to you or the public. There are thousands of code violations that exist in every city. They are not being corrected because of the grandfather clause which must exist in every jurisdiction due to the ex post facto clause in the US Constitution. The ex post facto clause states that it is unconstitutional to pass a law which makes something done in the past illegal.

The grandfather clause makes it illegal to enforce new building codes on older buildings built before the code was passed. In most instances, when a building is sold, the grandfather clause takes over and the city cannot come back on a new owner for work done by someone else.

You may have to fight this if you want to keep it, cause just because they can't do something, doesn't mean that they won't try. Usually, a letter from an attorney to the code enforcement division at the city will make the violation go away. I have had to do this many times when the city wants to fix something that has been grandfathered.

Now, if you decide to do some work on that carport, the city can make you bring it up to code if the work is structural in nature. If you just want to leave it, they don't have a case.

OTOH, if YOU build something, they CAN make you tear it down if it is not to code and unpermitted.

[Susan (CobbersMom)]

Generally speaking, that's BS. Grandfathering means something that was once permitted but is no longer allowed may continue at it's same use. Maybe it applies to your locality but certainly not the entire country. Where I work (in zoning) it doesn't matter who owns the property. However the town(s) by state statute have a two year statute of limitation. The county has a 10 year statute of limitation. Just a couple months ago we came across a violation from three years ago. I didn't touch it but the county made the NEW OWNERS correct it.

As for the OP, it helps to deal with the official politely and rationally. If there's ways around things, they are more likely to help out. As others said, call the realtor or an attorney for advice. Realtors in my area are always checking to see if additions or what not were built with permits because it has to be stated on the offer that all construction was permitted. There might be some type of special exception that could be applied for. Who knows, find out how long it's been there, maybe it's past your locality/states statute of limitation. Sue

[Nick Hull]

I had a cousin in NJ who built an external stair on his house without the proper permit, due to some confusion. The city required him to tear it all down and get a permit abd rebuild it. Never underestimate the cantankerousness of a bureaucrat,

[Robert Allison]

Yes, like I said, authorities often try to enforce something that they don't have the authority to do. Most people just lay down for it, because "you can't fight city hall". Zoning is totally different from code enforcement. You will never be able to get a store in a residentially zoned area grandfathered. You can OTOH have a lot of code violations that can be kept.

If I had not resisted, I would have been forced to change several things over the past 35 years that were grandfathered. However, I resisted and have yet to lose a fight. But then, this is what I do for a living, and I know what I am talking about.

If there is an imminent danger to the public, the OP will not win, but if there isn't, I'll bet he will.

ONE thing that you said is true, each jurisdiction is different. My experience only applies to the central TX area, as I have not had to deal with this outside of Austin and the surrounding 100 mile radius or so.

Absolutely. Always be polite. Don't use words like BS and such. I already suggested a lawyer for a possible letter to the authority in question. Usually that is all it takes.

[m Ransley]

What part of the car port is not to code, why can`t the car port be made to meet code. Talk to them nicely and see an atty. You can get the permit now and fix what is improper if it is worth it, but find out your legal rights you may not have to.

[Grey-hound]

Try dropping (totally removing to the side) the mower deck. Worked for me and my deer. Greyhound