Bobert,

My daughter brought down their mower (a used one from the parents of one of the housemates) that doesn't start. I checked it over and so far this is what I've done:

changed the spark plug
added oil. I had to add oil to get to the "add oil" line, then fill it up. I don't know how they ran without it catching fire, but maybe that's why it won't start now.
cleaned the air filter

I added a little fuel but I didn't empty the old. If I empty that out and put in fresh (I have a preservative in it) do you think that will help, or should I spray or swish some kind of solvent (and what would it be)?

Where is the carburetor on mowers? This is a Briggs and Stratton (no surprise) off brand. And amazingly it doesn't seem to have a choke. There is a little lever on the front of the engine, around from the rubber thing to prime the engine. There are no instructions with this thing.

Does any of this make sense? Any thoughts? I have a neighbor across the street who offered to take a look at it, but I probably won't catch him for a couple of days since he works on weekends. Sooner we get this back to the kids the sooner the homeowners association gets off of their backs for growing wildflowers in the yard.

SRS