My spouse is one who I’d deem to be a panic repair caller. I define this to mean, she will pick up her mobile to immediately call the service and repair line any time that an appliance isn’t working. I know that it is essential to have appliances operate each time it is turned on. However, this initial reaction to call the service line shouldn’t be so immediate. The cost of maintenance calls has never been higher. How I am attempting to help, is to guide her to look at a few things first, and then, if necessary, call the professionals to help. Our HVAC has been the source for unnecessary repair calls in the past. I have supplied my spouse with a checklist of sorts to assist her to diagnose common HVAC problems. If our heating and air condition doesn’t work, I would prompt her to go look at the thermostat first. The setting, is the thermostat set to where she wants? Nudging a thermostat either cooler or warmer can help indicate if the temperature setting matches the ambient air. Next, I ask her to to make certain the Heating plus A/C is receiving power. For this, my spouse will move the power switch to “on” to check if a breaker is tripped. Finally, I ask that she inspects the air filter to see that it is free of clogs, the air vents and air returns similarily unobstructed. If she goes through all this and yet nothing happens, I would feel a bit more assured about having her call the HVAC maintenance line for a repair. I follow the same list although I do a couple more inspections than I would expect of my spouse. Outside, I will go to see if the condenser is covered in either dirt or debris. While viewing the condenser, I also look to see whether it is frozen. Often, a condenser that has frozen is an clear indication of an air flow problem or more simply that the filter needs to be changed. There is not a reason to spend money for repair calls that could potentially be costly if it is completely unnecessary. If I, too, go and check everything on my own list and yet the heating and air conditioning unit isn’t working still, I will call the professionals as well.