Work out what is wrong before you pay anyone.
Plumbing, heating, cooling, electrical, water damage and mold. What fails, why it fails, and which of it you can handle yourself without calling a contractor.
Some things cannot wait
If one of these is happening right now, do this before you read anything else on the site.
- You smell gas. Get everyone outside first. Do not touch light switches, the thermostat, or your phone until you are out of the building. Call the gas utility or 911 from outside.
- Standing water near outlets, cords or the electrical panel. Do not walk into it. Cut power at the breaker only if you can reach the panel without standing in water.
- Sewage backing up inside the house. Stop running water anywhere in the building, and keep people and pets out of the affected rooms.
- Water running and you cannot stop it. Close the main shutoff before anything else. It is usually where the supply enters the house, at the meter, or near the water heater.
What is broken?
Pick the area, then narrow it down by the symptom and the age of the house.
Plumbing
Low pressure, slow drains, leaking water heaters, slab leaks and repipes.
Heating & Cooling
AC not cooling, furnace not firing, uneven rooms, humidity and ductwork.
Electrical
Tripping breakers, dead outlets, old panels, aluminum wiring and upgrades.
Water Damage
Burst pipes, ceiling stains, wet carpet, drying times and insurance claims.
Mold
Musty smells, black staining, crawlspaces, and when remediation is oversold.
We tell you when not to call anyone
Every page answers the question you arrived with. Where the honest answer is that it is a ten-minute job you can do yourself, we say so — and that page carries no phone number at all. Three of the six answers in our pipe identification tool end that way. How this site makes money.
Not sure yet? Work it out yourself
Four tools that narrow the problem down before you spend anything.
What supply pipe is in your walls?
Identify it by the decade the house was built.
What size water heater do you need?
Before you get talked into a bigger tank than the house needs.
How long should drying take?
Judge a restoration quote before you sign it.
Moisture risk by housing age
Where growth is likely, and where it is not.
When it does need a pro
Gas work, panel replacement, sewer lines under the slab and anything behind a wall you would have to open up. Read the page for your problem first — it tells you whether this is one of those, and what a fair quote looks like before you make the call.
Speak to a local pro
Every trade has its own line. Pick the one you need and the number is on that page.