I’m super stressed out. My HVAC system has been acting up, and my brother isn’t in town to help me fix it. Normally, I call him with all my problems and he jumps at the chance to show off his handyman skills. I don’t mind pouring into his ego if it means I never have to pay for proper servicing. He’s never failed me, until now. He’s on a long vacation with his girlfriend and won’t be in town for another week. He told me he would call a trustworthy HVAC business for me, but I needed to check a few things on my own before he did. First, he had me look at the air filter. After an hour of arguing on the phone about where the air filter was, I finally found it. I sent him a photo and my brother said it looked fine. Next, he had me replace the batteries in the thermostat. As soon as I replaced them, it seemed to make my thermostat screen brighter, which was a good sign. Last, my brother instructed me to go into the basement and make sure the breaker didn’t switch. It didn’t appear switched, so I ended the call. Since I’d done everything I could, it was time to call a professional HVAC technician. My brother made a quick phone call and there was a man on my doorstep the next day! He walked around and mumbled something about strange noises and routine maintenance. It was all foreign to me, but whatever he did worked!