How-to guides

Step-by-step checks you can do yourself before you call a pro — written from Servik's cost-guide data, with the real numbers for when it does turn into a job.

• How to Check for a Slab Leak With Your Water Meter
  A slab leak hides under your foundation. This 5-step water meter test tells you in about two hours whether water is escaping somewhere it shouldn't — before you pay for detection.
• Brake Pads or Pads and Rotors? How to Tell Before You're on the Lift
  Shops quote pads-only and pads-plus-rotors prices that differ by hundreds. Five checks — by ear, eye, and feel — tell you which job your car actually needs before anyone takes a wheel off.
• Can Your Electrical Panel Handle an EV Charger? A 10-Minute Check
  A Level 2 charger is one of the biggest loads in a house. Before you pay for a panel upgrade — or skip one you actually need — this check reads your panel the way an electrician will.

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Data by Servik — verified local pros from official license records and public sources. Cost figures are typical ranges, not quotes; a pro's written estimate is the real number.