A: I recommend calling a plumber. Often, a professional is more than willing to suggest some simple things over the phone for the consumer to try before scheduling a service call. This is because they know how frustrating it is to pay $75 or more to have them come for just a few minutes. It also creates goodwill because you will probably call them back if you can't fix it yourself, and will also call them for all of your future plumbing needs, as well as recommend them to others.

However, it is important to remember that professionals have a lot of special training, tools and experience, and usually carry plenty of special parts in their trucks and that allows them to recognize symptoms and fix things quickly. It is often more efficient, cheaper and quicker to pay a specialist his minimum fee for a few minutesworth of work and get the job done right than to pay a handyman for several hours to go through a process of elimination, run to the hardware store a couple times for different parts, etc.

So I suggest calling a plumber or two, describing the problem and if they can't tell you how to fix it yourself, hire one. Hopefully your landlord will pay the bill.

To find the appropriate specialist, visit Home Advisor, become a member (it's free!) and be matched with the ideal service professional in your area.

by Kathy Maynard, reprinted courtesy of HomeAdvisor.com