So I had the HVAC repair guy come out a few weeks ago  to do our annual cleaning and maintenance.  Like taking care of a car, appliances in the home need to be maintained.  But it cost me $275 to have him come out and do routine maintenance on our three units.  We have 2 wall ductless combination heat pump/air conditioner units and one central a/c unit. 

Unfortunately, our wall units apparently have a fried motherboard.  This is causing a lack of compression when both units are run.  So it was suggested we replace it but it would cost $200-300 to buy the board from the repair guy.  Instead I called Samsung and asked about the warranty. Unfortunately I only have a 5 year compressor and 1 year parts warranty, but I was able to get a part ID# and order it online.  I got the motherboard for $80 including shipping and handling.

And my frugal self has decided I’m going to replace it myself, well DH is.  I was looking at the unit and it didn’t look any more difficult than building a computer.  So I ordered the part online after calling the manufactorer and asking for the part #.  It was $80 but the HVAC person wanted to charge me $150 for the part and $100 to come back out and install it.

Then DH went downstairs and read the manual and replaced the part saving using the $100 installation fee.  If he hadn’t done it we would have called the repair guy.  Cheap and easy fix.  Moral of the story?  Always see if you can Do-It-Yourself because it’ll cost an arm and a leg .  Although if you aren’t handy it’s acceptable to use a professional because it’s better to have it done right, than doing it yourself and having it cost more to repair in the end.