A number that is answered, and a calendar

Three things worth finding first

They take a minute to dig out and they are what decides whether the part is already in the van when we arrive.

• The model number off the rating plate. On a cooktop it is normally underneath, so the paperwork in the drawer is usually the faster route to it.
• Which zone or which burner, and exactly what it does — nothing at all, a level that will not hold, a flame that will not come down, heat at one end of a griddle only.
• What happened just before it started. A power cut, a boil-over, a gas shut-off, a deep clean, a new pan. It is the single most useful sentence you can give us.

Somewhere other than Encino, Cheviot Hills, Mar Vista or Larchmont Village? Ring anyway. You will get a straight answer on the spot rather than an appointment nobody can keep.