Everything you need to know about Call Carl and keeping your home in good shape.
Call Carl is an AI home maintenance assistant for iPhone. Carl builds a personalized maintenance schedule for your home, tracks your appliances and systems, stores your contractor and service provider history, and answers questions about anything going on with your home — from weird noises to contractor quotes.
Yes. Call Carl is free to download on the App Store. If you find it useful, you can tip Carl from within the app — but it's entirely optional. If we introduce paid features in the future, we'll give you clear notice before any charges apply.
Call Carl is available on iPhone running a current, supported version of iOS. You can find the exact requirements on the App Store listing.
Download the app, create an account, and enter your home address. Carl uses your home's location, age, and systems to build your first maintenance schedule. From there you can add appliances, log past repairs, and start asking Carl questions.
Check your stove. Gas stoves have burner grates and make a clicking sound when you turn a knob. Electric stoves have flat coil burners or a smooth glass cooktop.
If you're not sure, look behind the stove — a gas line will be a flexible metal or yellow pipe. You can also check your utility bills: if you receive a gas bill, your home uses gas for at least one appliance.
Look for vents or registers in your floors, walls, or ceilings — that means forced air (furnace or heat pump). Radiators or baseboard heaters mean hot water or steam heat.
Check your basement or utility room: a furnace looks like a large metal box with ductwork attached; a boiler is rounder and connects to pipes. The fuel type (gas, electric, oil) is labeled on the unit.
Radiators are cast-iron or steel units mounted on walls or under windows — they look like a series of connected metal fins or columns. If you have them, your home uses hydronic (hot water or steam) heat rather than forced air.
Hot water radiators have a valve and are warm to the touch when heating is on. Steam radiators often have a single pipe and a small air vent on the side.
Look in your basement, utility closet, or garage. A large cylindrical tank (typically 40–80 gallons) is a traditional tank water heater — the most common type. A small box mounted on a wall with pipes but no tank is a tankless (on-demand) water heater.
For fuel type: gas units have a flue pipe coming out the top or side; electric units have electrical connections and no flue. The label on the unit will confirm both.
Your home's age is usually on the property listing, your deed, or your homeowner's insurance policy. You can also look it up on your county assessor's website — search your address and the property record will show the year built.
If you're on a septic system, you won't receive a sewer bill from a utility company. You can also check your property inspection report or county records. A septic tank is buried in the yard — look for a clean-out cap or access riser.
If you're in a city or dense suburb, you're almost certainly on municipal sewer.
Look at your home from outside. Asphalt shingles are the most common — flat, overlapping rectangular tabs. Metal roofs have a ribbed or standing-seam appearance. Tile roofs have a curved, overlapping clay or concrete look and are common in warm climates.
Your home inspection report will also list the roof type and estimated age.
When you set up your home, Carl uses your home's age, location, and the systems and appliances you have to generate a personalized task list. It accounts for regional factors like climate and seasonal timing, tracks what you've completed and what's coming up, and explains what each task is actually preventing — not just what to do, but why it matters.
Your home health score is a single number that reflects how on top of your maintenance you are — what's overdue, what's coming up, and what's been handled. It updates as you complete tasks or log new ones. Think of it as a quick pulse check on whether your home is in good shape or starting to fall behind.
Yes. Share a contractor quote or invoice with Carl and it will tell you whether the price looks reasonable, flag anything that seems off, and suggest questions to ask before you sign. It's especially useful for large jobs like HVAC replacement, roof repair, or plumbing work where it's hard to know if you're getting a fair deal.
Yes. You can log all your home's appliances and systems — including model numbers, purchase dates, warranty expiration, manuals, and photos. Carl uses this information to give you more accurate maintenance guidance, and it's all there when you need a model number or want to check if something is still under warranty.
Yes. Carl keeps a record of every contractor, plumber, electrician, and handyman who has worked on your home — what they did, what it cost, and how to reach them. When you need to call someone back or want to remember who replaced your water heater two years ago, it's all there.
Yes. You can invite household members to share your home in the app so everyone is working from the same maintenance schedule, asset list, and provider history.
The goal is for Carl to go from telling you what needs doing to actually taking care of it. That means:
Carl's job isn't just to remind you — it's to handle as much as possible so you don't have to.
Most homes should replace their HVAC filter every 1–3 months, depending on filter type, whether you have pets, and local air quality.
A clogged filter makes your system work harder, raises your energy bill, and circulates dust and allergens through every room. Carl tracks this for your specific setup and reminds you when it's time.
Once a year. Sediment — mainly calcium and magnesium from hard water — builds up at the bottom of the tank over time. It makes the heater less efficient, increases energy costs, and shortens the life of the unit. Flushing takes about 30 minutes and can add years to your water heater's lifespan.
If you have very hard water, twice a year is even better.
Annual tasks most homeowners should cover include:
The exact list depends on your home's age, systems, and location. Carl builds a schedule specific to your home and keeps track of what's been done.
Small maintenance tasks exist to prevent bigger, more expensive problems. Skipping an HVAC filter change strains the motor. Ignoring gutter cleaning leads to water damage. Putting off a dryer vent cleaning is a fire hazard.
If you're behind, the best move is to get a clear picture of what's overdue and work through it. Carl shows you your home health score, flags what's most urgent, and explains what's actually at risk — so you can prioritize without guessing.
Yes. Your data is stored securely and is never sold or used for advertising. You can read the full details in our Privacy Policy.
You can delete your account directly from within the app at any time. When you do, all your personal data is permanently deleted within 30 days. You can also email hello@call-carl.com to request deletion.
Email us at hello@call-carl.com and we'll get back to you.
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