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After-hours answering / Plumbers
After-hours answering for plumbers.
The burst-pipe call at night gets answered in your shop's name, and you decide what wakes you up.
- Answers in your shop's name.
- Asks the question that matters: is water running right now?
- Takes name, number, address, and the problem.
- Texts you the details; emergencies marked urgent.
Call or text (816) 683-2229.
How an after-hours answering service works for a plumbing company
When your shop is closed, your number forwards to an AI voice agent set up for your company. It answers in your shop's name, asks what is going on, sorts emergencies from routine calls by your rules, takes the details, and sends them to you. It is the plumbing version of our after-hours answering service.
Emergency or morning: your rules, not ours
The deciding question is simple: "Is water running right now?" Then where it is coming from, and whether it can be shut off, only if you want that asked.
- Emergency by your rules: marked URGENT at the top of your summary. Paging or transferring your on-call phone is optional and can be added.
- Morning: booked into a morning slot if your calendar is connected, or captured with a best callback time.
- Gas smell: the agent reads your safety line and marks it urgent. It does not troubleshoot.
The agent does not diagnose, quote, or promise an arrival time.
- Plumbing call after hours
- Agent answers in your shop's name
- Name and callback number, read back
- Gas smell? Yes: Reads your safety line, marks URGENT.
- Water running now or sewage coming up?
- On your rule card as tonight? Yes: Takes address and what is happening. URGENT at the top of your summary. If added: (optional) Pages or transfers your on-call phone.
- Can wait: takes address, problem, best time Calendar connected: Books a morning slot.
- Repeats details back, explains next step by your rules
- Summary texted to you
Solid steps are the standard setup. Dashed steps marked OPTIONAL can be added; they are not part of every install.
What the agent asks a plumbing caller
Name. Callback number, read back. Service address. What is happening and where: kitchen, basement, water heater. Whether water is running now. The best time to call back. You can add or drop questions at setup.
Your after-hours rule card
Fill this in before your audit. It becomes your agent's rules. The filled-in rows are prompts, not advice; you decide each one.
| Problem the caller describes | Tonight or morning? (circle one) | Who hears about it tonight? | What the agent says |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water running that will not stop | Tonight / Morning | “I'm marking this urgent for [owner].” | |
| Sewage coming up a drain | Tonight / Morning | ||
| No water to the house | Tonight / Morning | ||
| Water heater leaking | Tonight / Morning | ||
| Gas smell | Safety line only | Your approved safety line | |
| Slow drain, drip, running toilet | Tonight / Morning | “We'll call you in the morning.” | |
| Quote or remodel question | Morning | “We'll call you to go over it.” | |
| What to say about after-hours fees | Default: “Pricing depends on the job; we'll go over it when we call back.” |
What lands on your phone in the morning (or tonight)
A summary by text after every call: name, number, address, problem, urgent or routine, best time, and spam marked. Booked jobs show up on your calendar when it is connected.
If the job gets booked, appointment preparation can build the job file before you roll.
Daytime, when you are under a sink
Daytime coverage is optional and can be added. If calls ring out while you are on a job, see missed call answering service.
Keep your number; how setup works
Your number forwards to the agent when you are closed. Setup follows how it works: an audit with your rule card, a map of the agent approved in plain English, test calls with you, including a fake burst-pipe call at night, and a handoff so you can pause it or change it.
What it costs
Pricing is scoped on the free audit, based on your calls and how you want emergencies handled.
Other trades
Heating and cooling shops: see the HVAC answering service. All trades: after-hours answering service. Electricians, roofers, and garage door companies use the same setup.
Questions
FAQ
What is an after-hours answering service for plumbers?
It answers your plumbing company's calls when you are closed. Ours is an AI voice agent that answers in your shop's name, asks whether water is running, takes the address and problem, and sends the details to you.
How does it decide what is an emergency?
You decide. You fill in a rule card that says which problems count as tonight, like water that will not stop or sewage coming up a drain. The agent asks the deciding question and marks those calls urgent.
Will it wake me up for a dripping faucet?
No. Problems you mark as morning are captured with the caller's details and a callback time, or booked into a morning slot if your calendar is connected, so they wait for business hours.
What does it do if a caller smells gas?
It reads the safety line you approve, marks the call urgent, and does not troubleshoot. It never gives repair advice.
Can it send emergencies straight to my on-call phone?
Urgent calls are marked at the top of your summary so you see them first. Paging or transferring to your on-call phone is optional and can be added.
Does it quote prices or after-hours fees?
No. It tells callers pricing depends on the job and that you will go over it when you call back.
Do I keep my number?
Yes. Your business number forwards to the agent when you are closed, and you can turn forwarding off any time.
What does it cost?
Pricing is scoped on the free audit, based on your calls and how you want emergencies handled.
Book a Free Automation Audit
Bring your rule card. We'll set up the agent around it.