After-hours answering for plumbing and HVAC shops
Night calls answered. Only real emergencies wake your tech.
When it launches, Nightline will answer your night calls, sort real emergencies from morning jobs, and ring your on-call tech until someone presses 1.
Not live yet. Nightline does not answer any calls today.
You are on the list. We will email you once, when Nightline is ready for its first shops.
Planned price: $199 to $299 a month, set before launch. Nothing to pay to join.
Tuesday nightAfter-hours line
Call answered. "Water is coming through the kitchen ceiling."
Is water still running? Yes. Can you reach the main shutoff? No.
Emergency Active leak. Waking the on-call tech.
Calling Dave. Rings through Do Not Disturb.
No answer. Calling backup Luis.
Luis pressed 1. Caller told Luis is calling back now.
Summary sent to the owner: address, problem, who took it.
Smell of gas or a carbon monoxide alarm? The caller is told to get out first and call 911 or the gas utility from outside. Nobody is woken to give advice.
What will happen when a customer calls after hours
Answered and asked
Your number forwards to Nightline after hours. It answers with your shop's name and asks the questions you choose: address, what is happening, is water still running.
Sorted by your rules
A burst pipe or no heat in freezing weather wakes someone. A dripping faucet goes on the morning list, and the caller hears when to expect you.
Your tech is woken, for real
A phone call that rings through Do Not Disturb. The tech presses 1 to take the job. No answer, and it moves to the next tech in your rotation.
You decide what counts as an emergency
Wakes your on-call tech
- Water still running and the caller cannot shut it off
- Sewage backing up into the house
- No heat on a freezing night
- No cooling for an elderly caller in a heat wave
Goes on the morning list
- A dripping faucet or a slow drain
- Water heater questions with hot water still working
- Quotes and new installs
- Thermostat settings
These are examples. You edit the list for your shop before your line goes live.
Questions
Does Nightline answer calls today?
No. Nightline is being built and answers no calls. Keep your current night setup until we write to you that the first version is ready, and you have tested it yourself.
What if my on-call tech does not answer?
The plan: after a set time it calls the next tech in your rotation, then you. Every step goes in the summary, so you can see who was called and when.
Do I keep my phone number?
Yes. The plan is that you forward your existing number to Nightline after hours and switch it back in the morning, or set it once on a schedule with your phone provider.
Is it for one-truck shops?
Yes. It is planned for shops with 1 to 5 trucks. With one tech, the backup can be you.
Will calls be recorded?
Not decided yet. Call recording consent rules differ by US state. We will say exactly what is recorded, and who can hear it, before anyone signs up to pay.
Guides for plumbing and HVAC shops
- How a small plumbing shop can handle after-hours calls without burning outMissed night calls cost jobs, but waking for every one burns out the crew. How to triage, route and schedule after-hours calls.
- Emergency call script for plumbing and HVAC shopsA copy-paste script for emergency calls: what to ask, how to tell a real emergency from one that can wait, what to promise.
- What does an after-hours answering service cost a small plumbing or HVAC shop?What an answering service costs a plumbing or HVAC shop, how pricing models work, and what to compare. Public prices checked October 2026.