For plumbers·Tri-Cities, Tennessee
After-hours answering for plumbers.
A burst pipe doesn’t wait for morning, and neither does the homeowner standing in an inch of water. Brass Lantern answers the calls you miss as your shop, helps get the water shut off, puts real emergencies through to you and books everything else.
- Keeps your number
- Live within 48 hours
- 30-day money-back guarantee
IIn short
Brass Lantern is an after-hours and overflow answering service for plumbing shops. When you can’t pick up, it answers with your shop’s name, asks whether the water is shut off, puts the emergencies you choose straight through to your cell, books routine work on your calendar and texts you the details. A local business in Northeast Tennessee sets it up with you.
The calls it handles
The calls your plumbing shop misses.
Burst and leaking pipes
Active leaks, frozen pipes in a cold snap, water coming through a ceiling.
Water heaters
No hot water, leaking tanks, pilot trouble and replacement estimates.
Drains and backups
Clogged drains, toilets backing up and sewer backups into the house.
No water at all
Main line breaks, and pump trouble for homes on a well.
Fixtures and small repairs
Running toilets, dripping faucets, disposals and new fixtures.
Bigger jobs
Repipes, water heater swaps and remodel work, booked as estimate visits.
IIHear it
A plumbing call, start to finish.
Friday, 10:41 PM · after hours
A pipe bursts late on a Friday night.
The sound couldn’t play here, so the words play on their own.
This shop marks burst pipes as urgent, so the call goes straight through to the on-call plumber.
The text the shop gets
Thanks for calling Sourwood Plumbing. This is the after-hours assistant, and this call may be recorded. How can I help you tonight?
Hi. A pipe just burst under my kitchen sink, and there’s water all over the floor.
Okay, let’s stop the water first. Can you get to your main water shut-off valve?
Hang on. Okay, I found it. It’s off, and the water stopped.
Good, that was the right move. Is any of the water near outlets or cords?
No, it’s just on the floor.
Okay. Can I get your name and the address?
Dana Hill. 418 Laurel Street, in Elizabethton.
Thanks, Dana. Sourwood wants to hear about a burst pipe right away, so I’m putting you through to the on-call plumber now. Please stay on the line.
Okay. Thank you.
Putting the call through to the on-call plumber…
This call is scripted and voiced by text-to-speech. The shop, caller, address, phone number and prices are made up. On your line it answers with your shop’s name, in the female or male voice you pick, and follows your rules. Hear the other trades.
IIIWhat it asks
The questions you’d ask.
- Name, callback number and service address
- Where the water is coming from, and whether it’s still running
- Whether they’ve shut the water off, and how to find the main shut-off if not
- Whether any water is near outlets, cords or the electrical panel
- For a water heater: gas or electric, and whether there’s any gas smell
- Which of your open times works for them
You choose the questions. These are where most shops start.
When it can’t wait
Your rules for urgent calls.
Water still running
Walks them to the main shut-off first, then puts the call through to your on-call plumber.
Sewage coming into the house
Rings your cell, or texts you marked urgent. Your choice.
A gas smell near the water heater
Tells them to leave the house and call 911 and the gas company from outside, then flags you as urgent.
Water near anything electrical
Tells them to stay clear of outlets and the panel, then reaches you right away.
IVQuestions
Plumbing questions.
Will it tell callers how to shut off their water?
If you want it to. It can ask whether the water is off and walk them to the main shut-off before anything else, like in the sample call.
Can it put an emergency straight through to my on-call plumber?
Yes. The calls you mark urgent can ring through to the cell number you choose, and you still get the text with the details.
Does it give prices?
Only the ones you give it, like a trip charge or an after-hours rate. Anything that needs a look gets booked as a visit.
What if a caller just needs a quick answer?
It answers the common questions you give it, like your hours and the towns you cover, and takes a message for anything else.
More answers about pricing, contracts, recordings and AI on the main questions list.
VBook a demo
See it answer as your shop.
Fifteen minutes, at your shop or over the phone. You’ll call the line, hear it answer with your shop’s name, and watch the text land on your phone. No pressure and no commitment. If it’s not a fit, we’ll say so.
Where we work
- Johnson City
- Kingsport
- Bristol
- Elizabethton
- Jonesborough
- Greeneville