AI answering service for plumbers, set up and run for you
The AI receptionist for plumbers that books the call while you're in a crawl space
Optimal Automations sets up and runs an AI receptionist for your plumbing company. When you're flat on your back in a crawl space, elbow-deep in a drain or asleep at 2 a.m., it answers, asks what the water is doing and states your fee before it books. A burst pipe or a sewage backup is marked urgent by your rules, and you get the details right after the call. Ordinary daytime visits are on your calendar by the time the caller hangs up. Yes, it's an AI, and it says so in its opening greeting.
Free, no card, about 5 minutes. You enter your contact details, then your fees and rules, and call your own AI receptionist from your browser for up to 4 minutes. Andrei or Konnor may follow up.
- From $497 a month, $997 setup, month-to-month
- Live in about a week. You keep your number.
- 5 booked jobs in your first 30 days live, or month 2 is free Conditions apply.
- Customer
- Marcus
- Problem
- Burst pipe under kitchen sink
- Water
- Still running, valve not found
- Priority
- Urgent, after hours
- Address
- 77 Alder Rd
- Area
- In service area
- Owner alert
- Sent right after the call
- Fee
- $195 + 1.5x hourly, after hours
What is an AI receptionist for plumbers?
An AI receptionist for plumbers is an AI voice assistant that answers when you can't. It asks what the water is doing, states your fee before booking, marks burst pipes and sewage backups urgent by your rules and sends you the details. It never diagnoses or quotes a repair, and unsafe calls get one of three fixed messages.
- Every number it speaks comes off your price sheet, and the team confirms any repair price on site.
- Its only repair instruction is a line about the main water valve, and only if you allow it.
- Every call opens with the words "an AI assistant" and "This call is recorded."
- It books into Google Calendar today. If you schedule in ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro or Jobber, you copy each job across.
A burst pipe doesn't wait for a callback
In ServiceTitan's June 2022 data from more than 3,000 of its own trade customers, plumbing had the highest average booking rate: 43% of calls (ServiceTitan). Across all trades, the same data has the largest shops, 25 technicians or more, booking 59% of calls and the smallest, under five technicians, booking 24%. It doesn't explain the gap, but in a one-truck plumbing shop the person who would answer is the one under the sink.
The four calls you can't answer from under a house
- The crawl-space call. You're on your back under a house with a headlamp on, and the phone is in the truck. Invoca's July 2026 report puts the share of home service calls answered by a person at 52%, or 65% for calls longer than 15 seconds (Invoca). It spans nine trades, plumbing included, so read it as the general picture, not a plumbing figure.
- The after-6 call. A kitchen filling with water doesn't wait for morning. After 6 p.m., ServiceTitan's small shops booked 9% of inbound calls and its large shops 21%, across all trades. It doesn't say how many of those calls were emergencies.
- The first hard freeze. ServiceTitan's analysis of one February 2021 winter storm, covering more than a hundred home services shops in a single state, says incoming calls to those shops "jumped 7-fold during the week of February 15 through 21" and that "plumbing services were by far the most affected by the storm" (ServiceTitan). It doesn't say what the jump is measured against, and it covers one storm, five years ago, across all trades. Read it as an example of how fast a freeze piles up calls, not as a forecast.
- The no-hot-water call. It might be a part or it might be the tank. Housecall Pro's price guide puts a water heater replacement at $1,600 to $7,000 (Housecall Pro). You don't find out which by letting it ring.
Example call
At 2 a.m. it asks about the water before it asks for an address
Here is a 2 a.m. burst pipe under a kitchen sink, for a made-up company, with a caller who can't find the shut-off valve. The AI asks if the water is shut off, says the one valve line you allowed, marks the call urgent, states the after-hours emergency fee and leaves the repair price to the plumber. It never tells the caller to fix anything.
Hear your plumbing receptionist
Made-up company, made-up caller. The free demo call has no live calendar and no texting; on your real line the AI checks your Google Calendar and asks about texts. When you build yours, it answers as your business, with your prices.
After a call like this, the owner sees it on an example plumbing dashboard. Made-up business, made-up numbers, no sign-in.
- AIThanks for calling Sample Plumbing Co., this is Jess, an AI assistant. This call is recorded. How can I help you today?
- CallerA pipe burst under my kitchen sink. There's water all over the floor.
- AIOh no, that's a mess. Is the water shut off?
- CallerNo, it's still pouring out. What do I do?
- AIIf you know where your main water valve is and it's safe to reach, turn it off.
- CallerWe just bought this place and I have no idea where that is.
- AINo problem, I'm marking this urgent. The emergency fee after hours is $195 plus one and a half times the hourly rate. What's the address?
- Caller77 Alder Road, in Round Rock. Is that more than a regular visit, and what will the repair cost?
- AIA daytime service call is $95, credited to the repair, and the team confirms the repair price on site. Do you own or rent?
- CallerWe own it.
- AIThanks. What's your first name?
- CallerMarcus.
- AIThanks, Marcus. What's the best mobile number for you?
- Caller512-555-0148.
- Marked urgent, after hours: 77 Alder Rd · burst pipe, water still running · valve not found · emergency fee $195 + 1.5x hourly · owner alert sent after the call
- AIGot it, five one two, five five five, zero one four eight. I've marked the burst pipe at 77 Alder Road urgent, and Sam will call you back.
The intake
What it asks plumbing callers
It listens for danger first, then asks what the water is doing, states your fee and settles on a visit. Short questions, one at a time.
- Danger
- It listens first for gas, smoke, sparks, a carbon monoxide alarm, anyone hurt or in danger, sewage and water reaching outlets or a panel. Any of them triggers the fixed words in the safety section, before anything else.
- Problem
- What is happening, in the caller's words: a leak, a drain or toilet, no hot water, a fixture or the main line. Which fixture or where, and how long.
- Water
- "Is the water shut off?" Asked once, on an active leak. Nothing else about the repair.
- Hot water
- Gas or electric, tank or tankless, roughly how old. Only on a no-hot-water call.
- Fee
- The service-call fee, or the after-hours emergency fee, said before it books, along with whether the visit charge comes off the repair bill.
- Where
- Street address first. It compares it with the service area you set, then asks whether the caller owns or rents.
- When
- Two arrival windows to choose from, inside your business hours. After hours your urgent-call rule takes over: the calls you list are marked urgent and you are alerted right after the call.
- Contact
- First name, plus a mobile number to reach them. The AI then repeats the address, day and window to confirm them before it hangs up.
Your rules
Your fees, your urgent calls, your service area
We build it around your price sheet and your alert list. We tune it through your first month. After that, send us a change and we make it.
Service-call fee
Whatever you charge to show up, and whether it comes off the repair bill. Callers hear it before any time is offered, on every call.
After-hours fee and alerts
Your after-hours emergency fee and the multiplier on your hourly rate, plus the calls that count as urgent after hours: an active leak that isn't shut off, a sewage backup, no water at all. For those, the caller hears that your on-call plumber will be alerted, and you get the alert right after the call, by email until texting is approved. You set the list, and you tell us which inbox you watch overnight.
From prices
Drain clearing, toilet or faucet repair, whatever you will stand behind by phone. It quotes a from price only for jobs on your list, and gives your maintenance plan price if a caller asks.
Estimate-only jobs
Water heater replacement, sewer line work, repiping and slab leaks are priced only after someone has seen the job. The AI books an estimate visit and gives no number for the work itself. Whether the visit is free is your call.
Work you don't take
Septic pumping, well pumps, gas-line work, anything you put on the list. The caller hears a polite no and, where it makes sense, a nudge toward the right kind of specialist.
When to get you
Callers who ask for you once, and anyone with a complaint, a billing question or a commercial job, get a handoff. In business hours with transfer on, your cell rings; otherwise the AI takes a name, number and short reason and passes it to you for a callback.
Where it stops
It takes the call. It never plays plumber.
The call you worry about is the one where an AI says the wrong thing about gas, flooding or someone getting hurt. So those words are fixed: three emergency messages, plus short lines for water, electrics and sewage. They come before everything else on every call. Your own lawyer or insurer should read every fixed word before you switch it on.
Gas, smoke, carbon monoxide and anyone hurt
- Gas, a rotten-egg smell, smoke, sparks, a fire, or equipment that smells like it's burning: the normal call stops and the AI says the first fixed message, word for word. Then it ends the call without booking, diagnosing or asking more.
- A sounding carbon monoxide alarm, or dizziness, nausea or a headache together with a heating problem, brings the second message, and the call ends the same way.
- Anyone hurt or in danger, or a medical emergency, brings the third: one short line telling the caller to hang up and call 911. The call ends there.
The three messages, exactly as the AI says them. When a caller mentions gas, a fire, smoke or sparks, the AI says: "That sounds unsafe. Please hang up and leave the house right now, without touching any light switches. Once you're outside and away from the building, call 911 and your gas company's emergency line. Stay safe." A carbon monoxide alarm gets its own message, and it too ends the call: "Get everyone outside into fresh air right now and call 911 from outside. Don't try to find the source. Stay safe." If anyone is hurt or in danger, or there is a medical emergency, the AI says: "Please hang up and call 911 right now." The gas message follows the advice that gas utilities and the U.S. government give the public (Black Hills Energy, Enbridge Gas and the U.S. Department of Transportation's pipeline safety office). The carbon monoxide message follows Health Canada, and the US Consumer Product Safety Commission gives the same first steps for suspected poisoning. The 911 message agrees with 911.gov's advice to dial 911 immediately in an emergency.
Flooding, sewage and water near electrics
- An active leak: it asks once, "Is the water shut off?" If not, and you allow it, it says one line about the main water valve. If the caller doesn't know where the valve is, it says it is marking the call urgent. It gives no other instruction.
- Water reaching outlets, a panel or appliances: one line telling the caller to stay clear, and the call is marked urgent. If the caller says they feel unsafe, it tells them to leave and call 911.
- A sewage backup: one short line about keeping kids and pets away from the water, and the call is marked urgent.
The water, electrical and sewage lines, word for word. Shut-off: "If you know where your main water valve is and it's safe to reach, turn it off." Water near electrics: "Please stay clear of the water and anything electrical, and I'm marking this urgent." If they feel unsafe: "Leave and call 911." Sewage: "Please keep kids and pets away from the water and avoid touching it. I'm marking this urgent." The shut-off line is in the spirit of FEMA's winter guide, which says to learn how to shut off the main water valve. The sewage line is a short version of a 2008 state health department fact sheet that says to keep children and pets away from the sewage. We found no agency wording for the electrics line, so it says the least it can: stay clear.
What it never does
- Diagnose. It won't call a drain a main-line backup, a stain a slab leak or a heater dead. It writes down what the caller says.
- Walk anyone through a repair. No plunging, snaking, relighting a pilot or draining a tank. Outside the fixed safety lines, the water valve line is the only instruction it can give.
- Quote a repair or replacement. The only numbers it speaks are the fees and from prices on your sheet. The final price is confirmed by the team on site.
- Promise an arrival time after hours. It says the on-call plumber will be alerted and that you will call back, and leaves the timing to you.
- Mention credentials on its own. It says nothing about licenses, bonds or insurance unless you supply the exact wording to use.
- Take card details by phone. If a caller starts reading a number out, it stops them politely, and your team collects payment after the work.
Reminder texts
Reminders for customers, an alert for you
- When the call ends: you get a summary of the call, by email until texting is approved and by text after, and an urgent call says so. If the customer said yes to texts, they get a text with the date, arrival window and address.
- The evening before and the morning of: a reminder from 4 p.m., then a short heads-up from 8 a.m. that your plumber is due in the window. C confirms the visit and R asks to move it. A reminder is skipped when the job was booked less than six hours before it was due. Move a job on your calendar and its reminders shift to the new time, but the customer isn't told, so call them yourself.
- Silence after a reminder: if nobody answers it, you get one email roughly two hours on, with time to phone the customer before your van leaves the shop.
- If they reply R: that job's reminders pause and the customer gets "No problem. We'll text you shortly to reschedule or cancel." You get an email and choose the new time. The AI doesn't call anyone back.
- A question or a photo: the customer gets one automatic reply saying you'll get back to them, and you get an email.
- The one wait: your business texting number has to be approved by the phone carriers, usually one to four weeks after we file. Until then no text goes to a customer. Calls are still answered and jobs still booked, and each call summary reaches you by email.
Compare
How it compares with voicemail, a live answering service and an AI receptionist app
Voicemail costs nothing, and a caller with water on the floor may not wait for a callback. With a live answering service you get a message to act on, and the callback stays yours. An AI receptionist app you set up yourself books jobs only once you have built and tuned it. Ours is built for you around your fees and safety rules, then tuned through your first month.
| Feature | Optimal Automations | Voicemail | Live answering service | AI receptionist app |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Answers from under a house and at 2 a.m. | Yes, 24/7 | Takes a message only | Usually | Yes |
| States your service-call or after-hours emergency fee before booking | Yes, from your price sheet | No | Depends on their script | If you set it up |
| Gas smell, burst pipe or sewage backup | Fixed safety words, marked urgent, you get an alert after the call | Waits for your callback | Depends on their script | If you write it |
| Books the visit while the caller is on the line | Yes, into open Google Calendar windows | No | Often just takes a message | If you connect a calendar |
| Who builds it and updates it | We do | You | The service | Mostly you |
| Price | $997 setup, then $497 or $797 a month | Free | From $250 a month for 50 minutes (Ruby) | From $49 a month for 250 minutes (Rosie, price shown) |
Prices checked October 8, 2026 on Ruby and Rosie. Rosie shows monthly and annual billing; $49 is the price shown on its page. On select plans Jobber sells a Receptionist add-on for $29 a month that covers 30 conversations, and it is included on Jobber's Plus plan with unlimited usage (Jobber, read October 8, 2026). In this table a live answering service is one staffed by operators. Plans differ, so check what each one includes.
Pricing
What it costs, next to one water heater
Starter is $497 a month and Pro is $797, with $997 once to set up. It's month-to-month with no per-call fees. For scale, a part-time receptionist at the median wage, 20 hours a week, is about $1,583 a month in wages alone (BLS). Housecall Pro's guide prices a water heater replacement at $1,600 to $7,000, so one sold job at the low end brings in more than three months of Starter, before your costs.
Starter
$497/ month
Up to 1,000 AI minutes, about 500 two-minute calls. Answering, booking, call summaries and, once your number is approved, reminder texts.
Pro
$797/ month
Up to 2,500 AI minutes and everything in Starter, plus a monthly call review with Andrei or Konnor.
One-time setup
$997
We build it from your own prices and rules, test it on a full call checklist and tune it during month one.
What you commit to: $1,494 to start on Starter ($997 setup plus the first month) or $1,794 on Pro. After that it is month-to-month: cancel before your next billing date and you owe nothing more, apart from $0.25 for each minute over your plan.
What we need from you: answers to a few questions about your fees, service area and schedule, access to your Google Calendar, call forwarding from the number you already use, and the business details the phone carriers ask for before texting starts. We build, test and tune it.
Extra minutes past your plan are $0.25 each. No per-call fees. The same done-for-you setup is built for AI receptionist for HVAC companies, AI receptionist for handyman services and other home service trades. See the full list.
The 5-job guarantee
If your AI receptionist doesn't book at least 5 jobs in its first 30 days live, your second month is free. "Free" means we waive your plan fee for month 2. The $997 setup fee is not refunded.
- What counts as a booked job: a real customer's booking, visit or estimate that the AI put on your calendar. Test calls don't count.
- When the 30 days start: the day it starts answering your calls.
- What we need from you: your calls forward to the AI for the full 30 days, at least whenever you can't answer and after hours. Your calendar has at least 10 open job windows a week.
- Enough calls to judge it: at least 40 calls from potential customers reach the AI in those 30 days, as shown in the call log with recordings. If fewer come in, the guarantee doesn't apply. On the demo we look at your call volume and tell you if it is likely too low.
- How to claim: after your first 30 days live, email hello@automateai.agency. We go through the call log with you, and if the conditions above were met and fewer than 5 jobs were booked, month 2's plan fee is waived.
Who you'll work with
Two founders. No call center.
We're Andrei and Konnor. We build every AI receptionist ourselves and test it before it takes a customer's call. We tune it through your first month; after that you send us a change and we make it, and Pro adds a monthly call review. You talk to one of us on the demo, and after launch you reach one of us directly, not a support queue.
We are new. There are no customer reviews or case studies to show yet, and we won't invent any. What we can show: you hear your own receptionist before you pay, every number on this page links to its source, and the guarantee puts our month-2 fee on the line.
Email us anytime: hello@automateai.agency
Andrei
Co-founder
Konnor
Co-founder
Questions
Plumbing AI receptionist FAQ
Updated
How is an AI receptionist for plumbers different from a plumbing answering service?
A live answering service usually means an operator takes a name and number, and the callback is yours. An AI receptionist for plumbers handles the whole call: it asks what the water is doing, states your fee, marks a burst pipe or sewage backup urgent under your rules, then books the visit before the caller hangs up.
Will it quote a price for a burst pipe or a water heater?
No, not for the repair. It says only what you gave it: your service-call fee, your after-hours emergency fee and the from prices you list, like drain clearing or a toilet repair. Water heaters, sewer lines, repipes and slab leaks get an estimate visit instead, and on site the team confirms what the repair costs.
What does the AI say when a plumbing caller smells gas or needs 911?
Three fixed messages, word for word, then the call ends: leave and call 911 for a gas smell, smoke, sparks or a fire; get outside into fresh air and call 911 for a carbon monoxide alarm; and "Please hang up and call 911 right now." for anyone hurt or in danger, or a medical emergency. Water, electrical and sewage calls get shorter fixed lines.
Sources: Black Hills Energy, what to do if you smell natural gas, Health Canada, carbon monoxide, 911.gov, frequently asked questions
What happens when someone calls at 2 a.m. with a burst pipe or a sewage backup?
On a burst pipe it asks once if the water is shut off, then says the valve line if allowed. On a sewage backup it says a short line about keeping kids and pets away. Both calls are marked urgent and the caller hears your after-hours emergency fee. You get an alert after the call, by email until texting is approved, then by text.
What if a caller asks what to do about a leak, a clog or a dead water heater?
It won't walk anyone through plunging, snaking, relighting a pilot or draining a tank. Beyond the fixed safety lines, its one instruction is the water-valve line, and only if you allow it. For a question outside its list, it says the owner will confirm, writes down the caller's details and moves on. It never calls a slow drain a main-line backup.
How does it handle commercial jobs, landlords and renters?
A commercial job gets a handoff rather than a booking: with transfer on, the call rings your cell in business hours; otherwise the AI takes a name, number and reason and tells the caller you'll call back. Everyone else is asked whether they own or rent. It does not ask who is paying or whether a landlord approves.
Will it put jobs into ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro or Jobber?
Not today. The AI books into your Google Calendar and keeps a call log in a Google Sheet, recordings included. Nothing goes into ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro or Jobber, so if your crew works from one of them, someone on your side copies the job across. If you use one, say so at the demo and we'll tell you plainly what connects today.
What does an AI answering service for plumbers cost?
Setup is $997, paid once. Starter is $497 a month for up to 1,000 AI call minutes, roughly 500 two-minute calls. Pro is $797 a month, with up to 2,500 minutes and a monthly call review with Andrei or Konnor. Your first month, setup included, is $1,494 or $1,794. It's month-to-month, and extra minutes cost $0.25 each.
Will my customers know it's an AI when they call my plumbing company?
Yes. The opening line says "an AI assistant" and "This call is recorded." Some callers may hang up, and we have no hang-up data yet. A Gartner survey released in July 2024 asked 5,728 customers about AI in customer service: 64% would prefer that companies not use it, and the top concern was reaching a person. Asking for the owner gets a callback.
Source: Gartner, July 2024
Free 20-minute demo
Hear it take a 2 a.m. leak call for a plumbing company like yours
20 minutes with Andrei or Konnor. You'll leave with:
- A live call: we put the AI on speaker and let it answer a call like one of yours.
- Your missed-call math, worked out with your weekly calls and average job.
- A straight answer on whether it's worth it for you, what it costs and when it could start.
If you go ahead and it doesn't book 5 jobs in its first 30 days live, your second month is free. Conditions apply: see the terms.
No long-term contract. If it's not a fit, we'll tell you on the call.
- 1Your details
- 2Pick a time
Thanks, there. Pick a time for your 20-minute Zoom.
Calendar not loading? Open it in a new tab or email hello@automateai.agency.