01
How does an after-hours answering service know you're closed?
From the hours you set. Your weekly hours and closures live in Conduit, and each call is matched to them at the moment it rings, so nothing has to fire at closing time for the night rules to apply. You choose what happens when you're closed: your assistant answers fully and books work, takes messages only, or takes messages and sends you an immediate heads-up. Add a closure or a vacation and it tells callers you're closed and when you're back, and won't book work into those days. A short notice at opening and closing tells you who's answering.
02
How do after-hours calls reach the assistant?
Through a forwarding code you dial once on your own phone — no app or website can change call forwarding for you. There are two choices, and each has a limit worth knowing before you pick. Or skip forwarding entirely and give out your assistant's own local number.
- Ring me first, then your assistant — your phone rings, and the calls you don't pick up roll over, day or night. On Verizon your phone rings about five times first; nobody can change that.
- With ring-me-first, a second caller while you're on the phone gets your carrier's busy handling, usually voicemail, not your assistant.
- On an iPhone, turn off Live Voicemail, or it answers before forwarding can.
- Send every call — nothing rings your phone. Arm it at close and dial the off code when you open; Conduit reminds you at both, and every morning it's still on. While it's on, no call reaches that line, including a 911 callback.
03
What happens to an emergency call after hours?
It doesn't wait for morning. When a caller describes something dangerous, your assistant advises 911 or the utility where life safety is involved, puts the caller through to the first person on your emergency list, then texts each contact in turn until someone opens the alert — by email until your texting is approved. Everything that can wait does: the visits booked overnight, the messages taken and the short list that needs you arrive together in one briefing in the morning, and every recording and transcript is in Calls.
04
How many calls arrive after hours?
Published figures are rare and specific. 10–14% of inbound calls to residential heating-and-cooling businesses arrive outside business hours. That figure comes from ServiceTitan, State of the Trades — summer after-hours call spike (June 2026) (2025 platform data, same-store residential cohort; after-hours = weekdays before 8:00 / after 17:00 plus weekends) — one kind of business, measured one way, so treat it as a reference point, not a forecast for yours. Your own number is easier to get: Conduit's monthly recap counts how many of your calls came in after hours, from your own line.
After-hours answering
Closed for the night. Still answering.
An after-hours answering service covers your business line when you're closed — evenings, weekends, holidays — so a caller reaches an answer instead of voicemail. With Conduit, your hours live in Conduit: every call that reaches your assistant is handled by the rules for that moment — open, closed, or a closure day — worked out when it rings, on our side. You forward your line once, and your assistant books the visit, takes the message or, for an emergency, gets a person on the line.
Last verified
Pricing
After-hours answering is in every plan
Every plan gets the whole assistant. Plans differ by minutes, texts and locations — never by what it can do. Free to set up, no card; paid when you go live.
Solo
One person, one line.
$79/month
150 minutes · 300 texts
about a dozen real conversations a week
TeamMost popular
A busy line or a small team.
$149/month
350 minutes · 750 texts
about 30 real conversations a week
Office
Two locations, one bill.
$299/month
600 minutes · 1,500 texts
2 locations · about 50 real conversations a week across both locations
Minutes only count when a real person talks to your assistant. Spam, robocalls, and hang-ups under ten seconds are refunded to your pool. At your plan's limit, your assistant takes messages — no overage, ever.
Texting switches on after a one-time carrier registration — typically 1–3 weeks after you sign up, sometimes longer. Calls work from day one.
If Conduit isn't right for you, cancel within 30 days of going live and your first payment is refunded in full. The guarantee covers your first subscription payment; minute and text packs aren't refundable. How the guarantee works
Common questions
After-hours answering, answered
Will my phone still ring at night?
That depends on how you forward. With "Ring me first, then your assistant", yes: your phone rings first and the calls you don't pick up roll to your assistant. With "Send every call", no: nothing rings your phone until you dial the off code.
Can it just take messages after hours?
Yes. Choose what happens when you're closed: answer fully and book work, take messages only, or take messages and send you an immediate heads-up. Plenty of owners have it book during the day and take messages at night.
Does it book appointments overnight?
If you leave it answering fully, yes. It books into your Google Calendar against your hours and the capacity you set, never into a closure, and only at a time the caller accepted — the visit is on your calendar when you wake up.
What about holidays and vacations?
Add a closure — one day or a range. While it's active your assistant tells callers you're closed and when you're back, in your own words if you add a short note, and doesn't book work into those days.
How much does after-hours answering cost?
It's part of every plan, not an add-on: Solo $79 a month for 150 minutes and 300 texts; Team $149 a month for 350 minutes and 750 texts; Office $299 a month for 600 minutes and 1,500 texts across 2 locations. Minutes count only when a real person talks to your assistant — robocalls, spam and hang-ups under ten seconds are refunded to your pool — and at your plan's limit it switches to taking messages instead of billing an overage.
Free to set up.Live when you are.
Last verified · every source is linked above