Phone systems for HVAC companies
When a furnace quits at 10 p.m., the customer calls whoever picks up first. Vantact sets up your phones so after-hours calls reach your on-call tech, and an emergency message doesn't sit in a mailbox until morning.
What should an HVAC company look for in a phone system?
An HVAC company needs a phone system that gets after-hours emergency calls to the on-call technician and doesn't let them sit in voicemail. Look for voicemail that calls the tech's cell until the message is accepted, escalation to a supervisor if it isn't heard, call queues for the first cold snap or heat wave, a mobile app that shows your office number, and month to month terms so you can add seats for the busy season.
What happens when a customer calls after hours?
Your phones switch to after-hours mode on the schedule you set. From there, every call has a path to a person.
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1
Press 0 for the on-call tech
Your after-hours greeting can tell callers to press 0 to reach the person on call. Callers with an emergency skip the voicemail entirely.
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2
The voicemail calls the tech
If the caller leaves a message, the system calls the on-call tech's cell right away. They press 1 to hear it and # to accept it.
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3
They hear who called and when
Before the message plays, the system reads out the caller's number and when the message came in, so the tech knows who to call back.
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4
It keeps calling until someone accepts
If the tech doesn't accept the message, the system calls again. You choose how many times it retries: 1, 2, 3 or 5.
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5
Unheard messages go to a supervisor
If the message still hasn't been heard after the delay you set, anywhere from one minute to several hours, the system calls your supervisor or owner.
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6
A text and an email as well
The tech also gets a text and an email with the message and when it came in. Accepting it still happens on the call, so you know a person actually heard it.
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7
Shared mailboxes stay in sync
Dispatch and the owner can get copies of after-hours messages, or you can share one mailbox across several phones. In a shared mailbox, a message is marked heard for everyone as soon as one person listens to it.
Changing who's on call
Update the on-call cell number yourself in the web interface, or ask us and we'll change it for you.
Busy seasons without the voicemail pileup
The first cold snap or heat wave fills the phones all at once. Call queues hold callers in order instead of sending them to voicemail, and overflow rules send calls to another group when the wait gets long. Service is month to month, so you can add seats for the busy season and remove them when it's over.
Techs in the field, calling from the office number
With the mobile app, techs make and take business calls on their own phones. When they call a customer back, the customer sees your office number, not a personal cell.
Recordings settle "that's not what you quoted"
Call recording keeps a record of what was quoted and when the appointment was booked. Recordings are kept for 30 days by default, and we can adjust retention on request. Only you and Vantact can access them, and our staff open one only when you need help with a specific call.
See which calls you lost
AI call analytics adds a missed calls report: who couldn't get through, who was called back and how fast, and who's still waiting, most urgent first. It's processed on Vantact hardware in Toronto, and nothing leaves Canada. Turn it on for the seats that need it.
Why Vantact
Set up for you
We configure the after-hours schedule, on-call routing and escalation to match how your company runs.
Month to month
No long-term contract.
Canadian calls stay in Canada
Vantact is Canadian-owned. Calls to and from Canadian numbers are carried on Canadian-owned carriers and routed within Canada.
Support when it matters
Live support runs 9 to 5 ET on business days. After hours, our emergency line is answered by on-call technicians.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can our voicemail call the on-call technician?
What happens if nobody listens to an emergency voicemail?
Can callers reach the on-call tech without leaving a voicemail?
How do we change who's on call each week?
How long do you keep call recordings?
Who supports the phone system after hours?
Is there a contract?
Talk to us about your phones
Month to month, no long term contract. Toronto based support, Monday to Friday 9 am to 5 pm ET.