The Harlow Bindicator: Automating Bin Day

I am always having to check the local authority website to see what bin needs putting out, or dealing with the panic when hearing the bin lorry coming down the road. That was enough of a trigger for me to over-engineer a solution.

The idea started simple. I just wanted a reminder so I would not forget. But as these things usually go, it quickly spiralled into a mini project with more moving parts than necessary.

The problem

• Bin schedules are inconsistent, especially around bank holidays.
• The council website is not exactly user-friendly.
• Forgetting collection day means overflowing bins and annoyed neighbours.

The solution

I built a notification system I now call the Harlow Bindicator. It scrapes the council’s collection data, runs it through some scripts, and pushes reminders straight to my phone.

What started as a small script grew into a pipeline of:

• Scraping and parsing bin schedules
• Automating updates with GitHub Actions
• Sending notifications via Home Assistant

Was it more work than just checking the calendar? Absolutely. But it has been surprisingly reliable and satisfying to see it all come together.

What I learned

The main takeaway is that sometimes solving a small annoyance can be a great excuse to practice automation and integration. Even if the end result is technically overkill, the process pays off in skills learned and time saved in the long run.

Thanks for reading. If you have your own over-engineered solution for a household problem, I would love to hear about it.