How to use the online alarm clock
Breaking off halfway through the washing-up to put the milk bottles by the door is easier when an alarm marks the moment. Set it for 11:03 pm, finish the item already in your hands, then take the bottles out before returning to the sink. That leaves the doorstep ready well before 12:00 am, without relying on remembering the job as midnight approaches.
A doorstep reminder is only useful if you can actually hear it from the kitchen or upstairs. Check whether your phone or computer is on silent, and raise the alarm volume enough to carry through the house without making every other notification noisy. Keep this browser page running while you finish what you are doing. If the page is dismissed or the handset settles into sleep, the milk bottles alarm may make no sound and the empties could remain indoors until morning.
Once the bottles are outside, avoid turning the whole hallway bright just for the return journey. Before 11:03 pm, leave a low landing light on or place a small lamp where it illuminates the doorstep and any uneven paving. You can see where to set the glass, lock the door safely and come back inside without switching on harsh overhead lighting late in the evening.
Common questions
Can I change the sound?
Yes, there is a short list of tones to pick from before you press Start. Softer sounds are easy to sleep through, so a firmer bell tends to be the safer choice for anything early in the morning.
Will it still be right when the clocks change?
Yes. It reads your device's local clock, so the move between GMT and BST at the end of March and October is picked up automatically, as long as the computer's date, time and time zone are set correctly.
Can I use this on a phone?
It works in a mobile browser, but phones lock the screen and suspend background tabs far more readily than a laptop does, which can stop the alarm sounding. For anything important, a desktop or a plugged-in laptop is the steadier option.
Does the alarm still work if I close the tab?
No. Everything runs inside this page, so closing the tab — or quitting the browser altogether — ends the countdown there and then. Leaving it open in the background is all it asks, and switching to another tab makes no difference.
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