How to use the online alarm clock
As you hand the coastguard watch over at 2:36 am, set the alarm for the moment you need to begin your own duty rather than relying on a tired glance at the clock. The 24 minutes before 3:00 am leave enough room to exchange the log, confirm any open incidents and get your kit settled without losing track of the start time.
With radios, ventilation and conversation filling the station, check the alarm volume against the actual background noise around you. A signal that sounds clear in a quiet room may disappear beneath a radio message or activity during the handover, so keep the phone close enough to hear without obstructing the workspace. A coastguard watch cannot depend on this browser alarm after the browser stops running or the phone goes to sleep, because no signal will sound for the change of duty.
Before taking over during the night, choose a light snack that can be finished before 2:36 am and keep water nearby for the watch. A large meal or another strong tea just before 3:00 am may feel cumbersome when you need to settle quickly into the role, so leave anything substantial until the next suitable break.
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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