Waste Collection Reminder

Blueprints Exchange
1

Waste Collection Reminder — Actionable Notifications with Multi-Device Confirmation

A flexible automation blueprint that reminds you about tomorrow's waste collection via actionable mobile_app notifications across multiple phones. Tap "confirm" on any phone and the notification clears on all of them.

Built on top of the Waste Collection Schedule HACS integration.

Features

  • :date: Calendar trigger with configurable offset (default: 17:00 the day before)
  • :mobile_phone: Send to multiple mobile_app devices in one go
  • :white_check_mark: Actionable confirmation button — tap on any phone → clears the notification on all phones and runs your confirmation actions
  • :repeat_button: Optional extra triggers (zone enter, time pattern, …) for follow-up nag reminders
  • :globe_with_meridians: English and German message templates, plus a "not put out yet" variant
  • :broom: Automatic waste-type name cleanup
  • :next_track_button: Skips the notification when no waste is due
  • :hook: Plug in any additional actions — TTS, lights, Telegram, etc.

Import

Open your Home Assistant instance and show the blueprint import dialog with a specific blueprint pre-filled.

Source: https://github.com/Gifford47/hass_blueprints/blob/main/waste_collection_notifier.yaml

Requirements

Setup

  1. Configure the Waste Collection Schedule integration.
  2. (Recommended) Rename your waste sensors in HA to clean names like General waste, Paper, Organic. The blueprint also strips common cruft automatically.
  3. Click the Import Blueprint badge above.
  4. Create an automation from the blueprint and fill in the fields.

:warning: Notification targets are legacy services, not entities

The "Notify Services" field expects legacy notify.mobile_app_* services, one per line — not the new notify entities. Only the legacy services accept the data.actions payload required for actionable notifications.

Find names under Developer Tools → Actions by typing notify.mobile_app_ in the dropdown. Example:

notify.mobile_app_user1_phone
notify.mobile_app_user2_phone

UI-helper notification groups (which are entities) won't work. For grouping, define a YAML notify group in configuration.yaml.

Template variables

Variable Description
waste_list List of waste type names
waste_count Count of waste types due
waste_sentence / waste_sentence_de "X will be collected tomorrow."
waste_sentence2 / waste_sentence2_de "The X has not been taken out yet."
trigger HA trigger object

Combine them however you like. Example context-aware message:

{% if trigger.platform == 'zone' %}
  {{ waste_sentence2 }}
{% else %}
  {{ waste_sentence }}
{% endif %}

Example usage

alias: Waste collection reminder
use_blueprint:
  path: gifford47/waste_collection_notifier.yaml
  input:
    waste_calendar: calendar.waste_collection_schedule
    waste_sensors:
      - sensor.waste_collection_schedule_organic
      - sensor.waste_collection_schedule_paper
      - sensor.waste_collection_schedule_general
    notify_services: |
      notify.mobile_app_user1_phone
      notify.mobile_app_user2_phone
    notification_message: "{{ waste_sentence }}"
    offset_before: "-07:00:00"
    extra_triggers:
      - trigger: zone
        entity_id: device_tracker.user1_phone
        zone: zone.home
        event: enter
    extra_conditions:
      - condition: template
        value_template: >-
          {{ as_timestamp(states('input_datetime.trash_confirmed'))
             < as_timestamp(today_at('05:00')) }}
    confirmation_actions:
      - action: input_datetime.set_datetime
        target:
          entity_id: input_datetime.trash_confirmed
        data:
          datetime: "{{ now() }}"

Known limitations

  • Only notify.mobile_app_* services work — other notify integrations can't deliver actionable notifications in this format.
  • Tag-based notification clearing requires Companion App 2021.5+ on iOS.

Feedback and PRs welcome on GitHub.