Lend out the neighborhood's gear

An inventory system is one collection of things you lend, with its own rules. Click New Inventory System (or Settings on an existing one). Name it and add a Custom Short URL if you want an easy link. Under Borrower Information, choose whether a borrower must give an email or a phone number; a name is always required. Return Reminders sets the default return period and emails borrowers when something is due. Organizer Notifications sends you an email on each checkout or check-in.

Categories (Manage Categories) group things the way you'd look for them: tables and chairs, canopies, kitchen gear. Add Item takes a name, how many you have, the category, and where it's stored: a saved location plus a Specific Location like "Shed, back shelf". Add photos so a borrower can tell the 6-foot table from the 8-foot one. Turn on the QR code for an item to print a label that opens it straight to checkout. An item can also override the system's return period or reminders.

If your inventory already lives in a spreadsheet, use Import CSV on the Items page. Upload the file and match your columns to name, quantity, category, description, storage location, and specific location; your headers can be named anything. Set a default category and storage location for rows that leave them blank, and turn on QR codes for everything at once. The review step shows each item before anything is saved: fix a row, add its photos right there, and give an address to any storage location that doesn't exist yet. Then Import finishes the job.

Each system has a Public Access Link and a QR code on its page. Share the link or post the QR code on the storage door. A neighbor opens it, picks an item and how many, and gives their details; with return reminders on, they also pick when they'll bring it back. No account is needed. They get a receipt email with a link to return it themselves, and a reminder when it's due. When an item is all checked out, its page offers Need This Item? instead: a neighbor writes a message and it's emailed to whoever has it, with replies going straight back to them and the borrower's address never shown. If no one who has it left an email, the message goes to your neighborhood's organizers instead, so you can pass it along, and the page tells the neighbor which one it will reach.

The system's page shows active checkouts, overdue items, and recent activity at a glance. View All Checkouts filters to Active, Overdue, or Returned, and exports to CSV. The CSV downloads, here and on the Items page, depend on your neighborhood's plan; if you need them and they aren't available yet, email [email protected]. When someone hands an item back to you in person instead of using their return link, press Check In on their row. Status Report gathers the overdue items and what's available in each category.