{"id":24,"date":"2026-07-12T13:48:58","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T13:48:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sidewrenchapp.com\/?page_id=24"},"modified":"2026-07-12T14:28:59","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T14:28:59","slug":"timer-tracking","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sidewrenchapp.com\/?page_id=24","title":{"rendered":"Timer & Labor Tracking"},"content":{"rendered":"

Side Wrench includes a built-in labor timer that follows you everywhere \u2014 in the app, on your Lock Screen, and in the Dynamic Island \u2014 so billable time never slips away.<\/p>\n

Starting the Timer<\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Open a work order, then open (or create) a repair<\/li>\n
  2. Tap Start Timer<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    While a timer runs you’ll see:<\/p>\n

      \n
    • A timer banner<\/strong> at the top of the Work Orders list showing the vehicle, repair, and a live count \u2014 tap it to jump straight to that repair<\/li>\n
    • A Live Activity<\/strong> on your Lock Screen (iOS 16.1+)<\/li>\n
    • The timer in the Dynamic Island<\/strong> (iPhone 14 Pro and later)<\/li>\n
    • A badge<\/strong> on the app icon showing how many timers are running<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
      \"Repair
      The timer runs right in the repair’s toolbar \u2014 tap the red stop button when you’re done.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
      \"Work
      The banner follows you to the Work Orders list \u2014 one tap returns to the running repair.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

      Lock Screen & Dynamic Island<\/h2>\n

      The Live Activity shows the elapsed time, the repair, and the vehicle \u2014 no unlocking needed. On iPhone 14 Pro and later, a compact timer lives in the Dynamic Island while you use other apps; tap it to expand, or tap through to return to Side Wrench.<\/p>\n

      Enabling Live Activities<\/h3>\n
        \n
      1. Open iPhone Settings<\/strong> \u2192 Side Wrench<\/strong><\/li>\n
      2. Turn on Live Activities<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Hourly Reminders<\/h2>\n

        Forgot a timer? Side Wrench sends a “Timer Still Running”<\/strong> notification every hour with the vehicle and repair name, so a lunch break doesn’t turn into six billed hours. Allow notifications when the app asks to enable this.<\/p>\n

        Stopping the Timer<\/h2>\n

        Open the repair and tap Stop Timer<\/strong> \u2014 the elapsed time is saved to the repair’s actual hours<\/strong>. You can also stop from the Lock Screen Live Activity.<\/p>\n

        Pausing and Resuming<\/h3>\n

        Need to switch jobs or take a break? Stop the timer \u2014 the time is banked. When you start the timer on the same repair later, the new time adds to<\/strong> the existing actual hours, and the display shows your total accumulated time.<\/p>\n

        Manual Time Entry<\/h2>\n

        Prefer not to use the timer? Tap the actual hours<\/strong> field on any repair and type the time (e.g., 2.5 for 2\u00bd hours).<\/p>\n

        Estimated vs. Actual<\/h2>\n

        Every repair shows what you quoted next to what you actually spent. Over time this is gold: if brake jobs always run 30 minutes over your estimate, your next quote should know that. The Dashboard rolls this up into your effective hourly rate.<\/p>\n

        Tips for Accurate Tracking<\/h2>\n
          \n
        1. Start the timer when the car rolls in<\/strong> \u2014 prep time is work time<\/li>\n
        2. Stop for breaks<\/strong> \u2014 accuracy builds trust in your own numbers<\/li>\n
        3. Check the banner<\/strong> \u2014 one glance tells you what’s running<\/li>\n
        4. Review weekly<\/strong> \u2014 compare estimates to actuals and adjust your quoting<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Troubleshooting<\/h2>\n

          Timer not on the Lock Screen?<\/h3>\n
            \n
          1. Confirm iOS 16.1 or later<\/li>\n
          2. iPhone Settings \u2192 Side Wrench \u2192 enable Live Activities<\/strong><\/li>\n
          3. Restart the app and start the timer again<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            No badge on the app icon?<\/h3>\n

            iPhone Settings \u2192 Notifications \u2192 Side Wrench \u2192 enable Badges<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

            Timer stopped unexpectedly?<\/h3>\n

            The timer keeps running with the app in the background, but force-quitting the app or restarting the phone stops it. After a restart, open the app to verify your timer state \u2014 Side Wrench re-syncs the Lock Screen activity automatically.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            Side Wrench includes a built-in labor timer that follows you everywhere \u2014 in the app, on your Lock Screen, and in the Dynamic Island \u2014 so billable time never slips away. Starting the Timer Open a work order, then open (or create) a repair Tap Start Timer While a timer runs you’ll see: A timer […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":20,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-24","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sidewrenchapp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/24","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sidewrenchapp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sidewrenchapp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sidewrenchapp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sidewrenchapp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=24"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/sidewrenchapp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/24\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57,"href":"https:\/\/sidewrenchapp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/24\/revisions\/57"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sidewrenchapp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sidewrenchapp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=24"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}