Junkyard Watchdog
Real-time junkyard inventory alerts.
What it does
Junkyard Watchdog watches self-service junkyard inventory so you don't have to. Set up a watchlist for the makes and models you need parts from, and the app pings you when matching vehicles land at yards near you. No more driving across town to check if anything new showed up.
How it works
The backend scrapes inventory from U-Pull-&-Pay, LKQ Pick Your Part, and other self-service chains every few hours. New vehicles get matched against user watchlists automatically. Matches fire push notifications to your phone and roll into daily or weekly email digests depending on your plan.
The app
Built with Expo and React Native, the mobile app lets you browse live inventory, manage watchlists filtered by make, model, year range, and distance, and keep a garage of your active vehicle projects. Everything syncs across devices through the Laravel API.
Stack
Laravel 12 handles the API, ingest scheduling, and admin tooling. MySQL stores the inventory and user data. Stripe powers the subscription billing on web, and Apple StoreKit handles iOS in-app purchases. Push notifications go through Expo to APNs and FCM. Email digests ship via Mailgun.
Where it stands
The app is live on the App Store and at junkyardwatchdog.com. It tracks inventory across 100+ yard locations and has ingested over 2.5 million vehicle records. Currently working on Android launch and part-level pricing data.
