How-To Guide

Join a department with an invite code

Most members join an existing department using an invite code from their department admin.

1. Open the app and tap Join a Department on the welcome screen.
2. Enter your Invite Code (there's a paste button if you copied it from a message or email), then tap Continue.
3. The app confirms the department name and the role you'll join as. Fill in your Full Name, Email Address, and a Password (at least 8 characters with an uppercase letter, lowercase letter, and number).
4. Check the box agreeing to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service, then tap Create Account.
5. Verify your email using the link sent to your inbox, then tap Get Started.

Start a department — Centralized Payment

One account (usually the department or union) covers all members at $4.99/month per member, billed by invoice. Best for departments that want to pay centrally and control the seat count.

1. Go to the Set up your department page on this website and complete the Request an Invoice form: organization name, contact name and email, billing address, and your initial seat count.
2. Submit the form — your invoice is created and emailed to the contact address.
3. Pay the invoice.
4. Once payment is received, you'll get an email with your department's invite code.
5. Download the app, tap Join a Department, and enter that code — the first account set up as manager gets admin access to approve members, set trade rules, and manage seats.
6. Share the invite code with your members so they can join (see Join a department above). Members don't pay anything individually.

Start a department — Individual Payment

Each member pays for their own seat at $2.99/month per person, with no seat limits. Best for crews getting started without department funding.

1. Open the app and tap Start a Department on the welcome screen.
2. On the billing screen, choose Individual Payment ($2.99/month per person · no seat limits).
3. Enter your Department Name (e.g., "Lakeview Fire Department") and tap Continue.
4. Create your account — you'll be the department's Group Manager. Enter your name, email, and password, agree to the terms, and continue.
5. Verify your email using the link sent to your inbox. The app advances automatically once you're verified.
6. Complete your subscription payment.
7. Tap Get Started. As Group Manager you can now share your invite code from the Manage tab so members can join — each member subscribes for themselves when they sign up.

Set up your shift schedule

Your schedule powers the calendar, so the app knows which days you work and which trades make sense for you.

1. Open Shift Setup (you'll be prompted after joining, and can revisit it any time from your profile).
2. Choose your rotation pattern:
   • 24/48 — Work 24 hrs · Off 48 hrs · 3-day cycle
   • 24-24-24-5 — Work · Off · Work · 5 off · 8-day cycle
   • 48/96 — Work 48 hrs · Off 96 hrs · 6-day cycle
   • 24/72 — Work 24 hrs · Off 72 hrs · 4-day cycle
   • Custom / manual — tap days on the calendar to build your own repeating pattern.
3. Set your start date (and platoon, if your department uses them) so the rotation lines up with your real calendar.
4. Save. Your Calendar tab now shows your work shifts marked with a flame icon.

Post a trade

Need a shift covered? Post it to your department's trade board in under a minute.

1. From the Trades tab, tap the post button to open Post a Trade.
2. Choose your trade type:
   • Swap — a specific date exchange: you give a shift and want a specific shift back.
   • Owed — they cover your shift now and you owe them one later (no return date locked in).
3. Tap Giving Shift and pick the shift you're offering from the calendar. For a Swap, also tap Want Shift and pick the date you want in return.
4. Choose Full Shift or Partial Shift. For a partial, set the start and end times — the app shows the coverage hours needed. Partial shifts are always posted as Owed.
5. Optionally add Notes, your Role for the shift (e.g., "Driver", "Acting Captain"), and your Hall / Station.
6. Tap Post Trade (or Post Shift (Owed) / Post Partial Trade). Your trade appears on the board immediately and your department is notified.

Accept or negotiate a trade

Open any trade from the Trades tab to see its details: the dates involved, who posted it, role, station, and notes.

1. Tap a trade on the board to open its detail screen.
2. To take the trade as posted, tap Accept Trade (for an owed shift, you'll see Accept & Owe Shift — taking it records that a shift is owed).
3. To work out a different return date, use the trade's negotiation chat: message the poster directly, agree on a date, then Propose it from the conversation.
4. The poster reviews proposals and accepts the one that works. Once both sides confirm, the trade is Finalized — both calendars update automatically and the trade is recorded in the department's history.
5. Posted something by mistake, or plans changed? Open your trade and tap Cancel Trade (you'll be asked for a reason).

Shift balances & proposing adjustments

FireSwap automatically tracks who owes who. The Shift Balance screen shows two lists: people you owe, and people who owe you — with separate tabs for Full Shifts and Partial Shifts (tracked in hours).

1. Open Shift Balance from your profile.
2. Review your balances. A trade you accepted as "Owed" shows up here until it's paid back.
3. Did something happen off the app, or is a balance out of date? Select the person and tap Propose Balance Adjustment.
4. Enter the corrected balance and send the proposal. The other member gets a notification.
5. The other member taps Accept or Decline. Only when they accept does the balance actually change — both sides always have to agree.

Use the Watchlist

Want to pick up a shift on a specific date? Let the app watch the board for you.

1. Open the Watchlist tab.
2. Add the dates you'd be willing to work.
3. When a colleague posts a trade giving away a shift on one of your watched dates, you get a notification right away — no need to keep checking the board.

Chat & notifications

1. The Chat tab is your department's group conversation. New trades are announced there automatically, and each trade has its own thread for working out details.
2. The bell icon opens your Notifications feed: new trades, proposals on your trades, accepted offers, finalized trades, and balance proposals.
3. To control what you're notified about, open Notification Settings from your profile and toggle each category (trade postings, proposals, chat messages, and so on) on or off.

Admins: manage your department

Department admins get a Manage tab with four sections: Users, Settings, Audit, and Billing.

1. Invite members — In Settings, copy your department's invite code and share it. Tap Rotate at any time to generate a new code and invalidate the old one.
2. Control how people join — Choose whether the code alone is enough, whether each new member needs admin approval, or restrict sign-ups to approved email domains (e.g., your city's email).
3. Approve new members — Pending requests appear at the top of Users. Approve or deny each one.
4. Manage members — From Users, search for any member to Change Role or Remove them from the department.
5. Review activity — The Audit section is a full log of trades and changes in your department, and you can generate an audit document for record-keeping.

Manager Portal: manage your department from the web

Group Managers of centralized (department-paid) and pilot departments can manage their department from any web browser — no app required. Sign in at the Manager Login page using the same email and password as the app.

1. First time? — If you received a Group Manager invite code by email, click Activate your account on the login page and enter the code to set your password. The same login works in the FireSwap app too.
2. Trade History — Browse and filter your department's full trade history, and export it as a PDF for record-keeping.
3. Roles & Invite Codes — Create roles, set member limits, and copy invite codes to share with your members.
4. Billing & Seats — View your subscription and update your seat count as your roster changes (centralized departments).

Billing

1. Centralized departments — Admins see the subscription status, seat count, and cost in the Manage → Billing section, and can adjust the member count as the roster changes — in the app or from the Manager Portal on the web. Invoices go to the billing contact on file.
2. Individual departments — Each member manages their own subscription from the app; billing status is visible under their own account.
3. Questions about an invoice or switching billing models? Email info@fireswap.ca.