Comparing Dates in Google Sheets Script Editor - google-apps-script

Question

I am very new to this, so please bear with me. I am trying to get my code to look at each cell in a column, then compare that date to the current date, and if they match send an email. I am aware I will need a loop of some sort to get it to look through the column, but I haven't even gotten that far. I've tried every method I can find online to just get it to compare one cell to the date and send the email.
I tested the email function prior to adjusting it to compare the date, so I know that is working. Put something definitely isn't working...
function sendEmail() {
//Fetch the date
var removalDateRange = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getSheetByName("Expirations").getRange("E2");
var removalDate = removalDateRange.getValue();
var currentDateRange = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getSheetByName("Alerts").getRange("C2");
var currentDate = new Date();
var ui = SpreadsheetApp.getUi();
//Check Date
if (removalDate == currentDate) {
//Fetch the email address
var emailRange =
SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getSheetByName("Alerts").getRange("B2");
var emailAddress = emailRange.getValue();
//Fetch Item Brand
var itemBrandRange =
SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getSheetByName("Expirations").getRange("B2");
var itemBrand = itemBrandRange.getValue();
//Fetch Item Name
var itemNameRange =
SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getSheetByName("Expirations").getRange("A2");
var itemName = itemNameRange.getValue();
//Fetch Item Location
var itemLocationRange =
SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getSheetByName("Expirations").getRange("H2");
var itemLocation = itemLocationRange.getValue();
// Send Alert Email
var message = 'The ' + itemBrand + ' ' + itemName + ' in ' + itemLocation + ' will expire in 2 months. Please use and replace item.';
// Second Column
var subject = 'Pantry Alert';
MailApp.sendEmail(emailAddress, subject, message);
}
}
EDIT
Okay, I had it working late last night and even got it to loop through, and somehow I've broken it again. I've been looking at answers for hours trying to adjust things to make it work. What am I doing wrong?
function emailAlert() {
// today's date information
var today = new Date();
var todayMonth = today.getMonth() + 1;
var todayDay = today.getDate();
var todayYear = today.getFullYear();
// 2 months from now
var oneMonthFromToday = new Date(todayYear, todayMonth, todayDay);
var oneMonthMonth = oneMonthFromToday.getMonth() + 2;
var oneMonthDay = oneMonthFromToday.getDate();
var oneMonthYear = oneMonthFromToday.getYear();
// getting data from spreadsheet
var sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getSheetByName("Exp");
var startRow = 2; // First row of data to process
var numRows = 500; // Number of rows to process
var dataRange = sheet.getRange(startRow, 1, numRows, 999);
var data = dataRange.getValues();
//looping through all of the rows
for (var i = 0; i < data.length; ++i) {
var row = data[i];
var expireDateFormat = Utilities.formatDate(new Date(row[5]),
'ET',
'MM/dd/yyyy'
);
//email Information
var subject = 'Pantry Item Needs Attention!';
var message1 =
row[6] + ' ' + row[3] + ' of ' + row[2] + ' ' + row[1] + ' will expire on ' + expireDateFormat + '. Item can be found in ' + row[7]
+ '. Please Remove and Replace Item.' +
'\n' + 'Thanks Steve!';
var message2 =
row[6] + ' ' + row[3] + ' of ' + row[2] + ' ' + row[1] + ' will expire on ' + expireDateFormat + '. Item can be found in ' + row[7] +
'. Please ensure item has been replaced, removed from the pantry, and deleted from inventory.' +
'\n' + 'Thanks Steve!'
//expiration date information
var expireDateMonth = new Date(row[5]).getMonth() + 1;
var expireDateDay = new Date(row[5]).getDate();
var expireDateYear = new Date(row[5]).getYear();
//checking for today
if (
expireDateMonth === todayMonth &&
expireDateDay === todayDay &&
expireDateYear === todayYear
) {
ui.alert(message1);
}
}
}

Answer 1

Dates can be frustrating to work with, so consider doing the whole thing (loop, if then statement...) with an integer first and then returning to the date part if you're having trouble. That said, try adjusting the top of your code to look like the following:
var ss =SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet();
var removalDateVal = ss.getSheetByName("Expirations").getRange("E2").getValue();
var removalDate = new Date(removalDateVal);
var currentDateVal = ss.getSheetByName("Alerts").getRange("C2").getValue();
var currentDate = new Date(currentDateVal);
That will give you two date objects. But BEWARE! These dates contain time as well as calendar date so they may not equal each other even when they appear to. Use setHours() to zero out the date as seen below.
currentDate.setHours(0,0,0);
removalDate.setHours(0,0,0);
Other notes, it's best practice to set a variable for a spreadsheet and worksheet as shown by Google here. It makes the code much more readable.