Automatic Litterbox Central

Although I have posted much of this at various locations on the forum, I wanted to give a final report on my experiences comparing the Litter Robot (LR) and ScoopFree (SF).

Trial Period: Twenty days each with both LR & SF
Number of cats: Two
Ages: 8 months, 18 months

SET-UP & EASE OF USE
Both boxes easy to set-up and use.

CAT USE & ADJUSTMENT
SF was easier.
Comments: Both cats used the SF without difficulty. The LR was more challenging for the younger cat. He pooped on step, etc., etc. before he came through and learned to get in, partially turn, and use. I also made a modification to the doorway that may have helped him out.

CYCLING IN
The LR cycles in 7 minutes after the cat leaves the box, cycle lasts about 2 minutes, 10 seconds;
SF cycles in at 20 minutes after cats vacate, cycle lasts about 1 minute.

NOISE
The LR was quieter in my home.
Comments: With the door closed to my laundry room, despite a cat door in it, I had difficulty detecting the LR when it cycled. The sounds with each box are different, the SF a lower tone and was easier for me to hear. The LR may have blended in with the other household sounds. I was unable to detect it at night despite sleeping near its location and trying to hear it (!) whereas I was able to detect the SF.

TRACKING
Less tracking with the SF
Comments: With the SF there was less tracking; however, this could be due more to the crystals. I have tried crystals in my hand-scoop box and there's even less tracking! So part of the difference here will also be the type of litter used.

ODOR CONTROL
No real difference
Comments: Both controlled odor great at times and lousy at times. Food fed the cats, type of litter used, and who covers what seem to make the difference here.

MAINTENANCE
SF is much simpler to maintain.
Comments: The SF is simply designed with covered parts. Its easy to maintain. The rake can get poop on it. Poop can get caught in the "home" area of the box and will need to be removed manually. But these are simple fixes. I used the uncovered box and odor does not build in it whereas this does occur in the LR. This doesn't mean that urine isn't building on the rake, etc. in the SF -- I did detect a urine odor when cleaning it. With the LR, gooped up litter can cling to the walls of the LR (can depend on litter used, as well), cats can poop and pee outside the litter covered areas and because of these and without much ventilation inside the globe, odor can build. The LR is more complicated to clean; however, after gathering my cleaning supplies, I timed myself and swiped out the inside of the LR globe in seven minutes -- this included brushing down any clinging litter, wiping out twice, drying with a small hand towel, lubricating the lining, AND the two minute cycle time! I think weekly maintenance of the inner LR globe is a key to keeping it fresh for the cats but time will tell...

LITTER CHANGES
LR used less litter.
Comments: In twenty days, I changed the crystals three times in the SF due to moisture on the bottom of the cartridge. I pushed it to 9/10 days by stirring the crystals once/day starting at day 6. With the LR, I would not have changed litter at all (I was experimenting with different litters at this point, however...) -- just add some litter once a week or so.

MECHANICAL INTEGRITY
Both boxes worked with NO mechanical or other failings throughout the trial. Very reliable.

ADAPTATIONS
I made adaptations to both boxes
Comments: With the SF, I lined the bottom of the cartridge so I could reuse it. With the LR, I created a lip on the bottom edge and up the left side of the doorway to catch any litter being kicked out by the cats and cycle it back into the globe when it rotated. I also placed a small container in the drawer to catch waste so I could dump it very easily daily.

ESTIMATED COSTS PER YEAR:
LR will likely cost less in litter, more time in maintenance.
Comments: Many different reasonably priced litters can be used with the LR. No proprietary supplies are needed. Purchasing a reusable cartridge from someone or making your own is the most cost effective way to go with the SF. Even so, crystal litter is among the most expensive. I found the Ultra Pearls crystals to be the most affordable where I live -- about $6.00/4 pounds at a local pet store. This would have made the SF doable for me whereas the other crystal litters ranged from about $8 to $10 + for 4 to 4.5 lbs.

WHAT I DECIDED.
Kept the LR
Comments: After the 20 day trials with each box, I gave the cats a 36 hour trial with the LR and SF sitting next to each other. At the end of the trial, the cats appeared to be peeing in the SF and pooping in the LR. So, I placed the SF crystals in the cats' old handscooped litter box and returned the SF to the local pet store. After all, the cats don't need an electronic box to pee in when crystals absorb the urine! I like the versatility of the LR and consider it the workhorse of the automatic boxes... it will likely last for years. The SF has yet to prove itself in this area. I also like to dump the waste more frequently and the waste is easier to remove with the LR design. The LR can be environmentally friendly when organic litters are used and disposed of thus will not harm my septic system or the environment.

End of report. Hope this proves helpful to someone.

Yes that is a helpful report for sure.

I replaced my 10 year old Littermaid which recently lost its sensor operation with another littermaid PLUS LM 700 (didnt want the latest as it seems there are a lot of repors of issues).

While the box works "ok" too many times it would continue to cycle more than once or continuous due to too much litter behind the rake... also the rake would get continuously dirty... and also the main pain is that I did a real good cleaning before putting this new Littermaid on the floor.. and iit seems the littermaid has litter all over the box from being kicked out, the floor... it is just a damn mess.

My litter robot arrived yesterday and I didn't set it up yet.. I am hoping the cats take to an inside litterbox, something they never had. But these aren't the type that would pee on the floor or anything, so I think they will bre skittish at first but use it. I am planning to leave both boxes operating at first to see which they like best. They were even skittish with the new littermaid.. even though it looks the same, the 700 has a more powerful (barely) and quieter motor than the original 500 and the cats took some time to get used to this NEW noise.

I appreciate your review, as I also considered the Scoop Free based on the very long time they report between cleanings. I also have 2 cats, and 7 or 10 days would be wonderful, although from reading everything here this just isn't realistic. That is why I went with the robot.

Also, the place the robot will be is in close proximatey with the bedroom (in the bedrooms bthroom) and I am glad to hear this was not noisy enough to wake you, as the littermaid isnt as well, even the more noisy one, so I doubt the robot would be.

I will report back once the robot is set up.

Can you tell me WHAT is the BEST litter to use as you tried many as you said for the robot. I see people liking Worls Best Cat litter... Some say Scoop Free or arm and hammerer multi cat...

What works best that you have seen for the least odor andleast kick out.. especially least odor (and also least sticking to the globe)

Thanks

Mike

Yes, let us know what happens with your cats and the LR. The SF is a very good box, I think, and I was tempted to keep it so the cats helping out with the final decision was a good solution for me.

Litter -- I am using the World's Best for multiple cats -- it clumps harder but the clumps can be big. With my cats these are not too big and they fall through the port to the drawer just fine. There's still tracking but it was better than the other litters I tried. This litter stuck to the globe less than other litters I tried and clumped better than the regular World's Best.
The World's Best can be disposed of in my septic system and isn't harmful to the cats.

I had three litters that I mixed and had used in an open handscooped litter box. First, I tried these out in the LR but the scented smells were overpowering in the LR globe. If I were the cats, I wouldn't want to go inside! Next, I tried to mix crystals with this litter mix and the crystals got sticky and messy.... At that point, I decided to quit combining litters and tried Odor Lockers. It controlled odor well but tracking was not so good with my cats and it tended to stick more to the globe. My sinuses were reacting to it so I gave it up, too.

Odor Lockers reminds me of Tidy Cats Scoop for Multiple Cats, Immediate Odor Control Formula , with "New" Tidy Lock technology. Looks the same. The Tidy Cats Scoop seems to have a milder odor. I bought this because others on the forum mentioned it but returned it simply because I had tried the World's Best for multiple cats by this time and had decided it worked fine for me and the cats. The Tidy cats came highly recommended by another forum member. I would also be interested in trying the clumping litters with charcoal in them as well as the Arm and Hammar litters.

Best wishes --

Several people have asked to see pictures of the Bengals, Zen and Nuba, so here's as good as it gets so far. If anyone knows how to get the pictures actually inserted on this page, please let me know and I will insert them. I can't figure it out. So for now, just link to the pictures.

The first is of Nuba playing with feathers I have taped to over the LR door to help him get used to the movement on the step. (Yes, the laundry room is the utility and storage area of the house, i.e., it isn't pretty!)

http://pub6.bravenet.com/photocenter/al ... =458171100

Next is Zen and Nuba showing off their spots. Nuba is also going after Zen's tail.

http://pub6.bravenet.com/photocenter/al ... =458171100

And, Zen in the LR with the modified door design to keep the litter in the LR... Okay, I could have done a better job coordinating the color of the tape with the LR.

http://pub6.bravenet.com/photocenter/al ... =458171100

And, last, the cats solution to a new and larger version of the LR.

http://pub6.bravenet.com/photocenter/al ... =458171100

My cats will NOT go into the robot at all.. I sprinkled cat nip and did everything else, but they are larger size, and fit in the hole fine but will not go in.

If I help them in they just pop right back out.....

I will have to return the robot and replace it with a Scoopfree it seems.. Since they give you 60 days I am waiting until the end of this week, although I cant see them taking to the box,...

They never used a covered box before...

This is too bad because I like the way the robot works.

Hi Mike -- It's too bad that the cats will not use the LR. Nuba also had trouble with it, not because of his size so much as he didn't want to go in it and then didn't turn around when he did. But Nub is a cat who typically had gotten into his other litter boxes and immediately stood and toileted... he didn't turn around.... Of course, he did the same thing in the LR. I used to put his favorite food in a little dish way in the furthest spot in the Bot to lure him in. He still would stretch in rather than get both his legs in... While he was stretching eating his snack, I would push gently on one back leg, then the other... sometimes that would work.... and enough times that he finally got in. My mission was to get him to turn around and when he did that to come back out, I would try to get him to stay in the Bot so he would get used to standing in the door looking out... I would feed him more snacks as he stood in the door to get him to stay. This was working but was also such a process that I gave it up when Nub started turning part way in the Bot to use it therefore NOT pooping on the doorway which was the main mission...

The SF is a good solution and is really easy to maintain. And of course you have been on this site long enough to know there are people making and selling the reusable trays. I just recommended the SF to a friend who has an older diabetic cat -- she was going out to investigate.

And if you can get a SF locally and the store indicates you can return it there, you have saved some postage if it doesn't work out.

Again, let us know how it goes.


Best wishes --

Spaceshare, they are gorgeous kitties

Thank you. I can't take any credit for their breeding but they are special kitties and fun!

From my post, last full paragraph above:

So, I placed the SF crystals in the cats' old handscooped litter box and returned the SF to the local pet store.

Just wanted to up-date this message group...

Tonight, I retired the extra litter box (plastic tub) with crystals in it that I was keeping for the cats. They simply weren't using the litter box any longer... All activity is taking place in the Litter Robot (or the out-of-doors -- woods, no traffic, and no signs of coyotes -- Looks like my neighbors and I are back to normal "on the hill"). So, I am down to two cats and one LR... And, I have no use for the scoop any longer. I was stirring the crystals with it, thus, I am really scoop free!