Automatic Litterbox Central

Hi All!

Just wanted to let you all know that it looks like the Litter Robot will have a little competition coming soon.

A new automated box similiar to the Litter Robot will be available in late 2005. It's called the "Litter Revolution". Here's the website and info: http://litterrevolution.com

I have an LR and love it, except for the size constraints and shallow depth of the tray. It looks like the Litter Revolution will empty the poop into a bag located in the back... That might eliminate the problem of the LRs globe dragging through the poop pile and making that messy track along the globe.

I couldn't find any pricing info, but they hint that it will be less $$ than the Litter Robot.

I e-mailed them for pricing info and for the inside dimensions. Might be a good one to watch!

-Sharon

The manufacturer of the Litter Revolution got back to my e-mail for more info.

They said the unit will be between $199 and $249 and they are hoping to have units available by the end of the year.

"The drum is approximately 22" in diameter and the inside screen takes up only a few inches on the top portion of the drum, but the entire circumference is still available to the cat."

They are recommending the unit for cats 20 lbs. and smaller.

For more info contact:

mailto:info@litterrevolution.com
Linda Shriftman
VP Development & Sales
Litter Revolution, Inc.
579 Echo Ridge Court
Reno, Nevada 89511
775-851-7781 Phone
775-851-7782 Fax
http://www.litterrevolution.com

Just an FYI!

-Sharon

Interesting. We'll have to keep ourselves tuned into this development.

We'll see. I hope they test it with actual cats. Duncan objects to the transparent plastic part of it already, citing "privacy concerns."

Wow. This thing looks promising! Compared to the Litter Robot, it's cheaper, quieter, more compact (without sacrificing interior space) and potentially cleaner / less smelly (i.e. by using a sealed bag instead of a not so well sealed tray).

That said, looking at the pictures, I have a few concerns:

1. That bag looks TINY!!! By the looks of it, you'd have to empty the bag every day.

2. Access to the waste looks like a pain compared to the Litter Robot. A front mounted drawer is a lot easier to get at than something at the back that you have you reach in and pull up (I assume) to remove. Depending on how tight the space is around the unit (maybe under a shelf, in a closet, etc.) you might have to drag the whole unit out to get to the back and pull out the waste thingie. That would suck.

Otherwise... I like it. It's also a lot nicer looking that that crazy litter robot globe.

I got a reply from Litter Revolution with a few more details not yet mentioned in this thread.

1. The bag should be big enough for 1 cat for 5-7 days. You can use any kind of bag you have at hand. Somehow, the unit will not allow the bag to overfill (a sensor?)... so there would never be a messy overfilled bag.

2. You can change the bag either by lifting out the bag caddy or simply reaching in behind the unit to get at the bag and leaving the caddy in place.

3. The drum doesn't rotate... the screen rotates around the drum. They claim it works extremely well and keep the litter very clean.

4. There is a "good possibility" they will be shipping to Canada and some of the larger pet chain stores will also carry it.

5. Smaller footprint than the robot but with more interior room. The specs are not final as it's still being tweaked, but the size will be less than 24"x24"x24".

6. More photos and info will be added to the website as they get closer to having the final production version finished.

The only question I have, the only question is ever have, is what's the biggest litter clump this thing can swallow without choking? Cuz my cat can make them the size of baseballs.

What do you mean, the screen rotates around the drum?

Yep, it looks like the globe (which is techically a drum since the ends are flat) is stationary. Somehow an inner drum rotates and does what the Litter Robot does. It's not clear if it relies on gravity like the Litter Robot. Of course it's impossible to know for sure from their web site since they don't show it doing anything. I hope they add more details because we all know how poorly designed automated litter boxes can quickly turn into automated mess makers.

Other questions I would have is how easy it is to clean and how often you'll need to. The Litter Robot already has too many spots to clean and one unlucky drop of water in the base unit can ruin it. The LItter Rev sounds like it could be more complicated to clean with two separate drums. It looks like you could end up with mess smeared on the inside instead of the outside. Maybe that's an improvement.

There's also the question of how well it will do with cats who don't bury their business. The Litter Robot does that automatically by battering everything with litter before it drops into the tray. It looks like the Litter Rev's screen will go straight into any uncovered waste on top of the litter. That could get gross with my cat.

I just fried my second Litter Robot in eight months so I guess I'll be on the Litter Revolution preorder list.

I received a response from Litter Revolution as well and wanted to share some of the information I received as it may help clarify what has already been posted.

There is only a single drum and the screen is attached to that single drum and the whole drum, with screen attached rotates. They claim the bag holds waste for 5-7 days for one cat. It must be emptied when full. There is not a sensor which determines when the bag is full but it is correct that any type of bag can be used.

The waste bag is accessed from the back of the unit via the caddy, but can be easily removed by pulling the caddy (removable back part) up and placing it on a counter, dryer, washer, floor, etc. the bag is removed and a new one is placed on the caddy and then the caddy is returned to the back of the drum. The unit will come with sliders so it can be easily pulled out if placed under a counter. The drum can be removed from the base for cleaning and in testing the drum has only needed to be cleaned on average every 3 months or so - a good deep cleaning - by using a hose, taking it to the car wash or scrubbing it down in the bathtub.

They say they have tested it on real cats already and it works better and is easier than the Litter Robot and the Littermaid. Sounds like it might be a winner. We will have to wait and see. I can't wait to try it.

I am leary of ordering a new box until all the bugs get worked out. I would love to hear feedback as soon as someone tries one! Sounds promising. Sage

With this new information, it looks like Litter Revolution is more like the LitterMaid than the Litter Robot in that it scoops the litter like the LitterMaid instead of sifting it through a screen like the Litter Robot. This means that potentially it could have many of the problems the LitterMaid has.

They're going to have to provide a more detailed explanation of how this thing works to get my money.

From what they have described and from how the Litter Revolution looks, it is nothing like the Littermaid. They describe the screen that is attached to the drum, not a rake, like the Littermaid. The LitterMaid rakes the clumps and makes a mess out of them. I think the Litter Revolution will pick up the clumps in the screen as it circles around and dump the waste into a bag in the back. Agreed...all new products need some time to get bugs out. I've tried the Littermaid and the LitterRobot and gosh knows we need something better, so I hope this is it.

I wonder how the screen will dump. If it's rigidly attached to the dome, how does it dump? Is the screen a moving mechanism, swinging to dump the contents into the bag? I am not familiar with the litter robot so this part is a mystery to me.