Automatic Litterbox Central

i, too, am having major smelly problems with the LR since it's started to heat up a bit. "hot" in oakland is like 85 degrees with little humidity but as a result buildings aren't built for coolness (it is RARE to find a non-chain retail store or restaurant that actually has AC!) we have horrible air-circulation in our apartment and the LR is basically right in the kitchen. the smell wafts into our bedroom all the time and it is totally disgusting.

i've been using various kinds of clumping litter, the latest being a generic-brand "mechanical litter box" type from our local pet chain. before i got the LR, i used the all-crystal litter from Trader Joe's (I think it is called Space). the smell was minimal but my cat just can't use a litterbox properly and doesn't know how to bury her stuff (SO happy to see that other people's meowsers have the same issues!), and she would tear through liners and i was just having to clean the box way too often.

my bf and i have so many arguments over the smelliness of the LR and i wind up changing the bag way more than i think i should have to (like 2-3 times a week). it is pretty gross actually how the waste just sits in the drawer all week, you'd think there would be a better seal on it or something because the poo and pee clumps are just hanging out there!

anyway, sorry i rambled...

does anyone use all-crystal litter?

I have been using my litter robot(s) for about two years now and have used WBCL for even longer than that (before the LR I used LitterMaid). Recently I have been dealing with more dust and tracking issues w/WBCL. That + the cost and difficulty sometimes finding it locally prompted me to try Tidy Cat's "new" all crystal litter (not the blend).

I really couldn't be happier - I now have both LR's converted to the crystals and all 6 cats are using them to the same degree as they were before (I have one cat that refused to poop inside - no problem peeing though).

Tracking and dust is almost nonexistant compared to WBCL. Re: smell - WCBL really wasn't a problem in that area, but the crystal formula is "scented" or has a deodorizer in it so there really isn't any smell.

One thing to keep in mind w/crystals - since it is just silica gel it will "suck" moisture from the air (instead of just from the wet remains) - this may reduce it's effectiveness for you. The packaging says to use it in a dry place (not a bathroom for instance).

I have searched this forum and have not found much positive for using crystals in the LR, so perhaps there is a negative I have not found yet, but so far, so good for me.

thanks for your input.

i had asked my boyfriend to pick up some crystal litter at the store last week and didn't specify enough -- he picked up one of the crystal blends, which is a little less stinky than the non-crystal clumping kind.

my one concern about the crystals is that with the LR, the poop is cycled out so quickly that i don't think the crystals will have enough time to "shrink" it and eliminate all odors. also, of course, the crystals don't clump so the pee-crystals will just sit in the globe until i change it again.

I have found that the some crystals "stick" to the pooh. This has the desired effect of removing the moisture.

FYI Target has the best price around here on the 3.5lb - $7.50.